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Spruce Pirate

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Everything posted by Spruce Pirate

  1. Think they've put these back into one ticket again, back how it used to be (CS 15?), but don't know the new numbers.
  2. I'm pretty sure this says something about tree work, I'm just not totally sure what.
  3. You can buy yourself a lot of wine for the price of a timber lorry!
  4. Rates for woodcutters is a very difficult subject. I'd agree with a lot of what's been said here before about difficult to get cutters and even more difficult to get good cutters. Part of the problem is that cutters are self-employed and providing A LOT of kit, saws - probably small, medium and large, wedges, hammers, jacks, first aid kit, PPE, tapes, breaking bars, fuel, oil, bars, chains, chainsaw training, refresher training, log books, first aid training, vehicle to and from work - often miles up rough forest roads which eat vehicles. Then they're expected to put plenty of timber on the ground, presented well for either the harvester or the forwarder, realistically low stumps, properly sned, cleanly cut to the right lengths. Start comparing this to other industries and I'd say there's no way a decent cutter should be on any less than £300 a day. The trouble is the industry won't stand it. Too many people saying £150 a day is all they'll pay and putting up with folk who can't really do the job where if they'd pay more they'd get more done. Too many "cutters" turning up on site with several things on my list above missing and without the skills to do the job thinking they're worth mega-bucks, which leads to contractors thinking cutters aren't worth the money. Too many contractors think a cutter just costs them money, seemingly blind to the fact that the cutter is putting timber on the deck which earns money. Too many jobs costed where the cutting element isn't properly costed, if the industry can stand the fact that an unproductive welfare unit is going to cost a certain amount per ton, or per week or whatever then we should start to think that maybe the cutting element might start to cost as well and enable decent rates to be paid. Sometimes the timber just isn't there too allow a cutter to produce properly, I did a job in the summer where I was lucky to be getting 60m3 on the deck in a day, small trees, all leaning the wrong way and just a ball ache to fell and be anywhere near productive. There's more jobs going to have to fall into this category if rates are going to improve. Sawlogs were over £100 a ton a short while ago and cutters and contractors saw basically nothing in return, yet as soon as rates drop we're too expensive. There needs to be a more equal share of the pie. We also need to get some realistic system of bringing on people who want to do the work, be it young ones entering the industry or tree surgeons looking to diversify. Again, the costs of these people being un-productive needs to be covered somehow, simply moaning that someone is useless and can't get the job done is very unlikely to get them to progress. None of us were born knowing how to do everything but the current system, touched on by others in earlier posts breeds cutters who have tickets but not full skills and think they're worth what is currently top-end money. I think they should be paid that money, but while they're being mentored to become properly skilled cutters and earn proper money for doing so. Then again, I quite like living in Fantasy-Land..........
  5. We're generally very rural so a lot of the time everything stays on site, logs for use client's use or habitat piled, branches either habitat piled or chipped, either for use as mulch or broadcast on site. If we do remove from site logs generally either goes for sale as lengths for biomass, get processed for firewood or milled for our own use or signs, benches etc. If chip needs removed it mostly goes to one of the neighbours farms for mixing in with the dung heap, bedding or whatever they see fit. We don't have a lot of arisings due to the nature of our business being more forestry than arb so it's easier to give away a wee bit of chip than to try and sell. If we did more arb and had more to get rid of it might be a different story.
  6. 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.
  7. 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.
  8. 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?
  9. I'd say there's a fundamental lack of understanding of how gravity works if that's a gob! 😂 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.
  10. If it faces due west would it not be in the shade in the morning when the milk is delivered?
  11. 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.
  12. I missed the thread resurrection, but I was going to guess 375kg for the pine and 1.557 ton for the syc - honest!!!
  13. 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!
  14. Rhizophagus grandis. It does seem to work a treat.
  15. 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.
  16. 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.
  17. 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.
  18. 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.
  19. 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.
  20. Sounds like the old 365 compared to the 372.
  21. 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.......
  22. 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.
  23. 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.
  24. 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?!?!?!😲

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