twmarriott

yep what width?

if money were no object i would go for a log logic, i've used one twice and it was awsome, but you need the stellite tip bands which aren't cheap.

a rack saws value depends on blade and accuracy and type. our metal bed stenner will cut 30 foot has a 6foot blade and only runs out 1/8" in 28 ft. so i wouldn't sell it for love or money, its not fast but does the job.... and well. i sold a wooden bed grame perth bench for 500 on ebay but only a 40" plate blade.

ahhh been there helmdon sawmill? great chap.... amazing timber too....

for ripping you want a positive rake and a larger kerf (off set in the teeth) from the point of cross cut, you want a smaller (even negative rake) and smaller kerf.

well we have a new one, its still got to be comissioned, but massive difference in build quality too, this ones much better and interestingly has some bits in stainless the other had in mild steel. overall a much better machine and were happy with it... i'm putting some more radiators on it swapping them from the heatstore indirect coil, to the cold side of the flow from the cylinder following a chat with the rayburn engineer he reconed we want to maintain a better gradient between hot and cold side of the boiler flows, we had a 8kw leak on the cylinder but he thought it worth making it bigger and worth putting a temp/mixer valve to try maintain a steady temp across the boiler. Fernox is the stuff to use and make sure you put enough in, i asked about boiler corrosion (off record he rated the stainless boilers from goddard engineering) but it was negligable looking through the pipe holes in ours but as we have a 450 ltr cylinder it was suggested we use more than one bottle of fernox (not a domestic sized cylinder system). theres a low limit switch for the pump so that should stop the pump if its not up to temp (60 deg). we had quite a long chat about making the rayburn last the longest possible.... suggestions like don't burn wet wood (makes cresote) don't burn taybrite, and don't burn treated joists as the treatment when burned is corrosive, but also don't burn briquettes came as a supprise, apparently the binding agents are bad when burned too...? he rated the welsh dry steam coal we'd got here... that said i suspect theyre covering their arse not wanting another boiler failure....with us...its cost them 1 rayburn already!

Well after 10 days of no cooker, hot water (other than electric kettle) or central heating other than an indoor bonfire we're getting a replacment rayburn tomorrow, took 5 days of swearing at rayburn to get them to send an engineer out, however he was great talked sence and immediatly found the faulty weld, theres been no quibbling from rayburn since and the wifes had a phone call today looks like there will be another arriving tomorrow morning bit short notice but i'm quietly impressed, just hope the new one is better built.

entitlments are trading at approx 1-1.3 atm depending on what and where....so you'll get 34/acre approx if you sign up before 1 april but will get money back dec, then next year etc. on our 17 acres we get approx £1500 give or take the euro exchange rate.

mendip i know a chap in north warks, done several for us in the past around the 300 mark, top job, tell that garage to swivell and don;t take the piss

that sounds very expensive to me? 30 acres for 150K? 12 just sold next to us guide price 55k sold for 32k! we didn't bother as its horrible steep ground not fit to do anything with it.

i agree but would probably push it up to 500 acres, it all depends on what you do/grow, i know a chap in warks. who farms 1500 and has a 9-5 job too. he get harvest contacted by a neighbour and does the rest nights and weekends... he works hard and it pays off

we've 17 acres and bought it 2years ago after being fed up being a tennant its smaller and more back of beyond but we like it and were very lucky, theres 2 acres of orchard, 3-4 acres of coppice/ woodland and some arable & pasture, i'm 38. now there is money in it but at present its a guessing game and nothings easy, we grow 9 acres of long straw for thatching, i run a building restoration/ conservation business out of the barns, the wife works 4 days a week in IT (good money) and we have rare breed pedigree pigs. we don't make a fortune off the farm but its holding its own. if you look at the ELS/ HLS certainly the hls pays well but may not suit all. if you can get the entitlements then that also pays, but it all ends 2014. we work to pay the bills and the farm holds its own, that said biggest costs for us is machinery we had tractors etc but a half decent plough cost 1500, combi drill etc all adds up, plus when i need a new back tyre for the tw15 its 1000£, that will take some earning! interesting our 1 year old is also farm mad already! thats why we did it too, as i grew up spending most of my time at my grandparents farm.

brand new yep didn't want to know.... dealing with head office now watch this space

big j go steady with the fire air locks can be problematic and also cook boilers, let the fire out and bleed the system carefully or with a very small fire.

