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When pulling a tree over with a rope DON'T DARE start snedding until you've found where my rope is, remove it and put it safely out of the way.

Totally agree, 100%! I give a total price and that's it. I present it professionally and politely then it's a case of take it or leave it. People like this make me run a mile as they sound like trouble from the off. When I first started out I would stress over trying to accommodate them but now I'm wiser and more experienced I just cut them loose. My advice would be to politely tell him your complete price for the job and if he questions you why you haven't given a breakdown like he asked for just reply that it's not your policy, if he persists in asking why simply explain, you are a businessman who has presented a price for a job they require to be done and it's his prerogative to accept or decline the quote. If he declines then politely thank him for his enquiry and before you leave just say I'll leave it with you then say your goodbyes, no matter what happens don't give them an excuse to run you down, always remain friendly,polite and professional.

Yes I agree there, it's like horses for courses I find, light use of the throttle on the larger strimmers does do the job in most cases, but the lighter FS 50 definitely has a place for me now in our armory.

Yes definitely give it a go, I felt using a FS100 to edge was like using an axe to sharpen a pencil! Plus, another reason for turning to a light line was that we spent far too long using edging shears, hitting small stones and forever sharpening them drove me mad. Also, as the years wore on and we needed to put our prices up I found it awkward to do this during a recession as loads of 'gardeners' sprung up, therefore I had to think of a way of speeding the jobs up to be able to keep the price the same but squeeze another one into the day, hence the idea of edging with a strimmer that otherwise just sat in the lock up. Not that I'm saying it's some brilliant idea of mine it's just that after a broken window I always steered clear of strimmers by glass.

One smashed £85 French door toughened glass window on a fortnightly £15 grass cutting job was the only reason needed for a trade off really! I'm with you on the plastic around the posts idea, it's one I considered myself.

Thanks for the replies guys. I've never heard of the water 'trick' before so I'll certainly give that a try! As regarding the larger diameter line, I run my FS 100's with 2.4mm line and use the 1.6mm for strimming around ranch fencing and edging as it's less destructive and the potential for shooting any stones is less, unlike the FS100's which on a week to week basis can destroy the wooden ranch fencing no matter how you try to keep your distance, just the odd nick now and again will eat away the timber over a few seasons. Also, the power of the FS100's can send the smallest of stones like a bullet hence the FS 50 is lighter on performance all round. As a strimmer I don't think much of it compared to similar category strimmers I've used in the past, this is endorsed by the lads who use it and also other local firms who bought them, hence they are mainly consigned to edging duties only!

Has anybody got any long lasting tough 1.6mm strimmer line they would recommend? I only use it on my Stihl FS 50 strimmer for edging. For years I used the blue ALM line which was surprisingly tough for cheap stuff but the last batch I bought was a slightly lighter blue and barely lasted half as long. I then bought genuine Stihl 1.6mm line thinking it would last longer but again, no good. Some of the American guys recommend Arnold Extreme and Echo Crossfire as professional grade line. Does anybody have experience of these lines or any other type they have found tough and long lasting? I am tempted by some of the cheap stuff on eBay but if it needs replacing every farts end then I know from my own experience it only increases the money sapping downtime. Thanks in advance for any help on this matter.

Groundsman required for Wolverhampton based tree surgery business. Please pm for further discussion, thanks.

Cheers guys.

Is there anymore feedback on these trousers? I've found little so far, but I am very interested in buying a pair after reading up on them. Any comments on them would be appreciated, especially if you've been used to Hiflex:thumbdown:. Thanks in advance.

Had mine 2 weeks, oil pump has had to be replaced under warranty, spoke to another dealer in local area and they have had two brought back in for oil pump replacement too. Oiler aside, I love the saw, still early days though, I do fear what lies in wait further down the line with modern saws.

We are tree surgery and garden maintenance company looking for a suitable person to assist with a range of tasks. A minimum of CS 30/31 is required but it would be advantageous to also have CS 38. Day to day jobs can vary from tree surgery to fence erecting, grass strimming, mowing, sweeping and tidying. Please PM. Thanks.

Yeh no probs, if i get anywhere with it i'll let you know.

Thanks, I've been put in touch with a local vehicle spring manufacturer/supplier, on their website they list most vehicle manufacturer names which they have springs for but for Nissan they only list Navara. I'll try calling them next week and see what they can offer. All this has only really come about today, hence why i'm trying here first.

My reason for looking at uprating them is i'v had a tool cabinet built behind the cab which means i'v lost a bit of volume so more of the weight is over the back axle which is causing the rear to hang lower to the ground when carrying larger loads.

Hi all, Has anyone successfully uprated their leaf springs on a Nissan Cabstar E95 2002 model? I'm just investigating the possibility.

we give clients one figure for the job and all the working out is done before hand, i'v found if you give out too much information it puts things up for discussion.

Fair enough, thanks for the heads up on that one.

GardenKit, thanks for your reply, i'v just got in from working on the mower (can't feel my fingers anymore!) and read your post. As it turned out i did everything you posted, one question for you, did you manage to drop the gear box from it's mountings or re-fit the cable with it in situ? I ask this because this is where i will pick up from tomorrow. It seems to me that the drive sprocket needs removing with a pin punch but it looks like there is little room to lay the punch on its side to remove the roll pin?

Nice one, thanks, i'v managed to track down a new cable for a tenner from a local garden machinery company and if needed i can download the relevant workshop manual in a pdf file from the honda site you gave me for six quid. thanks again:thumbup1:

Sussex Groundie, Thanks for your reply, that sounds pretty straight forward, the version i heard was alot more involved, assuming that the procedure for our different models are the same of course.

Hi all, I have a Honda HRX 476c rear roller lawnmower, i need to change the frayed drive cable. Does anybody have any experience of changing this cable themselves as i have read it can be quite involved? Also, does anybody have a workshop manual for this model so i can do it myself? I'v trawled online for the manual but without joy, plenty sites claim to have it but are asking for payment upfront which i'm unsure about. Many thanks in advance.

same here, my zip went after 2 or 3 months, i took them to a high street 'make and mend' shop in town 12 months back and paid £10 for it to be replaced with a stronger beefier zip, job's a good un...(so far)