Big J
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Everything posted by Big J
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Second generation aren't quite as hideous. Once you delete all the stupid chrome effect bits, they are OK.
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Well that is your problem then isn't it. I am entirely within my rights to point out the massive deficiency in the transport infrastructure down here. Having had someone crash into me in recent weeks (I was stationary, they were speeding) as well as experiencing repeated road blockages due to serious accidents in recent months only serves to reinforce that observation. I'm not interested in people saying that the lanes are "twee, charming, part of the character of the county, historic" or any of that nonsense. Roads have a function, which is to get people and goods from point A to point B, safely. If they can't do that, then they aren't fit for purpose. The number of people driving around with half their bumper hanging off is astonishing. Just as I left site last night, a brand new Insignia passed with it's front end caved in. Anyway, does anyone have any experience with the truck?
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Does anyone have any experience with the new Musso pickup? The large discounts, the 7 year warranty and 3.5t towing capacity make quite a strong case for themselves, and I'm just a little tired of threading the Sprinter down the Devon lanes. £25k plus VAT gets you top spec on everything, and the dealer was pretty accommodating in terms of getting prices for full underbody guarding and extra spot lights on the front, as well as stripping off all the daft fake chrome bits and sticker motifs. It certainly drove better than the Ranger too, with more interior space (which at my height is vital).
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I was making a willy joke, but I admire your steadfast resolve to stay on topic! ?
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It would be very useful to see some photos if at all possible
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I heard 5" was pretty average - I mean some people say you need 8", but that's a fallacy! ?
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When green, softwood is often as nearly as heavy, or as heavy as hardwood. A notable exception is hornbeam, which sinks in water. UK hardwoods aren't that slowly grown due to mild winters and ample rainfall. Dry ash and oak are around 650kg/CM but larch can easily be 550kg. Not a huge difference. When running a firewood business, you have to factor in that storage equals cost and the much longer drying time associated with hardwoods costs a great deal, and that often offsets the lower retail cost. Couple that with the much more rapid processing and you've an attractive proposition. In an ideal world, I guess I'd burn an 80/20 softwood hardwood mix. Unfortunately, I'm stuck with 45 cubic metres of ash for the next two winters! ?
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Fair enough. Prices like that don't exist around here and would barely cover the harvesting costs. The lower density of softwood (typically 10-20% less, though BTU output is only 10% down due to higher resin content) is offset by the much more rapid processing. When I had a firewood processor, we could do a cubic meter of softwood (with 20-35cm roundwood stock) in 4 minutes. It's very rare to find hardwood that processes that quickly.
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Yes and no, but mostly yes. My interpretation of the rules is that a tree that is dead, dying or dangerous does not require a licence. All trees suffering from ash dieback fall into that category, though walking around a woodland with an FC forester, he said unless it's stone dead, it should have a licence. Given that the timeframe from first symptoms to completely dead is often months, it seems like a daft line to draw, but that was what I was told.
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The speed at which is burns is largely down to air control. Keep ontop of that, and it burns more slowly than some hardwoods.
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That is depressing. I'd choose a softwood mix over hardwood any day. Pine, larch, douglas fir, cypress, hemlock are all brilliant firewoods. Even spruce in moderation is fine
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I do wish that folk were more receptive to softwood firewood. I've loads of sawlog grade lawsons cypress coming to roadside near Tiverton at the moment and it's wonderful firewood. Really dense, dries quickly, smells beautiful and processes rapidly on account of it being ramrod straight. £55/t roadside. I'd rather process that than the inconsistently straight hardwood firewood that is typical!
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Winchman required Tiverton Thursday Friday
Big J replied to Big J's topic in Forestry and Woodland management
Sorted! -
Due to family illness, I'm a man short winching to the harvester Thursday and Friday (maybe Saturday too). No chainsaw work required, just setting up cables. If anyone can help, if be grateful.
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I think it's often the bank that you're with (and have been for years) that treat you the worst. Both my wife and I have been banking personally with Natwest for 20 odd years. We spent over a month faffing around trying to open a new business account and each time they wanted more and more info (down to what the average price of a tonne of wood was, how many loads were going out each week etc) and after they said they needed another phone conversation that wouldn't happen for another week, we gave up. Then spoke to HSBC and it took 1 week from initial contact to business account approved, including a £5k overdraft facility.
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Fixed that for you. ?
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(I'm derailing the thread) That much I'm aware of. We took the trading name with us when we moved, but changed the business obviously. No drop in turnover or profit in first year here, which is helpful, so we should be OK.
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Really helpful, and I may take you up on that. Many thanks!
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That's useful to know. East/Mid Devon isn't a cheap place to buy!
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My mistake. We're in the process of switching over from sole trader to Ltd, and it's hard to keep track of everything and keep doing the day job too. Either way, the accountant ran the figures and being an Ltd saves us some considerable amount of tax. We're stuck in that uncomfortable situation of not wanting to pay excessive tax (as noone does) but needing to declare maximal income in order to obtain a reasonable mortgage. 1st world problems, I guess....
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If you are going to get into the 40% tax bracket, you want to be a limited company as tax on dividends is 19%.
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Plus, you'd probably survive a crash better in your old Landie if you sat astride the bonnet (like a hood ornament) as opposed to being strapped into the vehicle. Whilst they're at it, please can someone up the speed limit on motorways to at least 90mph. ?
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It's all very silly really, as it's an arbitrary line drawing exercise where the characteristics of the vehicle have little bearing on the laws applicable to it. For instance, I think my Berlingo, fully loaded, weighs less than a Landrover Discovery 4 empty. Much smaller too, but restricted to lower limits. All daft, if you ask me.
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Fair enough. I was under the impression that it was determined by their classification as a commercial vehicle. I'm pretty sure my Berlingo is regarded as a van (not a car derived van) and as such is limited to 50/60/70 technically.
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That's the case for all pickups
