Ian Clarke

all the best andy. i have done a few courses at kingswood and rate them very highly.

i had richard teaching me for my lantra stump grinder.

and i had yo for my rigging ticket. a few years ago now.

wishing you all the best for 2018

I do agree with you Carlos a lot of It is done by experience. Also communication with Groundie controlling the weight and the feel of the trees reaction. I will say that in normal rigging you utilise the trees compressive strength. I'm zip/speedlining you are pushing the boundaries as you can quickly push the limits of anchor points. I will say I've not had the chance to work out weight of Logs on an actual job but that's more time constraint issues also we are not setup to take massive logs away so we have to cut things small for handling purposes so nothing is big enough to push the boundaries. 

A job I was on once *as a Groundie was a crane job and the driver could tell the climber how heavy things were and how close to his safety limit he was. But they were lime trees that were going straight through a tw350 in 1 piece about 20ft long. Otherwise it may of have to be smaller to get it out. 

Accidents happen. There have been many near misses. And unfortunately there have been some deaths. 

Saying that he didn't know enough is a bold statement. I also will say I know none of the specifics of his accident. 

There are trees that look sound but rotten as .......insert words here.........

Also I always feel there is something to learn from every situation and scenario. sometimes it's what not to do. 

and then here is a video just to show what is possible.

 this is a good video for some information.

if you can get a copy of The art and science of practical rigging.  its published by the isa that will have some good information in there one of the bits it does say is that pieces of timber should not be dropped on to a tensioned line. they should be first arrested in a normal rigging point below system then. the speed line tensioned and then they travel down the line.

2 hours ago, Mark Wileman said:

Does a timber or cow hitch put less strain on the rope than a running bowline? I assume because of the smoother bend ratios on the hitches?

Let me check I've got some books I need to check to get exact numbers. I'll also link some videos for more info. But I am not sure if you will get an exact answer other than testing it yourself and recording the readings.

I'm not sure if the answer but don't forget the way you attach the rope to the tree will affect the breaking strain of the rope.

If they are happy with what needs doing only needs a sheath then you will be ok. You could request one of their engineer's are on site with you. 

Hopefully this doesn't sound silly but let the saw do the work. When doing big stuff my front hand is loosely gripping the handle. I've still got it if it grabs or catches. And just lift my back hand to pivot it. 

https://www.frjonesandson.co.uk/products/oregon-grinding-wheel-for-standard-grinder/

There is the link to the frjones website and the grinder wheel. Just choose from the drop down menu. 

Standby caller. I'll check when at work. 

if you look on frjones you can find replacement discs quite easily and there is two to choose from. one for the bigger chains and one for the smaller ones. if you can wait another 24 hrs i will get the numbers off the disc at work when im bk in tomorrow.

im still getting used to it and finding my way around the new website

Custom Made, Personally Moulded Ear Plugs from Mercury Hearing

Mercury hearing do custom moulded ear plugs which the basic ones are £70 but you'll never need another set. They do mouldings at the head quarters or They are at lots of the big trade shows and Fayers. They fit under any ear defenders. And are equilivent to 30snr ear defenders I believe.

I don't know. I just saw it one night flicking through the internet.

Firewood Processor Hire - Spectrum Plant

I saw this on spectrum plant it could be an option.

Don't forget to put this in the employment forum as well

that silky handle looks amazing.

if you still have wolf garten stuff there is a good website which has brillaint deals.

Wolf Garden Tools: Wolf Garten Soil : Wolf Garten Multichange: Wolf Garden Lawn Mowers: World of Wolf

That makes sense now. I was even more gob smacked when it said 3 people.

It's articulated. There is a central pivot point and once you unlock it from moving position. It swings left and right. Quite a good distance.

Sorry John to jump over. I've got one and they are brilliant.

Buck looks very big. easy to over load. I would consider putting a shelf or partition in the storage section. Just too make it even more useful.

I would advise against a crafter the one we have is very close to weight limit with no chipper or tools. And the bucks can be huge on them meaning you'll be overweight massively. Vw or Merc are good in some respect but don't run them to their max capacity. And it is very easy to do when you have the space and need to finish the last little bit of the job.

Nice work Steve where was the tree and who were you working with?

You should be able to find exploded diagrams for the saw online somewhere. That might help