LGP Eddie

2.5 toners are a bit of an oddball in my opinion and can bring so many hassles when it comes to transport. I fully agree it is possible and i have done a lot of it, to move them with a suitable 3500kg tow vehicle. The hassles start to come in the larger trailers they require that really aren't as versatile to have about than the standard plant trailer or flatbed that 1.5 toners can be moved on easily. Weight and keeping something like legal is the other issue, with my Defender for example always being pretty well laden down itself and to keep things legal with a set of perhaps 5 buckets and a breaker to take with you it all gets a bit messy? I can honestly say that in most applications you'll hardly know the difference from a Takeuchi TB016/Kubota Kx018 to a 2.5 tonner? Weight always brings stronger digging/lifting performance, but real world it'll not do a lot more for the extra money and that's why I feel most then jump straight into the 3 tonne plus machines and go the 7.5 tonner route to stay legal. Blades that is a really nice unit and not all that common with the full cab, but in your location you'll need it!:big grin: Perhaps you could share just how little fuel you actually put through the Takeuchi in a days work? I hire one on a regular basis and am always shocked by how much work they'll do in a day on so little. I'd say you've got as sound investment there and pretty much money in the bank. I'm actually just on the lookout for one at the moment for myself for some fill in work and to have about the yard for lifting stuff about. I'll probably go down the Thumb route with it and won't be scared to send it out for a bit of self drive. Eddie.

1.5 toners are a complete no brainer in my opinion and if you have that sort of application then they are simply the cheapest man on the job. I've always found that having a digger on site clearance keeps the other operatives more motivated if they've got to work in front or alongside the machine. The Operator really has little need to stop apart from break times and everyone else has to keep pace with this. I'd say that the bet bet for anyone if their budget will run to it is to aim for a Takeuchi TB016 (expanding tracks). This machine really does punch above it's weight and has actually fooled many genuine operators that it's a 2.5 tonner! They have a very long reach for this class and are blessed with very smooth powerful hydraulics, but still very stable. These machines have a legendary reputation now among plant hire companies and are the machine of choice for the self drive fleets, because of their reliability along with simplicity plus the total lack of expensive plastic bits that can be damaged. A quick look around will show they fetch really good money and sell very quickly, meaning you'll pay a bit more to get into one but if it doesn't work out you probably won't lose a penny for having quite a bit of work out of one. I'd recommend fitting a Thumb and a Semi Quick Hitch for ease of use and great all round ability, with the Semi Quick Hitch helping prevent wear in the pins/bushes from bucket changes. A hydraulic Thumb would be a very nice luxury, but in this size of machine it's only a few minutes to remove a whole thumb assembly. I'm Kubota through and through, and if it were my own machine and nobody else were ever to go near it then the Kubota KX018 offers a superior package in terms of build/fit/finish, but in the self drive or tough applications a Takeuchi TB016 can't be beat. Get one bought is my advice and I doubt you'll regret it or even lose a penny if you do? Eddie.

Finally back in action today, we've had a fair dump around the Staffordshire Moorlands. Good fun Mulching the Rhodies with a nice spray of snow when you hit the tops! Laughed at the Valtra following me down to site in my Track marks, it really showed the difference as the Valtra sunk down 2ft in places and the Kubota had gone in a couple of inches. Eddie

It's a really hard one and I've been pondering over many different methods, including getting it off with a long reach excavator and weed cutting bucket. However the simple fact is they if the long reach goes down at any point on the site it's not possible to give much assistance with a weed cutting bucket fitted, plus the weed cutting bucket possibly won't be too effective. I'm happy to take the Valtra on with Duals all round, as if she goes down It'll take no plucking out with the winch and the Rotary slasher wouldn't come to any harm. I simply couldn't risk a Fingerbar, they're too fragile and wouldn't handle this amount of Rush I fear with a very low cut required. However I've always seen the advantages one of the big Reciprocating Mowers could bring in many applications and seem a very controlled bit of kit when you're used to Mulchers. I'm really down to two options at present, Long Reach Excavator on Bog Mats and simply dig the turf/Rushes off with a traditional bucket, thus enabling me to move the mats or try the Valtra and some form of Rotary Mower that is strong enough to cope. A simple traditional side mount twin drum disc mower would be the one to risk, but the problem is they mount so close they'd catch on the duals when swung into the work position. I've even considered lengthening one and fitting longer belts to go past the duals, as these can be found in the nettles at handy money that's worth the risk. No doubt we'll sort it one way or another!:big grin: Eddie.

