Marko

The hydraulic splitter on the Leyland looks a nice bit of kit. Could you post the make/model?

Thanks for everyones help and inputs.

Mr Ed - did you get my PM and email? I could do with a chat urgently if you can ring. Ta.

A run on a colour would quickly hit the house limit and thwart your plan. Also remember that red or black is not an evens bet. Green pays the rent.

Richard, Richard, thanks for the photo - areal tidy job. Mr Ed, I suppose for 80 percent of the year I would have the machine just as Richard has in the photo. But at this time of year I would need it working hard shovelling hardcore and road planings for repairs to farm tracks. Also to move / load pallets up to (but rarely) 1 tonne - usually a cube in a stillage - on to a trailer but also being able to put stuff on top of the container is useful. Now and then extract logs from site; forest work more often than residential. It is to replace a MF135 with a forklift on the back so the linkage gives a bit more overlap on other odd jobs. Budget is as little as possible to do the job. I will PM phone no and hopefully we can talk soon. Cheers.

Gave up and lit the fire at 11am

I left a message at PLG but nobody got back to me - must be too busy helping Bernard spend his turkey money. Similar story with JCB if I'm honest - I had to point out that I have been asking for a demo for over a month before one was organised. It must be hard for the lads and lasses on the shop floor who are on short time / laid off whilst the sales teams saunter along without a care in the world. Mr Ed - have you got any photos of a GT50 with a 3 point linkage at the rear as I am finding this hard to visualise. Also could you please PM the pricing for same and attachments. Ta.

Woodplans - could you say where you got it from? According to the Weidemann website the nearest dealer is in Ireland.

I do the same as Quickthorn. The growth of a seedling surrounded by a meter of weed free ground compared to one without is dramatic.

We buy our ash trees in as 2"-3" seedlings - they are slow to get established but are at 6ft by the 5th season (rabbits permitting). After this there is no stopping them.

I hadn't realised there was now so much choice of compact loaders! I have had a quick look at the two mentioned above and they would seem to be more adaptable than the JCB although I can't find in the tech spec if there is a constant pump aux hydraulic circuit although think there must be for brush attachments ect. Has anyone used them to power a splitter? Also if anyone has already done their homework, how did they all stack up on price, aftersales support, resale value etc.

Have been considering a skid steer for loading trailers and general handling around the yard but have been asked to consider a JCB 403 loader. It would not chew up the yard, will fit in a container etc etc. Your thoughts very welcome on both the skid steer options and the 403

After not finding anything local for ages, we decided to buy arable land and plant our own woodland. It takes a long time and quite a bit of effort (we are still planting approx 300 trees a year) and six years on we are only just starting to get saplings that are of a size that you could start to call emerging woodland!

When smiting ones groundie from above, it should be remembered just how far the words that taketh the Lords name in vain travel.

Been meaning to ask this for some time.... A cube bag??? Do you guys buy in 1 Cubic meter bags or is this just a term for a builders bag. If it is the latter then the standard size was only .66 of a cubic meter when I measured it. Not many of us would be that happy if served only 2/3rds of a pint! So... if builders bags are the unit of measurement I use 23 a year. If cubic meters are the unit of measurement I use around 15 a year. A big difference! I am sure we will have Trading Standards involved sooner or later if we don't clarify this. It doesn't change the price - it is still going to be £45 or whatever for a builders bag full however much wood is actually in it.

Forgot to mention... at home we have two log burners (a 5kw and an 8kw) which we try and light to keep the gas central heating at bay. We go through approx 15 cubic meters a year of mixed very well seasoned logs.

My brother and his wife runs a cottage B&B in Wales which has recently been converted to be heated entirely by wood fuel. He uses around 30 cubic meters a year (a mix of around 50/50 oak and fir) which he processes himself to keep the outgoing cash to a minimum. All this was known and planned for. It might sound daft but what was the real surprise was just how much room 30 cubic meters of wood takes up. The even bigger surprise was the realisation that, as they are processing freshly felled wood, they actually need space for the 3-4 years worth of wood which is drying out at any one time. Yep....120 cubic meters. You will need to be really sure you have the supply channels, space, tools and enthusiasm to handle the actual quantities you will need to process before making the committment. A pellet boiler will look very cheap compared to going down this path without all your ducks in a row. If your interested, please see http://www.coedcae.co.uk/light_my_fire.html for the whole story.

Did he offer any solution to "safe" coppicing? I am always eager to learn!

Some really good points raised in this thread and real food for thought. The current surge in using wood fuel may very well tail off when gas prices eventually drop back but I think this autumn we have just had a glimps of a future where wood fuel becomes a more mainstream product. If this is the case then the Arb industry may well need to seriously consider that firewood may no longer be seen as just a nice little earner from a by-product but be a viable stand alone business that requires a consistent supply. How each individual wants to position themselves in the new marketplace will be up to them. I can assure you that I will not be quoting for any arb work. I have no wish to climb 12ft let alone 120ft poplars! I will however continue to volunteer to clear felled, fallen and hung trees for firewood. I do resent the implication that if I do it for the firewood I must be a cowboy. I have the kit, the experience and the qualifications but my days of pure arb work are over and I am very happy to concentrate on firewood. If you guys don't want the wood - I do. You can call me a subcontractor (or anything else) but I would be very happy to work along side you if it was mutually beneficial and I am sure there will be many more like me all over the country who would do the same.

I find that the worst bit about splitting by hand is picking up the wood which seems to feel it is its duty to fly away as far as possible. Have a lok at the simple invention near the bottom of the page http://www.coedcae.co.uk/light_my_fire.html. Now why did I not think of that years ago!

Next time you get a new yellow pages delivered just take a look what is put out for the recycling collection the following week.... tons and tons of paper directories still in their vacuum sealed wrapper!!!. Whether we like it or not people are using the internet as the first port of call for finding the contact details even for businesses that they are familiar with. I long since stopped paying for any newspaper ads, paper flyers or paper based "directories" as I suspect most go straight into the bin and the cost is astronomical compared to the web. I do however pay (very very small sums) for weblinks on the sensible "on topic" directories which give me two benefits - 1) Conventional business leads and 2) an increased google ranking for my own website as the crawlers see high ranking 'on topic' websites are linking to my pages.

I used saturn for 2 sets of blades now. As most will know, chipper blades are not cheap but Saturn were competitive and did a very good job. The difficult bit I find is getting hold of the correct standard of bolts to hold the blades in.

Looks great. Font size is absolutely fine on my display. A little darker would help my rapidly deteriorating eyes though! Good Work.

I was talked into doing the CS30/CS31 course and felt it a bit expensive for someone who had been regularly using a chainsaw for well over 25 years. In the end I have to admit to learning an awfull lot and really wish I had done it years ago. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing - never a truer word when applied to a chainsaw. Do the course!