Spruce Pirate

Started working in forestry, the guy I worked for did a bit of arb work on the side, I've carried on doing a bit of arb here and there.  Mostly removals, not so keen on reductions, don't do hedge trimming.  Depending what contracts I've got I do more arb or less, currently not doing much, mostly forestry but it comes and goes.

For what it's worth, my understanding of things:

Pavement - the tarred (normally) bit next to a road you walk on as a pedestrian.

Footpath - a path through fields/woods/anywhere else which isn't beside a road.

Footway - antiquated term to describe either of the above.

Spelling things with z's - American, very annoying when children and young people do it, worth fighting the fight of the just over to preserve the use of the s.

Having your photo used without permission on someone else's website - very, very annoying but probably a minefield of legalities and way more hassle than it is worth to do anything about other than previously mentioned threats of physical violence.

On 18/08/2022 at 15:34, Big J said:

Yeah, like Andy says, blueberries here too (blåbär).

 

Couple more photos from this morning. Getting to grips with the new machine now.

 

 

Nevermind all this swimming and fishing and quality of life nonsense, what's the timber going for?  Small diameter?  Random lengths?  Pulp?  Is it all birch or are you getting Norway and pine too?  Ground can't be that hard if you've got the tracks on?  

2 hours ago, Stubby said:

The lower cut appears to be an attempt at a gob but maybe there was not enough room to put in the back cut so went higher .

I'd say there's a fundamental lack of understanding of how gravity works if that's a gob! 😂

4 hours ago, Sutton said:

I'd trust most farmers to know the basics of compression and tension. But there's no de-compressing undercut on top. We'd expect from windblown so most likely an amateur.

I've never met a farmer who understood this.  They all think it's some sort of magical power to be able to cross-cut anything remotely big without getting pinched.

If it faces due west would it not be in the shade in the morning when the milk is delivered?

1 hour ago, drinksloe said:

 

Is there not a felling cut where u quite literally take a box out of the front instead of a triangle gub?

I think I watched a video of Hotsaws101 a while back where he described that as a Humbolt notch and the upside down gub that we'd now normally call a Humbolt he was referring to as a modified Humbolt.  Can't remember the exact reasons for the modifiaction, but I think it might have been something to do with people with clipboards and safety. 🙄  I like the "modified Humbolt" for felling downhill, but have never tried the square cut, never seen the need.  It's not something I know a lot about.

3 hours ago, Billhook said:

Very good guesses!

 

Pine. 375.5 kg

Sycamore. 1557.5 kg

 

 

I missed the thread resurrection, but I was going to guess 375kg for the pine and 1.557 ton for the syc - honest!!!

1 hour ago, slack ma girdle said:

Quite a few people bring the corner of the mouth down, and create a smaller area for the hinge to bend, but I always find that they don't hold. Making the extra long diagonal seems to allow better holding even with trees with poor fiber strength.

The down side is the height of the stump, the back of the handle was touching the ground in that video.

I am surprised that the stump police haven't swooped in!

I do it this way, but normally also try and leave a tapered hinge, thick on the holding side, rather than going Dutch on the side with the lean.  I find it works more times than not, but I'll definitely be trying your vertical cut for a bit of comparison.  

I like a Sizwell cut and find it works a treat, but I also always follow the golden rule!

2 hours ago, Dendrologen said:

Looks like you are right. There is a biocontrol that FC release at affected sites. It was done where I used to work.

Rhizophagus grandis.  It does seem to work a treat.

It looks like it might be the great spruce bark beetle (Dendroctonus micans).  It looks like a volcano hole in the bark which is one of the indicators of D. micans.  Around here Scottish Forestry are very interested in hearing about these as we're in the pest free area for timber, I'm not sure whether the FC would want to know in your part of the world, but they very well might.  Healthy trees can repel an attack from D. micans by exuding sap, but other, weaker trees in the area might succumb. The other spruce bark beetle is the eight-toothed spruce bark beetle (Ips topographus), as far as I know its only in the very south of England at the moment, but if it is moving north then FC will definitely be wanting to know about it.  As far as I know Ips doesn't leave the volcano holes, but I don't know all that much about it.

Was that in at JCC the other week?  Saw it in passing and noticed the winch but didn't get a chance to get a proper nose at it.

My in-laws had to replace the roof on their house in a CA.  Cost a fortune as the council insisted that the correct slate was used to match the original.  Probably depends which local authority you have to deal with.

The bleeds on your tree don't look like classic P. ramorum lesions, dieback in the branches often comes in from one side which could account for why only one of the stems seems in trouble.  Was there any sign of dieback last year when the rest of the tree was still holding good, green needles?  Is there any sign of new small shoots growing from the stem or stems? (epicormic growth)  Are there any brown, dead looking needles being retained on the tree?  If the tree is infected then it will be dead this time next year so probably better to get it dealt with sooner rather than later.

In a commercial setting infected larches are served with a Statutory Plant Health Notification which requires the trees to be felled.  This must be done within a certain timeframe, dependant on when the SPHN is served, but basically it is designed to have the trees felled before the fungus has sporulated to help prevent, or slow the spread of the disease.  Machinery and equipment used to fell the trees should be cleaned and disinfected prior to  leaving site, this includes PPE, boots, etc.  As far as I'm aware, you don't need a license to move the timber, but a mill must be licensed to process the timber.  I'm afraid I don't know the implications for a domestic setting, but I'm pretty sure the disinfecting part at least would still apply.  The licensing requirement for sawmills is mostly to do with disposal of the slab wood and waste, so I'd think there may well be some restrictions on chip and timber being moved.

You may well be able to access free advice from your local Forestry Commission or DEFRA office.

