Stephen Blair

its nothing to do with a having a drink with me, i only go out about 6 times a year. you havent a clue what you are going to, if i wanted to get there quick i would want to just jump in a van and go, but usually on stuff like this a jcb is the answer. shove it to the side and open the road. this is the kind of contract that forces the value of our work down. if no one goes in for it then it will force the authorities to get a local firm on the books and pay accordingly. and also safety is an issue, storm damage at night time with a 2-3 man team isnt a good idea. the highways have the right idea up here, they have a volvo articulated shovel with a set of forks on it and one guy, he turns up, dozes it to the side and heads off home, and most of the stuff from 2 years ago is still there, thats what you are competing with. the paperwork will look great, and fortunes will be spent on insurances and training and old jock the farmer will get bunged 50quid for 20 mins in his manitu, it will look good on paper but at night time when you turn up, some poor policeman has been standing there for hours in the rain, no risk assesment, no filling in of forms, just get it done and go home.good luck with the contract guys, or should i say, 'this time next year we will al be millionaires'

i dont even know companies that do loads, if you put it into google you get thousands, i would rather deal with folk on here that know others, keep it in the big arb family so to speak, you can get references and recomendations from guys who know

well done carl, that looked like a big old lump you were taking off with the crane, i have never done a crane job but i can imagine your heart must be in your mouth when the top floats away. you will be the local hero for the kids and heart throb for the ladies mate:001_cool:

not down here mat, the big pulp mill runs pulp and keeps its own waste now and uses it to power the plant, and the smaller one around here uses the sawdust for its own stables.

no distilerrys bob, we are tourist seaside town. i dont know of any lorries personally that go up and down south, i was hoping some of you guys might know of some. we could load tracor and loader .

you were lucky there mate, glad you are ok

giggle giggle!!

haha ha

personally i like how marc noticed mikes oil cap not on properly, i noticed it too i was hoping to see a shot of a big sticky oily sawdusty mess on his trousers and his groundy sporting some red ears:001_tt1:

not the crap stuff bob

we were right tom told you i know these things:closedeyes:

i dont know what messier is but if he looks like a kitten i am getting a robe and sandills as we speak

if i can crash it big i will, i usually just work with one groundie so lowering big is a pita, and i dont see the benefit unless i can lift it out big. I very rarely lower now as my jobs are pretty easy stuff, but i am a big fan of a simple speedline, old climbing rope, slings and carbs. whizzzzzzzzz:001_smile:

yes definately chestnut tom, i know these things i do

no wonder it took you so long to take that wee ash down, all the boys eyeing each other up, checking out their buffness on the window reflection:001_tt1:

i never use knots, slings and crabs all the way, so much quicker and there isnt any fear of a numpty groundsman pulling your line through the pulley.

good job simon, is that company vests i see?

ha ha, i thought that was the quickest deal in the world:001_smile:

how long is the artic and does it have a hiab?just for access reasons and loading

from what i can gather you guys down south have a huge demand for firewood and it is rising, i have approx 250 ton bags worth nearly seasoned, mostly ash,sycamore and some awesome dead beech. there is about 40 bags worth of scots pine ans cedar mixed, in one of the bays but that could be seperated. could anyone make it worth while sending it down in bulk loads loose. i have these 3 bays crammed, another one around the back and what you can see on the pile, i have ran out of room and would rather get rid of it in a oner instead of bagging and delivering.

i think this is why the councils keep the creamy stuff for their own guys and sub out all the crap stuff. they would have to pay their own staff a fortune to sit by the phone all night. so why not sub it out, have every tree cutter in the country waiting on tender hooks and not spend a penny.

another person told me a green load of sitka on an artic, i think that is 28tonnes, on a roasting hot dry weekend can loose 8 ton of moisture. dont buy in weight, i sold some in weight, it was seasoned and it was a waste of time. what i thought was about 8 tonnes wasnt even 4. my mistake was doing the deal, then loading the trailer and going to the weigh bridge, if i could of weighed it first i would of known what to charge

i thought of putting a big set of scales on the back of a truck and selling them by weight, like a green grocer. then the customer spends what they can afford. you could deliver by the wheelbarrow load, remember the thing for filling coal sacks, you would weigh it then tip it out into the bag, you could do that, slap a sticker on the bag and bobs your uncle

you know i do johny, but i now have 3 chippers, so i need rid of one so i can get yours