jose

Laski is the exact same, they just paint it yellow here and charge more.

Hi Guys Had the demo today on this. Its definitely a good little machine! I was comparing it to a Predator 460 which has a 25 hp engine compared to the 14hp this has. First impression was it felt a little under powered. But started on a 3ft scotts pine stump and it did it no problems. In fact its much smoother and less brutal / violent than the predator. Didnt seem to like a regular leylandii stump as much which surprised me a little as the predator annihilates these. But it did it no worries. Id say this took another 5-10 minutes longer than i would have expected the 460 to do it. A small silver birch flew through like a breeze. Controls seem all sturdy, swing release and brakes etc. In fact the brake system seems a lot better than the 460 single disc brake setup. Build quality seem very solid and well built. In fact although its 20kg lighter than the 460 it actually feels heavier swinging it left and right. but this seems to enable a smooth sweep. in fact the only criticism i had which really isnt anything was the pin that adjusts the handle bar height is quite thin compared to the hole it goes in and so has about 5-10 mm play. But this is been super critical Would i buy it? I am seriously considering it. Only thing is my 460 is working like a trooper at the minute. But i am one of those that lies to cycle my kit to reduce potential down time. Also must say thanks to John for coming out and letting me have a proper go on it. any questions let me know

lol we all have this pain time to time. Had one a few months back, car was parked under the tree. Asked him politely to move, said yes just chucking some clothes on. this is at 8am. 815 comes and goes, no movement, ring door again, says hes leaving at 9! I say no way it needs to move, he gets the arse and does eventually move, wearing a tshirt and shorts and flip flops. took the whole of 1 minute to dress. Was for a property management so had to be polite but really wanted to tell he what a C@@t he was. We have a saying at work. ' Smile and wave boys, Smile and wave'

Thanks for the replys. will let you know the feedback on it.

Hi all Does anyone have experience with one of these? Getting a demo but after owners/ regular users input. This is the self propelled pedestrian with turn table. Cheers

Thanks guys for all the input. Some of it has been tough love some good love but i take it all because if nothing else i will be learning a lesson from this and i hope it helps others to avoid a similar situation. Like i said at the beginning ( i think) i didnt try anything dodgy, acted in good faith and when the TO came out obeyed the rules and happily followed the given instructions . Even at this time i still believed it was a misunderstanding! I always obey the rules as i try to run the best setup i can, its not in mine or anyone else's interest not to. Im in it for the long run. Its up to the council / solicitor/ courts to decide the next step. I will let you all know how it pans out.

So the answer is yes there is a TPO. But as i said all indications and correspondence with TO said No. The only mention if this was once the work took place. This is as you say mitigating circumstances which from my position is a perfectly understandable position to explain/defend my actions. If the council cannot keep up to date records why should i or anyone else be blamed? doesnt seem fair to me.

Sorry been crazy busy lately. Yes 99.9 % i always check myself with the LPA I always state trees can only be worked on subject to No TPO's been present. When i attended site there was only one garden, not a garden and a separate parcel of land. This land was fenced off and had been for quite some time ( 6 months at least). Upon accepting the quotation the customer supplied all local searches but also the email conversation with the correct tree officer regarding the land ( his garden). The conversation and question asking about the status of his land was clear. In no uncertain terms the TO clearly states there are no TPO's on his property. I see no reason why not to believe this as i had corresponded with this TO previously. Hence why i didnt see the need to repeat the exact same question to the TO. No mention of any nearby TPO's Its only once the tree officers who attended once work commenced was any mention of a TPO was made. Why would i ask for land searches when the sale was made 8+months previously and the TO had confirmed no TPO? Surely if the tree department / planning dont update records that is not my fault? If i tried to pull a fast one i sure as hell wouldnt be posting about it! Add to that ive no need to do dodgy work, i have been crazy busy for the last 10 yrs plus! this grief isnt something i need or want. Hope this clarifies things. Cheers

when i did the work as far as i could see and from the correspondence with the tree officer there was no tpo. local searches on the council website for the address and surrounding roads didnt bring it up. They said after the work was done that yes in fact there was a tpo, even though they had previously said no. As i see it i did do due diligence, i know the details of the tree officer ( dealt with him via email on numerous occasions) , added with the searches means i checked. only other method is a phone call and as stated the tree officers are very reluctant to come to the phone at all and then its only between a very narrow window of hrs in the day. Obviously now i am going to always double check regardless, if it makes the tree officer do double the work by repeating exactly what he/ she has already done then well thats just another waste of tax payers money. As long as i hopefully am covered. not sure what else i can say. i dont know if the solicitor is correct, i have to assume she is is as that is her job. i wouldnt tell a pilot how to fly when i dont know myself. someone who does this for a living is going to know better than someone who climbs and cuts trees for a living!

man my head hurts The solicitor is saying she understands why i am upset, why it has transpired as it has but also in court its the facts the council has to prove. 1) did i cut the trees? 2) were they TPO'd Regardless of the why, that is mitigating circumstances. Regardless of if the case is closed/ won i still have a conviction ( ie taken to court of a breech of a TPO) which will stay with me. So from a solicitors position even winning is actually worse than a caution. I argued then that if a council can say repeatedly no there isnt a tpo, and then after the work is done turn around and say actually yes there is , regardless of it been put it in a email or letter then surely every single time they give me permission to do any works i can face prosecution in the event they got it wrong regardless of what they have previously said! To which she said yes that is how it stands legally.

