geoff

Sorry mate but that's Billy Connoly.

Heres an example of when aspen is the economical option,my ex wife has a small lawn & uses about a gallon of petrol /year,the mower would never start in the spring,she is not of a mind to run the petrol out last cut in the autumn,(just like many other home users),& it was expensive & a pain to get the mower recomitioned each year. Total fuel bills on aspen/year for her are under £20,any residual fuel can be left in the machine & fuel can over winter,& she just pics up where she left off,start the mower(with ease) & yippee do away she mows. Much the same scenario with my big saw which only gets to play maybe 3 times a year,& my honda 4stroke strimmer,my classic saws etc etc.

No thanks required,you spelled it out in a simple & thorough way. I have used aspen in all my small kit including the thirsty 3120 & backpack blower,& will not use pump mix in these machines anymore. Disregarding the price,aspen makes sense for man & machine,& I for one dont mind paying for that.

Oak puts a heavy load on a saws bar & chain,it is a dense fibrous wood,& even with a sharp chain has a tendancy to take the oil off the chain,everything gets hot & tightens up,get the oiler maxed out & every now & then give the saw a few seconds reving at half throttle out of the kerf(in a safe manner) to get some fresh oil into the rails.

This sounds a fair explanation to me.

Gardenkit,your concise explanations are great at clarifying what for me is was 'fuzzy' understanding regarding the different properties of petrol and aspen,and their impact on the flexible parts of fuel systems,thanks.

Mark,just the man for a little survey I'm interested in doing,trouble is I dont get up the pub much nowadays,(its an age thing with me),as a typical well rounded tree surgeon,& frequent pub resident,could you run it by a group of typical builder types out for after work refreshment,that statisticaly,even though we are in possibly a more dangerous job than said builders,we suffer less accidents as we tend to be less thick than they are, & ask what their thoughts are about that. If you want you could get your groundy to ask & just stand back & note the response!

No! leave it as it is,its the only one as duff as mine.... But if you must,ask Steve Bulman.

I would get the exhaust off,make sure its not in there & with the piston at bdc,check out the insides with the plug out & a torch shone down it,also check the piston skirt & rings in case the stop was 'guilotined' in the exhaust port,if all is well get it back together & try to start it again.

Month to six weeks,after that the saw will still run on it,but you risk engine damage to the piston & cylendar. Its always a good idea to give your can a shake before topping up the saw if it has been left for a week or so anyway.

Aspen is great stuff,I use it in all my small kit,you may need to adjust the carb mixture screws a very small amount(richer),any chainsaw competent tech can do this,some saws need the adjustment others dont.

Thanks Steve,all is clear as a bell again.

The spelling is all wrong on my strange new pop up request for log in details,so I sent a few choice log in details & it loved it,kept coming back for more,so it got it. It also calls the forum arbchat .co.uk,new one on me! I smelly fishy,looks a little iffy me thinks,dont give it the right details,let Steve check it out.

I'm enjoying this conversation,& must thank Dave123 for his contribution here. It realy is quite enlightening (for me at least) to get this perspective from a clients eye view.

Thanks Dave123 for the response,got some good replies out of it too.

Looking at the pics & what the guy wants for it,I would walk away & look elsewhere,good ones do exist & at a reasonable price,a nice one in my books would be 700-1200 quid nowadays.

No problem,it's nice that someone from 'the other side of the fence' takes the time to ask on here the questions that you have,I think I can speak for a good percentage of the 'usual suspects' on here,who can get dismayed at some clients questioning a quote,(Oh,I didnt think it would be that much just for a tree),& not actualy wanting to know why it can sound expensive. I hope the responses on here have helped,& would love to hear your opinion on these answers from the consumers point of view.

Two guys, one old, one young, are pushing their carts around Wal-Mart when they collide.. The old guy says to the young guy, "Sorry about that. I'm looking for my wife, and I guess I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." The young guy says, "That's OK, it's a coincidence. I'm looking for my wife, too... I can't find her and I'm getting a little desperate." The old guy says, "Well, maybe I can help you find her...what does she look like?" The young guy says, "Well, she is 27 yrs. old, tall, with red hair, blue eyes, is buxom...wearing no bra, long legs, and is wearing short shorts. What does your wife look like?' To which the old guy says, "Doesn't matter, --- let's look for yours."

Pics would help,so many variables in tree work,& in conifers too,for example; distance & obstacles between target trees & chipper. Are they maiden trees or previously reduced. Targets near trees,(sheds,fences,flower beds,etc). All these & more have an influence on costings. Prices can seem high,but myself for instance turn up with between 55 & 70 grands worth of kit,this needs maintaining,buying & does not last forever. Fuel costs are,as you know,through the roof! Insurances for vehicles,kit & to undertake the contracts. The disposal costs in the waste,& hidden costs & time in service of kit,pricing work & all paperwork/bookwork that goes on behind the scenes & off site. So yes,a good fair price can sound high,(not when you look at some other trades,with less kit,who charge more),but the cutting process is probably less than half of the work total involved in small contracing. Some firms are charging high prices,some way too cheap to sustain a company,but if you get a couple of quotes from firms with respectable kit & a helpful fresh attitude,with relevent insurance,you should get a realistic idea of the cost of work you wish to have undertaken. Word of mouth is a very good way of contacting a decent contractor in your area. Hope this ramble helps answer some of your questions.

Sounds a lot of money for one of these,they do make good motors if you get a good one,but not anywhere near that price in my opinion.

I gave Paul a call,nice feller he is too,I dont sell firewood,just use it myself & for family,have all I need & so will sort him out some rings. If I thought for one minute that his request was rude I would not have helped him out. I reckon 50% of my mates /usefull contacts come from helping someone out,or indeed getting helped myself,cant put a price on that. I do understand the firewood lads not being up for giving their raw materials to others,but theres plenty of us on here that get our money from working in the trees,& not being too bothered about the logwood,so the OP was in my opinion not taking a liberty in asking.

Not had it myself,but I know of three mates that have,& it was all ok,the last mate to have it done said if there was a next time ,he would drop a frozen chicken on his big toes a few times to take his mind of it. I tried the chilly chuck once & decided not to have me tubes cut! You wil be fine,I understand your concerns,But your lass has a point,go for it.

Forget the anusol,just use deep heat,apply it at the base of the tree & you will go up it like a scorched cat!

You are right mate,it's a nasty fake!