Big J

Sadly beech isn't worth much to furniture makers these days unless it's very flamed or spalted. Additionally, 12 inch diameter is very small. You would make more money firewooding it.

A friend of ours recently had a 5kw turbine installed but they are having quite a number of issues with it. I do think that they have been quite unlucky though. The main incentive at the moment is the government's payment of the feed in tariff, which pays you for each kw you produce for yourself (much in the same way that the renewable heat initiative will pay for heat you produce). With an efficient turbine, you stand to make a reasonable amount of money from it whilst providing yourself electricity. Don't touch solar PVs with a barge pole. We don't get enough sun here, and by the time they have paid themselves back (excluding government grants), they have degraded to the point where they no longer produce their stated output. From a domestic point of view, you are much better spending your money on energy conservation, rather than environmentally friendly energy production. The government (being a bunch of idiots without the slightest clue on these issues) seem to only want to subsidise energy production at the moment. Jonathan

I would always recommend the Alstor. I've used it on several occasions and Scottish Native Woods with their Alstors do all our extraction. It's very versatile, quite quick (provided the extraction route isn't too long) and there is nothing smaller for getting into tight stands. I would argue that it doesn't use much fuel either (about 2-3 gallons for an 8-10 hour day). It can carry upwards of two tonnes per load (in softwoods really - you run out of space in the bendier hardwoods) and a good operator should manage upwards of 2 loads an hour. I should stress that I am not a good operator! Additionally, and I think that this is a huge plus - you can tow the Alstor behind any normal 4x4. I think that all the other forwarders are too heavy, thus increasing the haulage costs significantly. As far as I'm aware regarding maintenance costs, the older of the two Alstors I'm familiar with has over 170 billed days under it's belt for about £650 in maintenance costs beyond oil changes. Jonathan

Hugely humbling story there Ginga - welcome to Arbtalk! Entirely not as impressive, but for a good few years I lifted weights culminating in a season (2007) of competing in strongman competitions before my digestive system decided it to pack in. A couple of pictures: Sadly, I don't seem to have as many pictures from then as I thought I did!

Latin names are wonderfully universal. For instance, when conversing with my German uncle who used to be a tree surgeon, we just use the latin names to describe trees and there is no confusion.

I really can't bear lottery winners who just stick with their old houses and jobs! If they aren't going to change anything, give the sodding money back! It just shows a terminal lack of imagination. I was thinking about what I'd spend that kind of cash on and ended up browsing a yacht website, eventually settling on a £14m, 210ft schooner! It's not that I don't like my life and work, but I know for certain life would be very very different with £161m in the bank!

I was thinking the same. Really quite a stunning tree - it would be a huge shame to fell it.

It sounds like an excellent opportunity for the right candidate, working in some hugely interesting locations. Whenever I think about David's work, the picture of the bridge over the lily covered lake springs to mind. As much as I dislike cities, it would be a pretty stunning place to work!

Hehe! Partially busted! I used my 088 for a period of a few days whilst the crappy MS250 I had at the time was getting fixed. It was next to impossibly heavy, though it wasn't first thinnings, it was 60-75ft sycamore and birch. I would imagine the 460 is wonderful at stump, but I reckon it would get a bit tiring on the snedding when you get to around tree number 60! We aren't far off being done in this stand Dave, so once we know what's next, I'm be giving everyone who expressed interest in cutting a buzz!

Pippy just means that it has a profusion of tight pin knots as a result of dense epicormic growth. It gives the timber character and interest without structurally degrading it. Foot lengths should be fine for turners. Would be interesting to see photos of the timber. Jonathan

More profitable use! If it's in any way pippy wood turners love it. Even if it's not, it's still desirable. I tend to sell my 'in the round' turning wood for around £12-15 a cubic foot, which works out at around £350-500 a cubic meter. Much higher than firewood, and usually less processing. Finding wood turners who will take timber by the pallet load is the main challenge, but they are out there! They all seem to be delighted so far too as it's a fraction of the price they get charged if they buy from standard timber merchants.

BBC News - Chainsaw man almost severs head in Cambridgeshire Bloody hell!

I would laugh at you if you showed up with a 460 for sub 12 inch hardwood thinning! I think it's always the same with saws - an extra 10cc / horsepower makes a massive difference. I've used an MS660 for instance, which feels like it's about 3x as powerful as the 361. Jonathan

I would like to voice an irritation regarding the title of this thread! It's been going so long I have no idea what the season to see fungi really is!

.....wow, what a difference! Working in 8-12 inch dbh hardwood thinning at present and the difference in time at stump it huge, as well as just feeling (slightly) less fatigued at the end of the day. It's a bit of a snarling beast, that MS361. It's on a 15 inch bar for this stand but have an 18 and 13 in my arsenal. It used the same number of tanks per tonne (about 2 tonnes per tank) as the MS260, but obviously larger tanks, so an extra 1 litre used over the course of the day. I don't know why I was always so adverse to larger saws - even a bit of extra power makes a big difference. Have many of you got the MS362? Why did they make the damn thing heavier for the same power?

Hehe!

You might be a very old chap before you get to mill it then! Conversely, it could stay upright for long after it's dead. Deadwood oak is robust stuff.

Having used all three (own an MS260, one colleague has a 346xp and another the MS261) I would say the 260 is outclassed by both the 261 and 346, though I can't decide between them. I'm certainly more a fan of the 357 than the 346, and would maybe choose the ms261 for it's lower emissions, fuel consumption and vibration. I'm waiting for the new 560xp in August

Dean - it's a little early in the morning to already be drunk?!

That's fair enough then. I guess it's a little easier to produce, given the lack of hills and bog (we have plenty of that here!). Jonathan

Any more news on the release of the 560xp? I'm very slowly starting to shift to the dark side, having used a 357xp the other day. If the 560xp is lighter, more powerful, less vibes, more frugal on fuel, lower emissions and higher revving, it's going to be the dogs knick knacks. My little MS260 is struggling a bit with these 1/4 tonne (hardwood) trees

It'll be snapped up at that price - quick, put up the price before anyone notices!

Very wise indeed! More forestry than usual the last few weeks and my hands are at about 40% operating capacity and for some reason my left leg doesn't want to work fully at the moment. Quality control is where it's at!

Good luck Rich! Jon - the suburban stuff isn't too bad. The Navara isn't a huge fan of city driving but you will get better mpg in town than at 80mph on the motorway. I'm on BF Goodrich AT's btw.

Very well - felled the best part of 13 tonnes of nice sycamore today.......oh you mean final production?!