Have you a rough location as I know 2 guys in Stoke with Mini Pavers and if it's Derby way, handy enough down the A50. Hard without any pictures of the paths, but you could get an excellent finish with a straightforward Mini Excavator and some blade mods. You basically need to get it out to the required with with some side skids of the required depth and some extra height to prevent material going over the top. A couple of side wings to retain material better and it would shock you what a good finish you will get. Try to use a decent size machine, as the weight will prevent riding up onto the material, a Tracked Skidsteer would be a good carrier too. It shouldn't take much fabricating and easily removed after. These are an type of Asphalt float so offset from the machine to do the pavement from the road, but similar idea. Eddie.

You may get someone with a Mini Paver to put the stone through it at a fixed rate per tonne. This used to be very common on large footpaths when they actually replaced them instead of trying to paint over the cracks with slurry sealer and hope it lasts 10 years. A mini paver will lay the stone extremely accurately to whatever width required within it's range and can obviously alter the width hydraulically to get around most obstacles. We used to feed them with either JCB or Dumper tipping directly into the hopper and with good operator produce brilliant results. I've not seen it in action but a local guy had a big hopper setup built to fit onto the back of a tractor that did 'twin tracks'. Apparently it does brilliant job of placing stone in the wheel tracks whilst leaving the grass strip in the centre. I would say you could easily knock something up, but paver and operator shouldn't be crazy expensive and inaccuracy will cost some money on 3km of 20mm to dust. Eddie.

I've got a particularly nasty job involving some Rushes on a pretty waterlogged site and have been looking at all options. Basically Flails are out as from experience, once they start shovelling water through themselves it's like hitting the brakes and much power is lost. I need a pretty low cut so at times it will be cutting in some water, hence looking at a Rotary Slasher with blades not Chains that should have less resistance. Two models I have seen are of interest, the Foster GG2000 and the Spearhead Destroyer. I just wonder if anyone has experience of either or actually knows of someone hiring them out? I have been looking for a half decent trailed 'Drum' not disc mower as this could be an option also, but they all see to have reputations for eating belts gearboxes etc so the Rotary Slasher should at least be strong enough? This Foster one seems to be going ok, but it's not a big crop to what we usually have to cope with. [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ec1mv0VdhoQ]Foster GG2000 Scrubcutter with heavy duty blades cutting wetland rushes - YouTube[/ame] Eddie.

Plenty of tracked Quads at LAMMA and a couple of dual wheel systems on display also. I'm a big fan of Stocks duals on tractors and their capabilities are brilliant in comparison to standard. A tracked quad will just be stupid money and plenty of other alternatives that will probably retain the money better and have more dual purpose. There is a company doing Schaad Dual wheel systems in Rugeley here PRODUCTS PRODUCT SEGMENTS STARCO.com. In my humble opinion it's something you could pretty much rig up yourself? I dualled up an old mini as a kid for the fields just by bolting rims together back to back and it transformed it. Hopefully Charlieh will be along soon as he's the man in the know about these. Eddie

Just a thought, but is there any way that you can get a smaller crane that has reasonable lift capacity to reach directly over one of the houses and possibly site it off the road in a driveway/garden with a few timber mats? It could then provide a means to get larger Chippers and even a Mini excavator over the house to handle bigger pieces ready for removal by crane. Perhaps even chip into skips and lift them directly over? It could save much work at reasonable cost? I'd love to see some pics of the job whatever way it's tackled, and I thought I got to price some adventures but for this you must push your balls around in a wheelbarrow! Eddie.

A few bit's of fairly thin Rebar perhaps? Won't stick in too much because they're round and plenty of bite on them? Grind them back off if it's not working out? Eddie.

I forgot to add, just ensure that whatever model you buy has the facility to take standard batteries. The Leica Rugby uses a rechargeable system, but you can simply get a additional pack that takes standard batteries as an extra and slip this in if you run out of power. Some other makes just have a recharge facility and you will be guaranteed it will run out in the middle of site without any means of recharging the unit, leaving you stranded. There's even an argument to use standard batteries in the first place for this reason, and the worst case is a trip to the shop/petrol station to get going again. Eddie.

