stampy

Turned out that the plate one of the feed rollers is mounted on had cracked so it wasn't sitting flat, which meant it couldn't close all the way. Got that welded back up so it's sitting nice and flat and it's fine now!

My insurance is mainly for my bigger kit, which would definitely be a claim if it got nicked. The policy covers a certain amount of hand tools as part of it, but if the excess and the inevitable premium increase outweighs the value of the tools stolen then it doesn't make sense to claim.

I know, never used to leave any hand tools in there but just got lazy over the last year or so 🤦 The only consolation is my husky blower needs exactly the right combination of swearing and crying to start, and they'll never be able to figure it out.

yeah that's basically what I tend to think too. Everyone is quick to say how insurance companies will wiggle out of things or bend you over if they can, but I'm interested in actual examples of people who have claimed and then had their premiums absolutely rocket.

Yeah that's what I was worried about....Arborisk were understandably vague about how much my premium might increase by when I asked them

Has anyone made a claim on their insurance after a theft? If so was your premium massively increased when you renewed? Got to the yard this morning and some scumbag has broken open my container and stolen a bunch of tools, hedge cutters, blower, saws etc. Probably about 4-5 grand to replace it all if bought new. I can get by with what I've got left (split my saws up into two locations for just this reason!) and build it all back up slowly or make a claim and hopefully get a decent amount towards it. But then if the premium goes up by thousands at renewal time it hardly seems worth it....

Hi all, I've just bought a 2003 TP270 and there's a gap between the feed rollers, probably an inch and a half or so, such that small material doesn't get pulled in. Does anyone have experience of these chippers? Is this just the design (given that they're probably designed more for fuelwood chipping rather than little bits of brash) there doesn't seem to be any way to close the gap as far as I can see...

I've got this grab, bought it from Ian at Pons Medda engineering a couple years ago. With a couple of mods It's by far my favourite attachment. Have tried to get in touch with Ian a couple times recently for parts and can't get hold of him though...

Awesome. Just hope to god you don't hit a pothole 😅

Put a dishwasher tablet in there and fill with boiling water and leave for half an hour or so. Cleaned my coffee pot at home like this the other day and came out so shiny and delightful.

Great idea locking the forks in with a bolt, might well do that. normally when the beak is fully extended out it just clamps on the top of the rake bar, holding it on so you can push up a pile, open the beak and drop the rake off and pick the pile up. But I snapped the end of the beak off...

Oh, also it'll go up 8' ramps into the back of my Cabstar, with space for ground mats/bits and bobs. 8' ramps is just the right side of too sketchy, 6' ramps are a no go 😁

I've had an Opico Skidster for about 18 months - bought it on ebay on a whim for 4.5k which seemed a lot (to me), but I wouldn't sell it for twice that now! With regards to attachments, by far my favourite is the rotating grab (knockaround type, no hydraulic rotator) that I got from Ian at Pons Medda engineering for a really good price, and then chopped it about a bit to make it better. It takes a bit of getting used to compared to a grapple bucket or fixed grab but is more versatile than a fixed grab in my opinion, especially on a tiny machine. Took some pics of the different ways you can handle stuff with it - pick stuff up at right angles to the machine for max lift, crowd the butt(s) against the headstock to lift it in line with the machine, or just grab the end and drag which works so well with brash as it follows you round corners/through gaps etc. I've got pallet forks with the awesome Extendo beak for bigger diameter lumps of wood, and a rake which slides on the forks which is very much a mark 1 prototype but very useful in the right setting. Fun to try and squeeze every last bit of productivity out of such a tiny thing. Also got a removable towhitch welded on the back for dragging chipper round site/shunting trailers at the yard.

All that future tech and he's still got to wear a poverty spec husky forestry lid....

Ive got a 661 with a 20" and a 28" and think if you're only buying one bigger saw at the moment it's worth considering - the 661 is absolutely lush, really light and easy to use compared to a 660, say. I tend to skip straight from a climbing saw with a 14" bar to the 661 with 20" for chogging down.

I use a CT ascender over my spikes - I'd be very wary using any foot ascender that doesn't have a locking cam (like a pantin) with spikes - if it kicks out unexpectedly you could make a proper mess of your other leg...

I've been using it a fair bit over the last year or so (ZK1 and pinto rig) and I love it, especially like you say in a two man team. it's not for every situation though. I kind of try and assess how heavy the bits are gunna be and then choose a rope accordingly. Mostly I use some old Tachyon though, sometimes Blaze. Tried it with 12mm stable braid and there's just too much friction. Try an old climbing line and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Alright chaps, I'm just learning to splice doublebraid and I've done three splices in silverstreak, following the Samson instructions. Each time I'm getting this kinda bulge on the left hand side - can anyone point out where I'm going wrong? is it an something to do with the cover taper (5,5,5 according to Samson)? I've done some Marlow friction cord and some Poison Ivy and didn't have the same problem, they turned out ok

Imagine some pretty girls are watching you....

I had the same problem with my first pair - sent them back to the supplier, who sent them back to Meindl who said something along the lines of 'oh yeah. They're not waterproof at all...ummm....sorry' And sent me a new pair. But it did take a good few weeks... Worth it in the end, mind, the replacement pair were/are totally waterproof and good boots.

My step dad was diagnosed with NHL about a year ago - he had 6 months of CHOP therapy (I think) which made him a bit tired, but did the trick and he went into remission - him and my mum have just sailed through the Panama canal, resuming their massive sailing trip that the cancer interrupted. He's absolutely fine now, regained his strength (and his hair) and is currently anchored in the Galapagos islands Keep your head up mate.

It really depends on the market you're going for with the fliers - if you're hitting suburbia, then 'competitive prices' or 'conifer hedge specialist' might be appealing. If you're going for big country houses, 'meticulous attention to detail' might get you more responses. I think the thing about fliers is that everyone hates them as a default, so you've got to give people a reason not to immediately throw them in the bin. Someone mentioned 120gsm as a decent paperweight, but with a postcard style, I'd go for 250gsm. It'll put the print costs up a lot, but people will be more inclined to hang on to them. We've had a lot of success with some very well designed (ie not designed by a tree surgeon) fliers...

Doing a bit of planting today, a couple of 'October Glory' variety red Maples and a Robinia. The lady of the house came out to show us exactly where she wanted the trees planted, which went like this: 'yeah, so can you put the Ribena in here....... and put the morning glory in here.' Just managed to keep a straight face. Just.

No, black. Definitely black.

Bet it all on red....