Mike Dempsey

St Andrews and the East Neuk of Fife along the coastal road is well worth a visit if you have the time. Some fabulous beaches in the East Neuk as well. Mike

I have cleaned out the carb as after about an hour of use the other day it was starting to bog down. The guaze was full of crap and now it has been put back together the idle speed is way out. Does anyone know the hi and low revs for this strimmer. I have a tiny tach so it will be good chance to use it on something different.

Don't I bloody know it. My father-in-Law's family are all from Ballater and the wife's cousin is the Royal Postie. My mother in law is totally "Royalist" and wont hear anything against them. I am cracking up already and the bairn is only 6 hours old!

I am starting this thread because I cant be arsed with all this crap about the latest royal baby. Anyone like minded can add anything they want. If you are in to royal babies please post on the other threads thank you!

Lime is very good for carving

Funnily enough , many years ago when visiting my grandparents in Darlington, we spent the day at the beach at Saltburn. Out all day in just a pair of trunks I burned so badly that the skin on my back came off in one piece. It was a couple of weeks before I could even put a sheet on the bed at night as I lay on my tummy to sleep. My mum should have known better as she was a nurse and I have ginger hair. 45 years ago sunburn cream was very expensive and could only be bought at a chemist. Nowadays I use factor 50 and slap it on several times a day if I am out and about. I am also easy to spot on a beach as I am the only one wearing a wide brimmed hat, a long sleeved shirt and long trousers. You will also never see me on a beach in Spain either!

I think they should introduce Sharia Law punishments for people who don't bag it and bin it. You would never forget why you lost a hand and wouldn't repeat the crime again!

My son is 18 on Saturday and starts an HND in Web Development at the local college in September. If that goes well he wants to go to Uni and do his degree. Apparently so I reliably informed by him, its all to do with the backend of the web sites. Changed days since I was a lad! The first computer I ever saw in the RAF wouldn't even fit in 2 of my living rooms, with a total ban on smoking, eating and drinking coffee anywhere near it and it lived in an air conditioned room. My blackberry is more powerful than that nowadays. At least he helps with the website and shop though.

I would actually be surprised that such a magnificent specimen of a yew didn't already have a tpo on it. If it doesn't, it certainly should have one.

If your log is over 24" in diameter I would also suggest using an auxiliary oiler as well. If the oil is as thin and runny as some stihl oil I have seen recently, there is every chance it is all being flung off at the end of the bar and you need to add some more via the auxiliary oil for the second side of the bar otherwise you stand a chance of perhaps overheating it and premature chain wear. I wouldn't use the stihl oil for milling, stick to something thicker which will stay on the bar a bit longer.

Wonder if they would post them!

If you are having trouble getting it fixed I have a plant and garden machinery workshop next to me in Glenrothes. I don't know whereabouts in Fife you guys are located but as I haven't seen your vehicles around the Glenrothes area before I presume you are not in the town. He fixes everything from chainsaws and strimmers to tractors etc and is very reasonably priced and an honest bloke. Highly recommended. Give me a phone and I will pass on his number and location. 07769703520.

I got the same one but with the 4.5mm cable, a whole £3.50 more!

Had my first go with the winch this afternoon. Interesting experience. Don't know if I like using the wire cable as kind of unwinds itself a bit when there isn't any tension on it. Might take it off and replace with some rope. One thing I did like about it though was that my face wasn't in the path of the exhaust fumes and I don't have a sore back from leaning over and pushing the mill so they are definitely big pluses. I will continue the experiment. I managed to do six planks of Norway spruce which are 1.5 inches thick by 8 feet long with a max width of 18 inches. The finish on it wasn't as good as I expected despite it being a brand new Stihl ripping chain. All in all good fun though

Well I now have my Alaskan with the winch bolted on it and the plan is to mill up 2 Norway Spruce logs. I would rather start on crap wood where is doesn't matter if I screw up rather than some nice oak!I have a customer who is wanting 2" thick slabs at 8' long. I am hoping to negotiate him down to about 1 1/2 inches max as I cant be arsed lifting the thicker planks. My winch came with the 4.5mm steel cable already on it and I bought some snap hooks at the local screwup direct. If this works ok I will try it on some oak next week.