I assume you're looking for a single grade laser for general outdoor use in Construction/Landscaping? My recommendation would be to go straight for one of the two main names either Leica or Topcon who are undoubtedly the market leaders. For general use you will not better a Leica Rugby, which is extremely simple to operate and built with all day long outdoor site use in mind. It really is a case of unpack, place on the tripod or other suitable reasonably flat surface and then press the on button. They level automatically within quite a range, and I sometimes laugh to see people getting all the tripod out just for a few seconds work, when you can simply place it on something like a dumper mudguard or machine track and it'll do the same job. You will have a choice of receivers, but ensure you get one with a display on the front and rear? Sounds a bit odd, but so much easier when you're trying to hold the receiver facing the laser and look at the display. If it's on the front it's awkward to keep looking around the staff to see it, but the rear display makes things easy. Leica used to also give a pretty comprehensive 'knockdown' warranty that covered all the internals if you dropped the unit, basically you just had to pay for any case damage. I have had a Rugy LR model for approx 5 years now and it's been used in all weather conditions with no issues and the 'LR' is a long range unit (approx 300metres) that gives incredible accuracy at short range. I needed the extra range for use on machines and it has a simple slope facility which is brilliant for drainage applications. If you want to do slopes get advice from Leica or Topcon plus a demo of the units, staggering what can be done and pretty simple if explained well. Eddie.

Where we can we switch to the chipper especially on Willow, but it's a lot to do with the root disposal and time constraints etc. Ok if we could simply pile the stuff up the go back when it's all dried out a bit, giving it a good shake to get the soil off the roots and burn the lot but it never works out like that. However we generally now pull everything out roots and all, remove the root and get everything into manageable size for the chipper. Anything oversize goes for firewood and always plenty of takers for whatever it is. We then chip (handy work on wet days) and again disposal of chip is never a problem. We seem to get so many constraints on supervision of fires plus not leaving any impact at all on sites that the time it can take to actually get material burn then clear up ash, that it simply takes longer. This is despite having a pretty well oiled system now that involves the skip and a tracked dumper? Basically we burn in the skip on tin sheets to contain any ash spilt from vent holes and the skip is easily fenced off at night and contained. In the morning (or even several times in the day) we can safely move the skip by loading it straight into the tracked dumper sort of hook loader style but with a machine either straight to the next burn site or direct to a suitable ash stockpile. This all works extremely well, but we much prefer the chipper route. As I say horses for courses and what works for one doesn't always suit another? Not the best pics but it'll give you some idea of how we sometimes do it. Eddie.

Most of our work is wetland stuff, so obviously we don't drop too lucky with the actual material to burn but there are a few points that usually steer me away if possible. Safety is an issue, and the simple fact that it could cause major insurance headaches if a machine was to go up whilst loading a fire. A brand new CAT 320 went up around here whilst on fire loading duties and was completely totalled! We have found issues with clients wanting constant supervision of fires, and some place restrictions so tight on getting things extinguished you'd be lucky to get 6hrs burning a day in. This can be magnified on sites with public access. Site damage is another, from the obvious fire spreading to the consequences of having something like peat a fire is stood on actually getting going and being difficult to extinguish. Removal of Hot Ash is another, as it's surprising just how long a good big fire base can retain heat for. It's all horses for courses, but in our own case the hassles surrounding simply stacking and burning can sometimes lead us to other methods that have surprisingly proved quicker when it's all worked out? As I say it's very difficult to price against so we have to do it occasionally, but I usually use a converted skip that keeps things a little more contained and makes the ash removal easy. Can't beat it on a cold day though with a few spuds in the ashes for dinner!:big grin: Eddie.

Looking really tidy there and seems a very nice site to actually work with the open ground at the base of the slope giving decent access. Are you removing all stumps? I personally hate burning it just creates so many other issues, but very hard to price against a box of matches! I'd have thought that site would have suited a bit of old style Track Loader work on the slopes putting the tractor and at least one 360 machine out of work, but you don't see them about now setup with a decent fork/grab and rear winch. Finding a decent operator would be another issue entirely. Eddie.

