Spruce Pirate

Normally get them from the local dealer as loops. I did get a load from you when you had the buy 3 get 1 free, buy 5 get 3 free deal on a while back though. Price not normally too much of a consideration (if it was I'd buy a reel and make them up myself), but that deal was too good to miss.

Still using mostly Oregon. Occasionally go wild and get a Sugi, but most of the time I find they're too heavy and a nightmare to dress when they do need it. Never really had a problem with wear on the Oregon bars. Running Husky saws and a Dolly.

As well as the above you could try Euroforest, the FC, Novar Estate are quite close to you are they not? Other estates may also be able to help out. See who the lorries belong to and give the haulier a call, they might be able to point you in the right direction.

Yeah, it was finding the link that took the time.

More or less as I'd thought, a lot less hassle for a better reward.

You could also try Ringlink. Welcome to Ringlink Services. I'd vouch for H&W as well. The School of Forestry have always been notorious for being very slow in organising things, but I'm sure you'd get good training. Edit: htb beat me to Ringlink.

Out of curiosity, how much would you have got for the firewood if you'd converted it into logs and how much time would it have taken? What's the equivalent rate per hour? I'm assuming the chip works out much better....?

A bit late in spotting the thread if you've already posted them, but when sending samples to FC labs we use zip lock bags, normally double bagged and then in an envelope. This is the way they ask us to send them, the only concern would be if it were sat in the bag too long in a hot sorting office or on the doormat in the lab. Samples therefore have to be sent either the same day they're collected or the next day. Samples collected late on a Thursday or on a Friday are therefore kept in the fridge over the weekend and posted on the Monday.

Forgive my ignorance. What's an SPA card?

I'll probably be there on the Sunday with the kids if I can score a couple of tickets. Helluva pricey to park and get in.

Sold! I'll take one. Can you add it to my order? Cheers Andrew.

I'm interested, but you've lost me a bit. I get that it comes over more slowly with the back cut below. By half and half do you mean deep gub, half way into the tree? Sorry if I'm being thick Good points earlier on knowing what species to use cuts on too.

Gob, gub, mouth, face all mean undercut. Basically all of the above are about right in my opinion. I'd only really use it if I wanted to make sure and keep something on the stump and with a winch. Like if you're felling up hill with a winch pulling them in. Fell it with the back cut below, pull it in with the winch, if the line goes slack the back cut being below means the butt will stay on the stump without the hinge snapping, tension up the line again, sever the hinge and winch it up. If you use a conventional cut with the back cut above and the hinge snaps you can end up with the tree sliding back down the hill. A lot more difficult to get the tree to fall, hence why I'd only use it with a winch, in normal circumstances back cut always above. Rule I was taught was same as hinge thickness - 1" per 1', ie 1' diameter tree = 1" thick hinge, back gut 1" above bottom of gub.

There are some great comments there. How much was the fine for using the topper on the ground with no gloves?

Item 3 in the Terms & Conditions: 3.All entrants must be suitably qualified for the prize (at the date of the draw) and be able to show approved qualifications for this purpose. The decision of whether qualifications are approved lies with the Sponsor but will be normally be based on NPTC or Lantra.

I think it would very much depend on how the LA worded the invitation to quote. If they specified a MEWP must be used then I think A would have very good grounds to be miffed, if they specified industry best practice I can see how A's nose would be out of joint if the tree was truly dead, if they made no spec's at all I can see how it would be annoying, but to involve the press seems a bit much. I'd be letting the procurement department know I wasn't happy, but anything more is just sour grapes.

I ran a 350 for about six years I think, it was a great wee saw. I think I traded it in in the end. It punched well above its weight for a semi-pro saw IMO.