bit of an update, after shouting at rayburn and threatening sale of goods act 1979 at them, had an engineer out from head office, i'd already stripped the rayburn, and found the welds have failed on the bottom of the boiler, blatently obvious, they look appaling and to be honest i wouldn't have accepted it if i knew, i'm not a welder but could do better. engineer was a nice chap, and dead straight, he clearly stated it was quality of product, also found a minute crack in the oven too. again he though crap castings... he's written a report but we'll wait and see what they do. Aga shop kidderminster didn't want to know so went to head office telford and have now a special customer services number.... very disapointed but more frightened that the engineer said he'd seen them fail for similar reasons within 3 weeks! he also said they don't pressure test them all now....lots of folks don't really use them so its not a issue like it is with ours. i think they may replace the boiler or swap it for another but i am starting to wonder looking at the quality if its the way to go........? will keep you all posted

Got back from work yesterday and water all over kitchen floor! rayburn boiler perforated. i drained the accumulator 450ltrs and turned the water off moped up the kitchen. now it only went in in december last year so is 1 year 3 months old, we allways thought it was a friday afternoon one as the door gauge was erratic etc and never worked. i phoned NFU they'll cover any damage to the kitchen, sadly theyre solid pine and oak units i made so no harm done and a quarry tile floor but suggested i phone rayburn. spoke to rayburn they don't want to know..... now as its so new i suspect we'll maybe get some where legally... solicitors letter as a start, any one else know of similar problems or what to do? or recomend how/where to get another boiler i suspect i'll have to fit it myself!

funny that there are various remains of water driven saw mills left but only two survived complete-ish, dunham massey, converted from corn and had issues so had a steam engine to replace the wheel eventually.... and one in norfolk whose name escapes me.... but again was on an estate so not really a comercial environment. there were saws driven by water turbines via electric but again not really very common, turbines run faster and are more efficient but would eat water...so needed a good supply. dunham and the norfolk one were both owned by estates so labour was cheap and i suspect just used for estate use using cheap labour when nothing else to do in the winter... they were more popular on the contiment but didn't use circular saws, tended to use a vertical reciprocating saw, much slower and hence a lower power requirement..... known as a frame saw. maybe you could build one of those??? i did some work at dunham massey 12 years ago for the NT.

no gas oil for heating is vat at 5% red diesel is vat at 20% but reduced duty... so cheaper, more than £1.20 for every 1.48 paid on diesel is duty! go vat reg. and claim it all back....

sweep the chimney and hoover out the cast plate (lift it) on top and the box under the chimney ours has just started doing the same but its over due, was last swept last dec 2010 so over a year, we try to do ours yearly but i find the light ash often cloggs the flue dilution box and area under the hob/ oven top quicker so maybe 2-3 monthly to get it efficient. it ,may be worth checking that you haven't got birds in the chimney as its that time of year.... we invested in some of these when i rebuilt the chimney.....Hotline Chimneys Online Shop - Decorative guard - Terracotta - Hotline Chimneys Online Shop

here you go a pic of our rack in use last week,

being a millwright and having been a water and windmiller for a day job and having rebuilt several water mills i can work out what your at. we used to cut firewood using water power just running a small cast bench running a 3 foot blade, a big rack bench will take more than your wheel is going to generate and you will need to gear it up some. the wheel will run around 8-10 rpm depending on overshot, breast shot etc.. and size. the internal pit wheel will run either a wallower and vertical shaft (handily called upright shaft) and spur above it to stone "nuts" to turn the stones, we had a steam drive auxilary on the top of the spur (cast ring bolted on i made a pattern and had it cast) and a mitre bevel to a horizontal shaft out through a window, replaced with a beam and plumber block.... that gave a pulley on the shaft 500 rpm to the wheels 8, but even then was a bit slow for serious sawing. we run a large rack i'll put some pics in a seperate thread, run sometimes off a steamer usually off a tractor needs all of 40hp with the 6'6" blade in oak. your wheel will generate at best half that.... stick to milling with it or put a small cast bench for firewood off the lineshafting your wasting your time otherwise sorry to be a downer.

icheck your pms.

i've used these people before, again not cheap but the mixes are certified to els and hls schemes and they'll mix up whatever you want.... https://www.cotswoldseeds.com/

i've got quite a few of these:blushing: i used to dig them up on one of my grandfathers fields which was an old quarry used as a tip. theyre mainly in the loft with a few exceptions that the wife has about the house. its a common version of a hamilton bottle /torpedo bottle same scweppes thats still going, probably circa 1880-1910. what you want is a few coloured ones or to find out why its there... is it just a stray or was there a dump, and get your shovel out you'd be supprised what some of it will make PERFECT CONDITION ADVERTISING GENUINE RUSSIAN BEARS GREASE POT LID | eBay

it will plane up but you'll need to sharpen you blades.... it will blunt them very quickley, similar to your chain. i once had to re saw a load for a chap, couldn't touch it with the band mill so used the circular rack in the end, and charged for lots of teeth!