I have just given it a tryout on 2' high nettles, thistles and rough grass at my mates house. Performed really well and good fun to use. I am now fairly well spattered in little green bits of plants. It even starts more easily than any of my saws, especially my husky 281xp!

This just shows you screwed up the whole system is. How can they export wood chip from Scotland when there are biomass power stations importing it. I think they need to change the system to one where any power station using imported chip doesn't receive any subsidies. In fact I would go as far to stop all subsidies to power generation of any kind, whether it is domestic or commercial. If these technologies are as good as they are claimed to be then they should stand on their own two feet. We should be investing in local grant schemes to put solar panels on domestic properties and no other financial incentives. The reduction in fuel bills should be the only incentive anyone gets. Just my tuppenceworth. Mike

I have had a bb curve for 2 and a half years now. Best phone I have ever owned. Will probably go for a z10 next time around. The camera is not too brilliant compared to my wife a kid's phones. I can use it as a credit card machine. The sat nav is pretty good though and I will have to get an in car holder for it instead of it sitting on my knee. I use Telmap Navigator which is free and pretty accurate as I also had a satnav on in the car on a 120 mile journey to compare it with.

Hi Bob No midges around my way at all. Its brilliant, as I have just come back from 3 days in Fort William after felling and ringing up a 1.5m dia beech which was about 75' high. It was rotten in the core after water got into the main trunk via a hole after a large branch came off. Super strong midge cream was needed every time we stepped outdoors unless there was a bit of a breeze. Beautiful scenery and fantastic fishing for sea trout though. Pity that wasn't all on the East coast though. As long as its daylight here I can go milling!

My winch is on its way and hopefully will be here by Tuesday. I was thinking about screwing an eyebolt into the end of the plank that I am milling and then feeding the rope up through it and then back onto the rail of the mill. Need to check to see if it is smooth enough to not fray the rope. The alternative would be to screw an eyebolt into the end of the plank and attaching a miniature snatch block/pulley wheel and threading the rope or cable through it. Has anyone who has tried it yet experienced the far end of the mill riding up slightly and making uneven planks?

There is a pub about half a mile away but you wont see me in it as I am teetotal! The oak wont be used for business cards as it is going to a customer to make some raised flowerbeds. Ripped into waney edged planks about 12 inches or so wide and pegged at the corners. Some of the planks are really pippy so I think I will save them for furniture. Bit of a waste sticking them in the garden. The site I am on just now is far away from houses and I can work as late or early as I wish:biggrin:

My wife and 2 daughters went to the ballet, my son is out with his girlfriend, so what can I do. Easy answer to that one - picked up the saws and went logging. Milled up some 8' long planks of pippy oak at 2" thick and about 202 wide. I am going to finish off the other logs tomorrow. Beats sitting in and watch crap telly. Or can you do something better than that?

It was stored dry for a few years. However I have used it for about 15minutes and it looks ok. Hoping to give it a 30 min run out tonight. I will keep a check on it over the next wee while and after I swap it over to aspen. Thanks

Got the air filter box today and with a little bodging got it fixed on ok. Filled with petrol/2 stroke mix and fired her up. Started after a few pulls. Very happy. I tried it out on some 6" high grass near the workshop and it works ok. As I am only going to be occasionally using it I will need to get hold of some Aspen. I would reckon although its about 12 years old, its only had about 5 litres through it. Would using aspen be ok, ie no issues with rubber gaskets inside it?

GM crops have nothing to do with "benefitting mankind" its all about profit for the companies that provide the seeds which are sterilised. In other words you cant save some seeds from your crop to plant next year's crop. You have to purchase them from the company. Eventually the local suppliers will all go bust because the GM crop seed manufacturers (and that word was used deliberately) can undercut them and then dominate the market charging whatever they like. The lengths that these companies will go to, to eradicate the opposition is astonishing and have highly placed staff in the corridors of power in the US. If you haven't read up on it I suggest you do because it is fascinating seeing how far they will go to peddle their lies and disinformation. Farmers in the US who oppose the likes of Monsanto etc have been dragged through the courts and threatened with bankruptcy just for daring to have a different opinion to them. There's no such thing as democracy any more and the 'land of the free' is certainly not the US. The community channel did a documentary last year about it interviewing US farmers and activists opposed to GM crops and it had me glued to the telly for an hour and a half.