I think it's fairly obvious that if at tractor will do 50k, then people will make full use of that capability. In my own instance, the places you will actually get up to speed loaded will not be a great percentage. The uphills soon put a stop to any of that, and the downhills command great respect even with a really good setup. However empty trailer or just the tractor on it's own and it's just much better to be able to keep the pace up a little more. My concerns would be more aimed at the straightforward lack of any enforcement for the massive Tractor combinations that are hurled around the lanes, usually by young inexperienced drivers. If anyone took notice of the weight regs where would all these contractors be? I've seen some classics that deserve to have the book thrown at them but they just keep getting away with it. Plenty around here moving 20tonne excavators on tri axle low loaders with Tractors and one guy even towed a 20tonne Joskin dump trailer behind the low loader so he could use it when he got to site!!! Hard to quantify but I'd guess at approx 45 tonne plus all up? The days of a 100-120hp 30k tractor (considered massive back then) and a 10 tonne trailer being driven by some casuals at harvest time are long gone and the whole Tractor/Weight/Braking/Age/Licensing needs a complete review. The fact that the LGV regulations have gone completely over the top is one contributory factor in all this? Many would be simply much better of with a Truck that is much better suited to haulage tasks, but the complete minefield for someone starting out or even just trying to comply is beyond belief. It's a serious issue that holds back many business from expanding, even the jump from 3.5 tonne to the 7.5 tonne truck so many people would be better off or even safer running is much harder than it ever needs to be. Back to the Fastrac, there's also another point to factor and that's all Vosa and Customs seem pre programmed to stop a Fastrac whilst ignoring almost all other tractors? Eddie. Discuss the legalities of this then!

I've always had a soft spot for Fastrac's, but they really can have their drawbacks. The simple fact is show them some weight and a hill, then they rapidly become a Slowtrac! Certainly in our area, you'd be hard pressed to gain much advantage anywhere over a 50k tractor of equivalent horsepower. The fact that they really have very poor for off road traction is a big downside and as many say they can't half drink some fuel. The biggest hassle I found was the dreadful lack of access for any maintenance work, the cab really should tilt sideways or forward which would aid things considerably. I'd go 50k tractor, that's what I'm looking at and having spent time trying out Valtra's recently I'd say well worth a look as I can't afford a Fendt:biggrin: Eddie.

All interesting points regarding the Valtra 'N' versus the 'T' and also the Jake mounting of what would be considered a more Forestry based crane? It's simply very hard to ignore the fact that the Botex whilst not perfect in every application I'm certain, is a proven package at a realistic price that will handle the variety of tasks I'll require from it plus give a very good lift capacity. However I've always thought the Jake mounting to be a superbly engineered bit of kit and when you begin to look at that lovely Kronos front pump/tank unit the thought of an 'N' series with Jake Mounting and perhaps a Kronos 5000 crane with front pump/tank unit would be a pretty trick setup but at what cost? I'm well used to having Excavator booms or even a Backhoe rear actor in my line of sight and fully agree it's something you just get used to. Many hours in a Rubber Duck have tought me just how valuable locking axles are and wonder if anyone has gone down this route with the Jake front axle lock system? I'd like to keep the amount of added ballast to a minimum as we're often on wetland sites, so perhaps the axle lock would bring a fair stability gain thus reducing the amount of weight to be added? I did assume the Jake mounting to be too restrictive for normal linkage operations, but I've found a picture on their site of the actual Farmi 260 I have on the linkage along with a strange Farmi crane setup? I'd have assumed it must stow up front somehow? Eddie.

I currently use types 2,3,11,19 and 71 but this obviously varies with the type of project. No point even beginning to explain the conflict we have had on our present project that involves a 6 month footpath closure, but there's been a few awkward types that I could have cheerfully nailed a sign to their forehead!

I really think it was the new N series 123 posted under 'New Toy' on here that demonstrated that I certainly haven't the funds to have it all, but I could hopefully get myself somewhere towards such an all round versatile bit of kit that retained a good amount of simplicity for ease of use and maintenance. I think Wilsons have more than proved themselves with the Botex Roofmount, and I'm certain the Low Tech Forestry Refurb Valtra is going to be a winner for them. It certainly makes so much sense as there is a massive supply of suitable Valtra base units out there for them to choose from, with a good supply of people wanting to keep as far away from main agent prices for fitters as possible. In my own instance, I really need to retain as much of the base tractors ability hence not looking at a 'Jake' mounting, but being used to some nice controls in my 360's would prefer to have controls with all functions on 2 levers. Again a PTO pump would be out for me, but I assume they offer a higher capacity front pump/tank to speed operation? All questions for Wilsons I know,but good to find out what actually works from people at the sharp end who've parted with their hard earned. Eddie.

