ThrustSSC

Can't comment on some of the other saws mentioned because I've not worked with them for any decent length of time - but I use my 576XPG-AT an awful lot and absolutely adore it. Right weight for me, fab balance with the 20" bar, and eats through everything I point it at. Yes, I know there are chains out there I could use instead of the semi-chisel that are a little bit faster - at the expense of tricker sharpening. Yes, I'm sure there are saw that would cut that little bit quicker - at the expense of more weight pulling on my back. But the actual sawing isn't all of it - there's the lugging of the rings, too, and the splitting, and the bagging... For me, no regrets. Best saw I ever had. By far.

Cutting with a saw, splitting with an axe - I can cut 1m3 in 20 minutes, and split 1m3 in 40 minutes. So 1m3 an hour. Add in some extra time, though, for things like saw and axe sharpening.

What else might be different? What chain is he using? Maybe his sharpening technique is different?

Best way I've found to make it easy for the customer to light... Stick a 1" flat bit in a good-sized battery drill and sink a 2" deep hole in the end before you cut the slots. Then all the customer has to do is drop in the firelighter and light...

That about sums it up nicely

Does he let the fire die down before taking it to the petrol station? LOL! :-)

The Law of Sodde says that "As soon as you say you can't find something, you find it" :-( Here you go... Log Jack | Clark Forest : Forestry Tools

I recall seeing a really smart idea that grabbed the log then rolled over-centre to lift it - took much bigger logs than these up-to-8" jobs - but can I remember where I saw it???? :-( Anyone got a link?

It's taxable if your contract states that's what you'd get. If there's nothing about it in your contract, it would be non-contractual and therefore free of tax. I appreciate it sounds like splitting hairs, but we all know that's how the law is. Agreed!

Just wanted to say a quick thanks to everyone who responded - you just can't beat experience. Thank you :-)

Folks, just wondering if there's something I can learn from the more experienced chainsaw users on here. What chains do you typically use for processing cordwood into rings? I can see advantages in narrow-kerf chains: less waste, less strain on the saw, quicker cutting. Are they more fragile in return. I can see advantages in carbide-tipped chains: longer between sharpenings, longer life for the chain, less susceptible to dirt on the cordwood. But more expensive, of course. I can see advantage in the full-chisel etc. cutter: higher productivity. But more-risk of kickback, more vibration, harder to sharpen well. I'd value thoughts! Thank you.

If they're offering you a compromise agreement they should also be offering to pay for at least one visit to an employment lawyer to get advice. You can bet they've had professional legal advice themselves. Pretty well any professional organisation would stump up on this one. Remember that you can't make someone redundant and then replace them - because it is illegal to make a person redundant: you can only make the role redundant. If you replace them, even with a contract worker, the role wasn't redundant was it? It sounds to me like they are aware of all this, and a compromise agreement of course helps them escape the legal niceties here. Also, if you take the compromise agreement you're potentially liable to tax on what, 2 months of pay? Plus their tax and NI liability, too! How much is all that compared to the £1000 on offer? It eats into the offer, doesn't it? You really need professional advice on this one, as your liability to tax on a redundancy payment can depend on the fine print of your contract. Been there on that one. Don't forget too that you can make £1000 profit on 20m3 of hardwood and a bit of sweat - call it 3 days all in. Why make it easy for them for the sake of three days of effort? I'm a bolshy b*****d so I wouldn't!

Tricky one, isn't it? Very mild winter so far... and round here hardwood cordwood stocks are low due to the rush to stock last autumn - so prices are correspondingly high. If it doesn't chill down soon - and next week it's forecast to, but we need a month of it, not a week - everyone's going to have a load left over for next winter, what cord is sitting around won't sell, and prices will plummet. If you need to re-stock for next winter, and can't risk supply drying up even further, buy now. If you can afford to wait and speculate, wait. Wholesale gas prices have fallen and bills are falling with it - so we may see a fall in demand for wood and less willingness to pay premium prices. Me, I'm not a big player. 50t a year by saw and axe, operating at the premium end with a strong reputation for a very well-seasoned product. I'm buying now to ensure I have time to process it all by the summer. I simply can't afford to wait or I won't be able to keep my standards up. Those with high-capacity processors won't have my constraint. Good luck to them!

I can't help but wonder if this is more about the economy than your noise. If you think about it, with the downturn there's less planning work for these people - therefore less jobs in planning. Also with the cutbacks, councils will cut back more on departments with less work (e.g. Planning, Building Control) than ones with more work (e.g. Social Services). Why you may have here is someone scared about her job and looking to justify her position. Just a thought. It might be you can work with her to the benefit of both - and you'll have a friend that may be useful in the future?

But... next year it'll mean "burn next year", and the year after, and...! :-D

We should also think about the split of customers more suited to each wood type. The urban-dwelling folks that I mostly sell to really need hardwood because it takes up less of their very-limited storage space for the same energy content. Rural-dwellers can get away with more softwood because they have the space - although Stereo has a good point about always having some hardwood to hand to keep the fire in over longer intervals. It'll be interesting to see what happens when the domestic RHI kicks in (if there's any money left after the FIT fiasco) this coming Autumn. If it drives chip and pellet production, we could see that absorbing a lot of the softwood in the market. I just hope the planting we need for all these stoves is happening. It would help if so much wasn't being wasted by being burned green - either through lack of knowledge by someone who cut a tree in his garden down, or being deliberately sold as 'seasoned' by Mick-with-the-battered-tranny.

I do a steady trade to regular customers for chimineas, fire baskets, etc. but it's pocket money really. For me the logs are a sideline and an excellent income for the winter - if they were my main income I'd be looking to diversify for summer money.

Well anyone that, like me, went to Amazon.com to find they were out of stock, will find they came back in overnight. Mine is ordered :-) I think they've got 3 left...

Some old, old oak full of woodworm that I would never sell to my customers - by 'eck those la'al bugs burn 'ot! :-)

At the risk of sounding patronising (apologies if I do) your best option is to go upmarket. Aim specifically at the quality end of the market, get your product as good as you can (i.e. dry, stacked, delivered bang-on-agreed-time, to the size wanted, with free advice and a smile), and market to those with the money. Educate your customers if need be. Do everything you can to differentiate yourself from Mick-and-his-battered-tranny - compare volume, moisture content, soft/hard, delivery approach - and offer guarantees. People are tight-up at the mo, and up where you are there are more tight folks than average (sorry, couldn't resist, I'm 'red rose' by origins), but a guarantee gives them peace-of-mind. Don't worry, if you're as good as you say you are, almost no-one will try to claim on it.

Thanks, Steph. Really useful info. I'll go look for my local agency dealing with it...

Who are giving out these grants? I'd love to ramp the business up, but can't take the risk of a large loan to do so in this economy. My product is high-quality, delivered on time with a smile to customers with free advice and support. I'd love to help put more well-seasoned firewood into the market, but it'll take significant investment. If the government are really making grants to such businesses, I'd love to hear about it!

50m3 - this year's production - and sold out by mid-November...