I only ever take hot water in the flask.  Drink either black coffee or cup-a-soup at work, both easily taken in the piece bag and made on site.  I've washed a few cups, but never the actual flask, nice, easy low maintenance.

1 hour ago, bilke_user said:

If you get a chance, try out the 565..........detuned version of the 572, but as of yet I've not noticed any real world difference between the two.  I'm running both with 20" bars and only bought the 565 as it was available at about £120 cheaper than the 572 and most importantly.....available!

 

Sounds like the old 365 compared to the 372.

Thanks for all the replies.

First off, I've already ruled out a 462 from Stihl, it's an OK saw, but it doesn't perform as well as the 572 in my opinion.  I had an extended demo of one a while back and it's good, but it's not a 572.  A bit clunky and the rear handle has a tendency to fall apart.  All you hardwood guys in the south might like them but I still think the Husky is better for softwoods which is what I do most of.

I'm well aware that the 500i is 10cc (or almost) bigger in engine capacity than the 572, and that we possibly shouldn't be comparing them.  They do however fall into the same niche when felling, at least up here they seem to, so they're always going to get compared.  Maybe the question should be why Stihl had to build a bigger saw to compete with the Husqvarna?

I'm still not sure whether to just go for the 500i as it's there (but might not be for much longer), or hold out until a 572 can be got.  Decisions, decisions.......

Evening all,

I'm looking for thoughts on 500i vs 572xp.  I need to replace the 572 and not sure what to go with.  572 is a saw I like, it's cheaper and I've got plenty spares, but I can't seem to find anyone who's got one to sell.  500i is more expensive, thirsty, no spares but I can pick one up tomorrow.  Each therefore has advantages and disadvantages.  Looking for peoples thoughts as to each saw as I could always wait a while for a 572.

Thanks in advance.

They're sometimes way, way, WAY out with their estimates.  I looked at one a while back which was being re-tendered as they didn't like the original bid (only one contractor submitted a bid the first time, it was about £90k).  In the end I didn't go for it as the job was too much of a ball ache and we were busy enough anyway, but I reckon the £90k was about right but also I think over twice what their estimate of the value of the work was.  I seem to remember it went to negotiation after the re-tender with the amount of work being reduced.

Point is, you can only put a price in for what you think the work is worth, not what someone else does.

29 minutes ago, LGP Eddie said:

In a Defender etc (of a certain vintage) the easiest to get the diff lock light to go out is simply pull the handbrake on, put it in reverse and bring it up on the clutch to the bite point.

Just continue to drive against the handbrake (no need to move it’ll just rock back a bit as all the transmission takes up) and the light will go out.

Two things spring to mind with this, 1 - I never knew that, I've always just put it into reverse and driven backwards until it disengages and 2 - you managed to find a defender of a certain vintage with a working handbrake?!?!?!😲

It'll be fine.

Thanks for all the replies so far, I'm leaning towards just getting the Halfords.  Reviews are as good as the likes of the Sealeys cost is a good bit less, lift is more or less the same.

John, I'm pretty good at making sure something is properly supported before going underneath it, but I know what you mean about always being the odd time you do.  I'll try and be better all the time.

On 10/02/2022 at 17:55, openspaceman said:

That's extremely cautious, I agree it's best not to stray into the carnage @spuddog0507 portrays but cannot see a reason not to tackle some windblown and learn, I don't think the qualifications existed when I tackled the bulk of my windblown experience in 1987 or 1991.

I thought '87, or the aftermath, was the reason we had tickets in the first place!

On 05/02/2022 at 14:03, IronMike said:

Ah yes, windblown sites create the rare and unique thing known as comptension 🤣🤦🏻‍♂️

Nothing quite like getting pinched when the cut clearly "should" be opening!

On 12/02/2022 at 11:17, Haironyourchest said:

Handiest thing for windblown is a polesaw. A cheap one. Do bore cuts and cut the triggers with the polesaw 

I'm not sure a pole-saw is actually all that handy compared to knowing what you're doing and how to do it!

On 10/02/2022 at 15:39, Jimmy56 said:

Thanks for the advice, I'm trying to refuse to tackle windblown trees until I get the ticket and the experience (if I ever do)

A course will only take you so far, if you do the ticket then probably best also to get someone who knows a bit about it to give you a hand when you start off.  Single stems are relatively straightforward, but complex multiple blow can take a bit of working out and two heads are better than one.  It's not impossible to learn as you go if you're doing relatively small simple stuff, but you still need to take care and be aware of all the tensions, side and up and down and that even small trees can have a lot of force stored in them and even small root plates are HEAVY.  You can learn a lot from assessment schedules, FISA guides and YouTube, but better to do a course, get advice from someone with experience or both. 

I had my dad's trolley jack on long term loan while he was abroad for a few years, then when he came back I had to return it.  Boo-hoo, suck to be me.  I've got by  for a good while using bottle jacks, but recently used a trolley jack again when there was one available which has reminded me how good, and useful a tool they are.  So, I'm in the market for a trolley jack of my own without having to beg and borrow one.  Needs to lift 3 ton, that should be plenty of safety margin as realistically most things I want to jack are only about a ton or two.  I saw one in Halfords the other week which was fairly cheap, Machine-Mart have a few at varying price points, specifications seem similar.  It's not going to get that much use - I cut trees, I'm not a mechanic - anyone on here got any recommendations?  Do I just get the cheap one, or is it worth spending a bit more money? 

3 minutes ago, peds said:

Well it took me absolutely ages, so you can just go ahead and bloody well use it.

Already done!

12 minutes ago, peds said:

I don't really have the answers to put in a poll, but sure, here you go. If we can add more options in the future then I guess we'll do that.

Sorry, that was meant as a joke, I didn't really mean for you to go to the trouble of creating a poll.