I posted a few pics of the N series 101 Valtra I've had on hire for a little while now and to be perfectly honest have been really impressed with. My thoughts are turning towards a possible purchase with the idea of having fitted a full Botex 570 roof mount setup complete with guarding from Wilsons. I just basically wondered anyones thoughts on mounting a 570 to an 'N' series, as I'd probably prefer reach over maximum power, but I'm all too aware that I'll have to consider ballasted tyres, wheel weights etc. Would a 'T' series just be a much better starting point, but I'm obviously attracted to the compact dimensions and manoeuvrability of the 'N' models. I have a unit in mind being a fairly basic spec N111e, that I have tried out and was actually pretty stunned by it's lugging power. It will obviously be used for some haulage work, but will see plenty of site use (I hope) plus will match up to feed my Farmi 260 chipper. I'm not looking to re-invent the wheel, just try to get a very good all round compromise setup that will hopefully be very versatile. Any thoughts on best controls/pump/mounting/guards/weights etc much appreciated. Eddie.

I ran one of the first GKN units on a 300tdi Defender 90 for approx 130,000 miles with no mechanical issues. The GKN unit came with what I felt was a quite overcomplicated control setup that involved a speed sensor to prevent the unit being engaged at low speeds, all running through a small printed circuit board. I had to replace this twice in 7 years, then simply bypassed the lot in the end and had a simple switch. Overdrives in my opinion are brilliant and really do make the driving experience (especially in a Defender) so much nicer. I could engage mine at 45mph and it would make 85mph cruising a reality without too much pain. It helped everything in a little way I feel, knocking the engine revs down certainly giving better fuel consumption and a much better driving experience. The negatives come from people abusing the units and thinking they are some form of splitter for the gears? Simply use it as a sixth gear and it'll give no trouble, plus in the GKN Defender unit change the oil every 6000 miles (it only takes a drop) but be certain to take the cover plate off and clean the gauze/magnet off any debris. I have no experience of an L200 unit, but can't see any negatives if it's a well made proven unit? I would have another tomorrow for a Defender, but have moved on to the 6 speed TDCi which is fine in standard form. Eddie.

Littletree, I would guess you've been Operating machines for some time and have now gained enough experience and contacts to be able to keep regular workload plus adequate rewards for your talents. I would suggest that breaking into Operating Plant has always been tough, and at present is almost impossible on a local level for people not wishing to jump on the Agency or chase work around the country? I've luckily been out of the general plant game for several years now, but very much have my finger on the pulse as it's my immediate default setting if my own kit is idle. Fortunately I have contacts who will usually find something with a simple phone call, as the deal is simple? They have a machine that only earns with a man in the seat and they know I should be up to the task and will look after their kit. However it takes a few years to reach this point and most Plant Hirers I know are currently having calls constantly with guys looking for work, many experienced operators with years experience who are having seriously bad times. As for someone starting out fresh and looking to get their Red card then straight onto site at the rates you describe, I think it's not going to happen? The Red Card is just about as described when it comes to employers, they simply won't have it except when it's just adding some category to an existing experienced operators portfolio. The Blue Card is what's required to get a foot in the door and possibly into the seat, then it's down to the individual to prove their ability and worth at the controls. Again I feel you paint a fairly rosy picture of the job as a whole, which can be a very challenging environment to work in now with little respect from any personnel on site. There has been a massive shift towards Self Drive machines with Agency Operators to keep costs down, and this is impacting the industry badly by allowing 'seat fillers' on minimum wage money to take the place of a skilled operator. I very much think the Plant Operator game is just as saturated as any other occupation at present and certainly no pot of gold to be found? Eddie.

Absolutely superb looking setup there, and I'm becoming a real Valtra convert myself now. I'd be really interested to see how a roof mount performed against an excavator for actual loading of a Chipper in my applications, but for versatility all round I'm certain the Valtra you have there will take some beating? I'd be interested in what people are paying to hire in similar tractors? i.e. Roof/Jake mount with 10"+ pto chipper including experienced operator and fuel etc? Is anyone actually putting out roof/jake mounts self drive? Eddie.

As I've said before I'm probably a little unusual in my applications, so actually have the tractor operated at all times whilst loading with the digger. Generally we do a lot of moving about the site chipping fairly small piles we've previously stockpiled. Obviously we can communicate to stop or reverse the feed at any time but I'm actually having a remote setup sorted at present. The Valtra has a fairly simple monitoring system that would shut the tractor down for low oil pressure or high temperature so could be left running ok, and I'm looking to have the forward/reverse feed via a Lodar system. The complication comes in wanting to use the nice set of forward/reverse electric pedals that come with the Farmi to integrate with the Lodar handset. This would give me a setup where I can load with the digger and control the forward/reverse with a foot pedal for ease of use. I really like the look of your chipper and I'm certain that a reasonable size excavator would sit over them rear axles a treat. Eddie.