Has anybody used this? Saw it at the arb show and my friend was quite keen. Ived never heard of it before and wondered if anybody has used it and can offer feed back. Its basically a sliding clamp which you attach to a metal beam ( 4 inch square which u screw to the log) and a large thread you attach to the saw via one of the bolts where the side casting is. My only thought is there is a lot of weight / pressure on that one bolt so is this going to end up snapping in a short amount of time? website is a bit vaugue to say the least. go2mill.com Many thanks

Normally i do check, but when i received the emails from the tree officer who i have dealt with many times previously clearly stating the trees were not TPO'd i didnt see the need to repeat the same question. Around these ways the councils are often reluctant to even answer a phone, in fact i know of 2 local ones that point blank refuse. all you get is the general reception saying put it in a email. Another lesson in life learnt here. Talking to my solicitor it would appear that even when a council says no tpo present, if they subsequently realise there is one its the contractor that takes the blame regardless of the fact the LA messed up. The law sucks. I tried to liken it to another scenario and all i could come up with is if you were driving down a hill in a car and your brakes fail and you speed up and they happens to be a speed trap at the bottom, regardless of the reasons why even when provable you are guilty of speeding. You can give your mitigating reasons but your still getting done.

since that interview he received a notice to prosecute ( about 3 months later)and then its gone silent. I believe he intends to sue the council but i wont go into that as i dont know those details .

This is exactly what i think is happening! So to be clear if you hadnt guessed its myself / my firm who did the work. thing is its scary as ive never had bother with the law, do it all by the book etc. And all reasonable steps were taken. Yet i am facing caution which may come to bite me later if ever make a mistake again ( said it can be used against me if i do something wrong). Council is walking away scot free saying yes we told him off so yes we take this all seriously. Not opps we didnt check properly and created this mess in the first place!

roz you have summed it up as if you were there. The home owner went in for a interview under PACE regs and the whole interview consisted of them asking him why he worked on the tree, just kept on asking him in different ways the same question. Trying to get him to admit he cut them so they could say right then thats why. He ( is switched on in these situations) did exactly what you said, showed all the documents , emails and screen shots of the local searches done and said we proceeded with works on trees that were not covered by a TPO, as clarified by the Tree officer on 2 different occasions!

That is my opinion too. Ive seen the correspondence from the TO to home owner, to me its black and white. The councils approach is the trees were TPO'd . Do you ( the contractor) cut them down? Yes. In that case case closed, no defence you are guilty. Regardless of the written emails and searches from the council stating otherwise. Literally in black and white so to speak. And no worries about the chinese whispers thing, you never know if the details are true, just what is put up. But hand on heart this is exactly hows its all played out so far.

Contractor has a solicitor. They say accept the caution but there is a feeling that this is the easy way for them ( supplied by contractors insurance broker). No Chinese whispers either. Its exactly as stated. Personally it seems to me the Tree officer didnt either check properly and or someone hadnt updated the information ( but definiatley the council pocketed the money for land sale). To save face offer a caution as a sort of win win for them, no loss of face and still slapping contractors wrist.

quoted for a road closure, had to advertise in the local newspaper. 2 times at a cost of £1000 per time! This didnt include the TM, the actual council charges for the road closure or myelf and the crane. It was over £4000! Another bug i have is i work for 2 side by side councils, one charges £250 for a section 50, the other £450 for the exact same thing! All about making money

Want to ask general advice here. Lay out the picture. Customer buys land from the council start of the year ( january). Goes through all legal procedures, gets all documents and deeds from the council withing 6 months ( not the fastest buy hey got there.) Gets fencing put around his new land ( so extends his back garden). This fencing is up for 3-4 months. Wants to remove the trees in his new parcel of land. Gets quotes. Also contacts the council on 2 different occasions asking if his property/ trees are protected. Tree officer replies stating no trees on his property. Customer also uses council website to do searches on his property and also adjoining / nearby roads to double check. All come back clear. Normally the contractor would do the checks but as the customer had done it and forwarded on the correspondence between himself and the tree officer and also map searches it appeared all in order. Proceeds with removal of trees in August. Tree officers come out to site, state that trees are protected and stop work. The council now intends to prosecute both property owner and tree contractor. The council have now indicated that they may issue a caution as opposed to going to court. 'MAY' Can anyone clarify what this means long term? Solicitor says this will remain on file and if ever a further breach of the law occurs then it will be used as evidence. Contractor has never had any issues with the law/ councils, is a Buy with Confidence member for over 10 years , bussiness running for around 15 yrs. Question is to accept a caution or go to court? Cheers

Has anybody got one of these? I just come across these and was after feedback. Love hate or horror stories! Looking at swapping from a predator 460 to one. Any hands on experience is much appreciated. Cheers

pm you.

wokingham is 10 mins away. If its alright let me know a address , date and time and ill come along as long as the other guy is ok with it. Or else i may be able to source a stump in the outskirts of wokingham ( friend has a farm there). They look good for sure, just the length id like to look at. u can email me the details and ill give u a shout. not looked at the other machine at all. I will do some googling! Cheers Dean

how are people finding the length of these? I often go down the side of the house and hit 90 degrees corners. the main thing that puts me off is the length. Currently have a predator 460 so like to compare the 2. Anyone got a ZT around Berkshire i can come have a look at? Cheers

ive got the smaller one, 6.5 just for the access. Got to say impressed with it. My guys hate it but i keep saying its a small machine. So far nothings broke and on first set of teeth. As long as u understand its has its limits its bril! Would buy another based on the baby one ive got.

i had a cs100 great for its size without a doubt ( main machine is a tw230). However moving it isnt as easy it people make it out. and personally found the shute a PITA to move. must be a better way to secure that. If i was buying it again id seriously consider the tracked one. That said there is also a tracked shredder available, by Bugnought ( or something). If your a smaller firm and do a mixture of stuff this could be a possible good route. Not cheap but then removes a lot of rakings etc from the daily equation.