nepia

I had you in mind when I posted! Thanks very much; that's great. As a pointless aside the quarry at Betchworth (presumably the same one) is now an SSSI and hosts 11 species of bat in the kiln tower!

I'm appealing here to any senior members who were operating in Surrey/Kent at the end of the 80s when half the membership weren't born! . The attached pics were taken in Reigate in 1988 I believe. The timber being milled is the top half of a hurricane damaged Scots Pine, the last known board of which my son recently used to fashion a dining table top for himself. The pics I've been given by a friend of the tree owner and they will be kept with the table. Now does anyone recognise the guy with the very handy looking portable mill? The vehicle is probably the best clue; it is distinctive. Sorry but I have no more to go on; the guy could have travelled far for all I know but I'm hoping not and that someone here who was around then may just know him. Thanks in advance. I await the upside down/sideways pics, something that always seems to happen nowadays. Jon Yep, they're sideways. Great.

Re your horizontal vs vertical pull question - lay a fat log in front of the stump with the rope/strop/chain running over it; that gives lift as you pull.

I reduced half a dozen 20' Field Maples to 5' years ago: four are now a decent hedge that I trim several times a year. The last one snuffed it and another has gone since. So perhaps reduce them in stages, mulching their bases as you go...? I have no experience re elm.

Perfectly reasonable I would have thought for a £2500+ investment.

woody paul, why don't you go and have a look at some? Brian James are not that far from you - Daventry.

I have a plain CarGo non-tipper, non-plant trailer and the build quality is excellent; the closing and pin locking mechanisms are well thought out and fit well. How well it would stand up to typical commercial arb beasting is a separate question. I think the fact that a 400kg trailer has a carrying capacity of 2600kg speaks for itself.

...or blast the leaf blower down the chute before switching off!

Have been very impressed with my 241 since new 5 years ago. Yeah it's autotune but that hasn't presented any problems.

That's excellent Mark. The new studio's looking good now. Jon

Lots of rain... landslip surely.

Life's just not bloody fair is it. Really sorry to read of your predicament but you have good attitude - use it. How sad re your recently departed friend too... All the best to you. Jon

Constrictor knot? [ame] [/ame]

Meindl Waldlaufers are excellent. So tight when new I thought I was going to have to get the next size up but they moulded and stretched brilliantly.

Beat me to it. Have put nothing other than softwood through my burner for nearly 10 years now. Easy to dry, easy to burn and it gives good heat; love it.

Cotoneaster?

I'm the world's worst appreciator of art I'm afraid; the bear is OK (by my poor standards) but the acorn is great - love it. Not intended to be a barbed compliment; I just have no taste in art!

This tickled me. 'An old Marine Pilot sat down in Starbucks, still wearing his old USMC flying jacket, and ordered a cup of coffee. As he sat sipping his coffee a young woman sat down next to him. She turned to the pilot and asked 'Are you a real pilot?' He replied 'Well, I've spent my whole life flying planes; first Stearmans, then the early Grummans... flew a Wildcat and Corsair in WWII and later in the Korean conflict Banshees and Cougars. I've taught more than 260 people to fly and given rides to hundreds so I guess I am a pilot. And you; what are you?' She said 'I'm a lesbian. I spend my whole day thinking about naked women. As soon as I get up in the morning I think about naked women. When I shower I think about naked women. When I watch TV I think about naked women. It seems everything makes me think of naked women.' The two sat there sipping in silence. A little while later a young man sat down on the other side of the old pilot and asked 'Are you a real pilot?' He replied 'I always thought I was but I just found out I'm a lesbian.'

Beardie, get yourself to Wisley in April: they have a woodland of 50-60' Magnolias and yes, they are a sight to behold.

Landskills Training at Dorking?

I was thinking similar; soak it in Gunk, pressure wash clean, let dry, then soak in chain oil.

He will look good with matching baffle and socks

Many years ago a farming relative made a cage for a Massey 35 from scaffold. He then rolled the machine backwards (steep slope, Cambridge roller on 3-pt link drawbar lifted too high!) and had a lucky escape when the cage simply folded. Likely there were design and build flaws but I think scaffold won't be sufficient without extensive strutting.

Inevitable when dogs become a fashion accessory and are subject of daft breeding programmes that produce designer pooches. There's a lovely character in this area, as yet unknown, beheading cats. I think 20-30 have so far been found. I know many wouldn't think of that as a crime (is it cruel if done quickly?) but it's Criminal Damage and when you look at the effect it must have on the owner...

He certainly savaged my 262! Sorry Stubby - couldn't resist. Jon