rowan lee

lol - someone was impressed at the sight of the big new holland when it arrived on scene, almost as though they were only expecting the old 135 to make this outing. You left the perfect size hinge to allow yourself time to get out of the way before the pull over. Tell me, was it the pressure on the line that kept the bar from being pinched on the back cut?

:thumbup1:Thanks for your insight, that makes sense to me now.

I saw in another thread Blair was trying to flog on that old 20t to a lad for 1500 bucks. (If it was still for sale and I lived in Scotland, i would take it now). Have you considered trying to twist his arm into giving back the old 20t for your new 18t plus a cash adjustment, and no worries re: height issues in container storage, etc. You never with his love for new toys. lol.

Just saw your post after I finished the last. Fair enough, thanks for your info. The table does look expensive, I was thinking of just using a big lump beech or something instead, although unlike yourself I'll mostly be doing billets, so table not really an issue.

I believe this is your third Thor splitter? After down sizing from your old 20t to the 10.5ton failure, did you consider the farmer models before purchasing the 18t magik? If so, any reason why didn't go for one instead. Also mate, do you know what the difference is between the 'magik' and 'super magik' models. Thanks pal.

Thanks for the pictures and advice Rob. Nice modification btw, but does that table rip the engine out if you fully retract the ram by accident Mick, did you compare the farmer version before you bought? If so any reason why you didn't go for the cheaper version instead. Cheers, good to know it will bust burr oak, only plan on putting thinnings through it myself, but there is always the odd 'lump' coming in out of the woods at home.

I have been researching vertical splitters with independent pumps, and an ability to split billets for some time now. Have arrived at the conclusion that Thor is probably the best value for money, etc etc. The splitter will be used for intense(ish) domestic use, thus I think the 13ton model will be sufficient. As far as i can tell the main differences between the 'farmer 13' and 'magik 13' is the leader control system, and the clip on pump not fixed vs fixed pto pump. I think for predominant billet splitting especially when you get to quarter sizes, the leader system is probably the most efficient, as the precision on the 'farmer' spike holder might not be as easy to achieve and as quick. Are there any others as there seems to be a price difference of nearly 500 bucks. Any comments would be greatly appreciated, as this will be a big investment for me, but should take the back pain out of billet splitting by hand. Thanks lads.

I don't know much about felling, but any particular reason for this - advantages, safety etc? Always like to hear about different techniques.

:thumbup:decided to watch yours first mate, some smooth chainsaw action there.

You could start a great documentary program with more footage like this. Exceptional action shots, a great bit of film, thanks.

Really enjoyed these pictures, great stuff brushcutter. No sign of any snow yet then? Looks like that forwarder in the last shot was pulling stumps and fell into one of the holes it had created.

Big job pal, looked pretty awkward. Is that a cold tinnie i spy in the back of the grain trailer?

Yeah lovely valtra setup. You'll have a nice wee burn up some evening with all that brush.

When seasoned poplar is very light, so burns quickly, hence it is better to mix it with other wood types. When you say you have a 'chance' to take some down, do you mean your just doing it for the crack then?

Bloody hell, that was a big tree for an urban/residential area.

I noticed two different types of climbing spikes. Standard climbing spurs and those front mounted toe spike arrays. Presumably these fall into different climbing classifications on race day. Are there any other types of pole climbing classes then.

Watched a bit of climbing for a while on Tuesday afternoon, and saw these two lads in action (sorry Ian, didn't spot you mate!) [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugb7a0V0RUA]Pole climbing sept 2011 - YouTube[/ame]

I like the little claw grip the Rabaud has. Not many bench saw's have this feature, but if you are particularly safety conscious then this really eliminates logs from kicking etc, especially when you are on the last cut and your fingers are close to the blade.

The title of this reminded me of an old = Paul Whitehouse sketch from the fast show years ago. 'This week I have been mostly eating larch'

yeah same saw that a while ago, here's the link: A Low Impact Woodland Home

I don' think the tree's are the real issue here, its the high tension power cables being erected. There is controversy all over Ireland at the moment with this sort of thing, lots of protesting where I live in Co. Meath with people calling for the cables to be buried underground as an alternative. ( not sure if it makes a difference in terms of the health risks associated with such power lines be they over/under the ground ) but it certainly helps maintain the natural beauty of the countryside.

Use the paper clip icon instead, and you can attach straight from your computers hard-drive. The insert image tab only works if you have an image already uploaded on an image hosting website like imageshack, photobucket, etc. (hence the reason it requires a url).

What Splitter do you use for all that John?

Co. Meath, just outside Navan I'm told. Apparently all the trees were winched over for safety reasons given the proximity to a main road, just the other side of that fence, so it probably saved time in the long run having the county stationed in a central location and pulling everything over first. I'd say that silage trailer was filled up a few times, and they will be able to set up a 'Cara' match stick factory on site.

A mate sent me some pictures and videos of a recent job, which include a beasty old forestry spec County (poss. an 1164/74?) with roof mount grab and winch some of you machinery heads should appreciate. using the 3 ton excavator to feed the chipper might be a little over-kill but I'm sure it saves plenty of sore backs, plus the boss man never gets wet. [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyD1Lm7ZaC4]Poplar site clearance - video 1 - YouTube[/ame] [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Agae8qnJbV4]Poplar site clearance - video 2 - YouTube[/ame]