Sometimes below, sometimes above, sometimes level. Depends on how I feel, how much I think it's going to take to get it to go over, etc. If it's going to take a lot to get it over I tend to cut level as it's one less thing to hold it back, essentially just finishing the cut. If using a winch or jack I'd tend to go below. I never really got on with split level cuts, I just prefer the Danish pie, largely personal preference. With a bit of thought I think it's as if it's got a real lean on it you can also send a wedge right through the back as you've cut right through the tree behind the hinge, gives you more lift. You can also put a small wedge in on one side to hold it while having a bigger wedge on the other to drive right through. By the time you've driven the big wedge in a bit you can pull the smaller one out. Hope this makes sense. I've put over some small diameter trees this way with a hefty back lean and a bit of height, so never going to go over with just a bar. Need to keep a fairly decent hinge as if it's too thin it'll just pop off. This is for felling forward leaning trees, so the tree is going to want to go early. If you leave a strap at the back you hold the tree while setting the hinge, when you sever the strap you can do it in a number of ways: level above the cut or in the cut - the tree is likely to break the holding wood before you fully cut it and can take the saw with it or cause it to kick; level underneath the cut - the tree is again likely to break the holding wood before you've severed it fully, possibly causing the tree to split at the back. The cutting down at 45 degrees keeps the strength in the wood fibre, meaning the strap is less likely to snap or at least will hold on longer, the angle of the cut means that the saw is less likely to be taken with the tree. That is the way that I understand it, but if anyone's got more knowledge I'll happily learn.

Yes, maybe I've not been ultra clear. It's probably not truly a dog tooth cut I'm on about, but a bit of wood at the back to stop the tree sitting back, similar to a dog tooth. I'd use it on bigger trees, lets you cut round and set the hinge up without worrying about it sitting back and pinching the saw. Like Drinksloe says, with wedges in at 10 and 2 ish - you can get them well set in, or stick a jack in it if you want, then when you do sever the strap/holding wood (not necessarily at 45 degrees in this case), if you've got things well set up the tree will lift slightly and you know it's going to go. Also fair to say, as Drinksloe points out, that it's normally easier to keep things simple and just wedge as you go. On smaller trees I'd use a pie cut, I used to use split levels, but nowadays prefer the pie cut.

If it's proper windy you can rip the holding wood/buttress right out of the ground doing this! Proper good fun. You can use a dog tooth on back leaners or weighted trees too, lets you set a wedge or jack well in and get the hinge set before you sever the wood, similar to a pie cut. Double V can be done with power saw every bit as well as with hand tools. This is my reality too. Unless something is seriously leaning there are very few situations where a sharp chain and a fast saw won't do the job. It is worth mentioning that I cut mostly spruce, which behaves quite well. You can probably count on the fingers of one hand the number of sweet chestnuts that I've cut - if I cut more then I might have a different perspective. Important to know how the tree you're cutting behaves as well as knowing all the cuts in the book.

Speak to the trainer. They might know people who are looking to take on folk.

Today's been a good day so far, got up early, bumbled about for a while, went back to bed and snoozed for an hour or so , played with the baby, sent the older two out to play in the snow and got some peace to look at a few survey results, went to town, bought a new computer, had lunch, home now watching the rugby with a Guinness - Scotland not even playing too badly at the moment. Off out later on to the village Burns Supper (better late than never).

I'm a member too - but only because it lets me say that I'm a member of a safety organisation, even the stickers aren't that good. FISA is a shambles, and the situation in the OP only serves to prove it. If refresher is to NPTC standard it shouldn't matter whether the assessor is FISA approved or not, this is just another cost and protectionism for the boys in the FISA club. The demarcation between harvesting and "other" sites is also a farce, you can be felling trees of the same size and type on one contract, but you don't need an "approved" refresher because it isn't harvesting??? It's ridiculous, arb work can be even more dangerous, and doesn't need an "approved" refresher, even if it is being carried out for a large forestry company. We should also get away from this "refresher" business. It is not a refresher, it is an assessment - you can either fail it and need re-certified, or be deemed competent for three or five years. That is an assessment, not a refresher. Out of curiousity, who has made the decision that NPTC refresher isn't good enough, only "approved" NPTC refreshers will do? Is it the contractor, management company, timber buyer, client?

FC round here used to have a circular saw blade, a flail and a ditching bucket all on a rubber duck. The idea being that first pass was with the blade pruning/brashing trees, second pass with the flail taking out regen and mulching the arisings, then the bucket clearing ditches. The forester said you'd be quicker with a pole-pruner and a brush-cutter for the first two passes - and I think he was right. But the technology is improving all the time and quality of the cut isn't too bad, albeit there is a significant peg left, not trimmed to the branch collar. It's not there yet, but mechanical tree pruning may not be too far into the future. H&S may be our saviour as it is difficult for an operator to stop a blade spinning at xxxxx rpm if a member of public happens to ignore a warning sign.

2.5kg really isn't much, you're right Mr Fox. Just been on the Google and a 150 is 2.6kg and a 540 is 3.9 kg on the paper stats! Difficult to see passed a light saw that's solidly built.