Matthew Storrs
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Everything posted by Matthew Storrs
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sweet chestnut posts in devon?
Matthew Storrs replied to shillo's topic in Forestry and Woodland management
I get mine delivered to Dartmoor through Dorset fencing supplies, only worth it if you are ordering a fair bit. Carl as mentioned is near to me also and coppices his own Chestnut- iv never had any off him though. -
Husky 545rx 45cc for over £600 or Kawasaki bk53ed 53cc @ £400. On the assumption that the new Kawasaki is as good as mine has been (old model) I know where I would spend my money!
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I have the biggest Kawasaki one they make- can't remember the model no, but it's been totally faultless in 8 years- literally haven't touched it in a mechanical sense. Don't use it all the time but a fair bit during summer and never fails to start after lying dormant through winter
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Bramble cutting - torn
Matthew Storrs replied to spandit's topic in Forestry and Woodland management
Iv got about an 1/2 acre of brambles to clear next week, I think I'm going to brushcut with a mulching head and then I have a rake on my digger which has tines @75mm spacings, going to comb over the area after to remove as much of the arrisings as poss whilst hopefully pulling a lot of the roots out too. -
In theory yes, bigger tyres act as higher gearing, cover more ground for same effort. I'm not sure how much by though, does it also reduce torque to though?
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I use Flexacryl. Which is a bituminous based paint which also has fibreglass type strands in it, it remains flexible which is good for any expansion/contraction etc and is designed as an emergency roof repair paint(although it's so thick you more or less push it around rather than paint it. £14.99 for a litre from screwfix comes in grey or black!
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The last few weeks have been bliss- cold frosty days, the next few weeks looks like hell though!
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This is a pretty typical scenario for me- and it wasn't even raining. Admittedly a Land Rover is not the right tool for this kind of ground but even a tracked digger was a job to get across it, so I can say I don't mind working in the rain as much as I like- some jobs just can't be done and thus as Jon says once the day is lost so is a days pay even if the job is only postponed.
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Same with staff really. I have geared myself up so that I work mainly alone to avoid the stress of staff- but understand that a tree surgery company can't take this option. Rain, though unpleasant, isn't so much the problem as the ground conditions it creates- i fence across some pretty remote moorland/steep valleys etc- the difference between wet and dry ground conditions dictates whether the job can even be done - getting machinery and materials to site etc, so yeah i hate rain with a passion too. Living on Dartmoor we get about twice as much as any lowland areas so to an extent I have to try and persist through it even if my day is utterly miserable and unproductive! Moving to Spain crept into my mind several times today!
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I really like Hitachi tools myself, I find they are as quality as any Dewalt/Makita I have used but at less inflated pricing, the cordless drill had been the only one which has stood upto regularly drilling out gatepost hooks etc and I got a cordless hitachi grinder and wish I had got it years ago.
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Some setup you have Adrian, well done. You may not remember but I did a few days for you back in 2006, I think I was 'lent' to you as I worked for Christian Edwards back then.
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No experience of CandC either, I wouldn't spend £150 on a jacket that has the potential to be ripped to shreds in seconds, however from the various jackets I have tried I have found the proper military 'goretex' to be the toughest and generally pretty good in horizontal Dartmoor rain. I also have a non breathable waterproof jacket which I believe is designed for dairy farmers in milking parlours- it great being pullover design with no Zips/hoods or anything else to get hung up on stuff.
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I guess it all depends on how much he is asking for the tractor, otherwise there could be other makes like a case international which would do what you ask of it whilst being more 'commonplace'! I dunno, I ran two zetors over 3 years- parts were cheep and so were the tractors but boy they cost me big time in downtime and my labour (and agri engineers) fixing them. The last 9540 I had I just ended up selling with a known hydraulic problem to Poland cos I just couldn't stomach spending another penny on it after spending 5k on it within a year, I purchased a much newer modern Same at a much higher purchase price but not spent a penny on it in nearly 3 years and NO DOWNTIME! Once bitten ( or twice in this case) twice shy!!
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A customer/friend towed my 3 ton digger back home for me with a new Subaru Forester, was well impressed!
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Yes, this is the same with zetors-pull like nothing else, someone told me that they are generally heavier for their horsepower they use lots of steel, 'if you can't tie knots just tie lots' or use lots, lesser quality steel so need more of it. Doesn't bother me, a light tractor is no use to anyone unless you are crossing a bog!
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Damn right! A MUST READ.
Matthew Storrs replied to TimberCutterDartmoor's topic in Forestry and Woodland management
Funny,I thought you seems quite a chilled out fella when I met you! Must be utterly frustrating though and surprised people can keep at it really. -
Yes, I had a 7045 and a 9540, both had the potential to be good basic tractors but I had to give up on them in the end as I do a fair bit of roadwork (fencing contractor) and the brakes were just too unreliable and dangerous, I re did all the brakes with new parts- still rubbish! Got a Same and that stops on the spot- different ballgame with proper 4 wheel braking- not just through the 4wd system like a lot of other tractors.
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No direct experience of them (had a few zetors) but think they generally started improving from the 90s onward, with anything before this being similar to zetors- generally not short of metal and good enough but poor quality components letting them down. New zetors are meant to be phenomenal tractors, perhaps the same can be said for Belarus but iv not ever seen a Belarus dealer around so parts could be tricky to get hold off?
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Yes, particularly when you think that getting 4000hrs out of these machines should be pretty hassle free, whereas I'd like to see a 6" chipper after 4000hrs!
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http://www.sanyglobal.com/handbook/SY16C.pdf Spec sheet too. Approx £3k cheaper than a Takeuchi tb216. Tempting but would want to have a good go and look around one first.
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Damn, just ordered a nilfisk! Those petrol ones do look good, normally I run a mile at non branded engines, but in this case I wouldn't mind as it will only be occasional use.... and if yours has been good...
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Your a star:thumbup1: thanks, that'll do me nicely.
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I thought I had nearly made up my mind till I started this thread:laugh1: Probably between the karcher K4@ £180 of the nilfisk e140.9 @£260- both would probably do my needs fine.
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Stihl seem to get good reviews so may be worth a bash, nilfisk seem quite good too.
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Looking for an electric pressure washer- principally for in the garden, getting algae off sheds/stonework,garden furniture etc, don't want anything pathetic and needs enough power to blast mud under chassis/machinery too. Probably looking to spend around £200ish...
