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This is also where my Gransfors side axe came from. They were very amenable to the concept of a deal on the price..... Alec

I would agree with this. I'm neither a forester nor a tree surgeon - I fell the odd decent butt for milling (and using) myself. I have an 076 which will happily pull a 4ft bar, so there isn't much that I can't go straight through from one side, let alone if I go at it from both sides (not too many trees approaching 8ft!). Yes, it's heavy, but as I said, for a single tree it doesn't really matter if you lug it in and out, and I'll probably need it for the Alaskan mill anyway. If I've obtained a single standing tree then I want to make the most of it. That means I'm felling as close to the ground as I can get, in amongst the buttresses, so it's probably wider. If it's big enough to take it then I would probably be considering boring the centre of the hinge. Probably I'd consider applying it to something 2ft or so in diameter upwards. Alec

Hi Pete, Thanks for the SPAB links - an interesting piece of research. I've read the first paper, which I thought drew some generally interesting conclusions, although it didn't substantiate its conclusion with respect to the potential implications for damage from current practice - got a little hand-wavy at that point. I will read more later and see if it firms this up. I'm in an interesting position. Professionally, I develop such things. Personally, I live in a 500yr old house which has been much abused. Sometimes I get to develop things which I think it would be good if they existed, and I would buy! I suspect that I largely share your views - there's often a discrepancy between common sense and what the computer says. I think there are probably ways that the two can be reconciled in many cases, with due care, to reach a pragmatic compromise. In my limited (personal) experience the difficulty is that many decisions are taken either by people with limited understanding and a rulebook, or by people with very limited experience of advances in materials or arising understanding of their performance (think how many 'professionals' still re-point lime mortar brickwork with cement). This leads to a path of least resistance, which tends to be to adopt a common approach that works for the majority, and ignore (or fail to comprehend) that there may be implications for the minority. An example - I've just been delayed six weeks in constructing my extension roof because nobody could agree on the correct way to install aerogel blanket installation. This isn't because they disagreed - they had just never heard of it and wouldn't make a decision. I ended up sending a sketch to the supplier, which they drew up as a CAD drawing and issued to Building Control with their own header in order to get it through. I generally take the view that I wouldn't rip out a feature of historic value in the name of convenience or nominal improvement. However, where previous work has already removed something of value, and replaced it with something inappropriate that needs to come out anyway, I would be inclined to establish whether there was a sensible alternative to the original. For example, when the cement render over chicken wire comes off the outside of my walls, I may also be inclined to remove the internal plasterboard (between the studs) and the fibreglass between the two. At this point, I will have a section of bare frame. What goes back in may be more thermally efficient than the original, and more breathable than the current. This could potentially combine a lower thermal conductivity 'aggregate' than sharp sand in the plaster elements, and I will consider my options for the infill, with the aim of reducing thermal conductivity whilst increasing thermal mass for temperature stability. I have probably just derailed this thread enough! Alec

Hi John, Sorry, web address should be Welcome - Hipin Arb related stuff (inc milling and use of timber) is what I do out of the office. My day job is contract R&D where I run a group which works on a range of processes and advanced materials including high performance coatings and ceramics. HIPIN is an EC funded collaborative project with partners across Europe developing high performance insulation systems. Our bit is stripping cost out of aerogels, Vimark are looking at using it in plasters, ARUP are working out how to quantify performance. It's 1yr into a 3yr project so still a way to go but it's going we'll so far. Alec

Ouch! Interesting failure. I know that's not the longest of grain, but it's not that short either on the side - it looks to be the combination of the two axes. I can see why they thought that would be acceptable, but I don't like notches myself - stress raisers. I've kept them to the minimum, with pegs in the neutral axis. Wasn't aware you could visually grade s/w for structural use - I've only dealt with big mills where they use 100% testing and stamping. Alec

I'd give it a few more weeks - let the leaves fall. It's easier to see what you're doing and the bits are nicer to handle. You don't specifically need to have a flat, horizontal spread. It's a traditional form, but not the only form. The tree would be quite happy as a slightly more rounded shape, as per my earlier sketch. However, if you specifically want the flat topped look, let the branches grow up and they'll form side branches. Once there's a side branch where you want it, cut the top out above it. If you really need a side branch at a particular point and one isn't forming, cut the top out of the bit that isn't branching and it will then re-sprout lower down - choose the new side branch you like. These branches will initially grow out at an angle, probably about 45degrees give or take, but as they lengthen they will arch downwards and the weight of leaves and fruit will gradually bring them down. Alec

Hardwood is currently visual grading only for building regs. Effectively what you asked for is in fact the best grading there is. Very handy rule if you want to fell and mill your own timber. Softwood is much more tricky as you have to get it tested. Alec

Very nice! I'll try and stick some photo's of my extension roof up at some point when I've figured how to get them off my wife's iPhone. Have you found canoehead's thread on the house he's building in Portugal yet? Alec

What are the dimensions? Alec

Very interested to hear the results of your insulating lime render. My group are currently running the European project HIPIN (http://www.hipin.org) - one of the outputs from which should be a highly insulating lime-based render (we're working with a company called Vimark in Italy for this), so it would be good to get a comparison on price/performance. At some point (when I've finished the extension so the children get bedrooms and we have a proper kitchen and bathroom) I will move on to removing the cement render from the timber frame, at which point I will need to render my own house - I have a personal interest in some of the projects we do! Alec

I would still cut pretty much as per my previous diagram - can't see anything specific I'd change (it's temporary anyway on the upper section). As Tony says, I would leave everything lower down alone for now. You will need to thin it out eventually, but let it build up a bit first and pick the best placed shoots. I also wouldn't tie it down at this stage, as you want to encourage vigour in the water shoots, which means breaking the apical dominance (highest thing grows most vigorously) so more upright would be better - a shallow angle of about 30degrees from vertical would be ideal. Alec

Thatchers do use hazel spars, but the environment is very benign - longstraw thatch is grass, which lasts indefinitely. Some hall houses which were subsequently closed in have been found to have soot on the innermost layer of thatch, which dates it to 450yrs old or so. Interesting to hear from you farmerjohn - I'm currently sorting out our house (on an ongoing basis) which is old enough to use very traditional materials. Reasonably familiar with lime now, but I'll remember who to ask! Alec

When you find out what's up with it, please do update the thread. It always helps to be forewarned of yet more ways your 066 can pack up on you..... Alec

What I would be concerned about is that this is a seizure due to lack of lubrication in one form or another. That doesn't happen 'because the saw is old'. When a saw is old and wears out, it's usually the rings that go first, being softer than the plating. You can usually get a second lease of life out of the piston with new rings. There are other types of failure which produce scoring - relating to chewy bits going into the pot. You can get this on the inlet side from a failed air filter, or if you run with way too much oil in the mix, so it's chucking out smoke, it is also very sooty and the soot lumps can break off and score up the bore, particularly on the outlet side. Saws with horizontally mounted pots (like the 041, 051 or 075/6) seem particularly prone to this on the lower side. When you get heat seizure, something is wrong - the seizure is a symptom, not the cause, so unless you find the cause you will have the same thing happen again. It can be down to fuel - old fuel (a couple of weeks in the tank, a few weeks mixed in the can) doesn't lubricate properly; 'bad' pump fuel can do it (I know this - it did two of mine at the same time!) and surprisingly putting too much oil in the mix can do this as the petrol/air mix is then lean. Did you run any other saws at the same time with no problems? If you did, then it suggests an underlying saw problem. It could be an air leak - from the crankcase, the main bearing seals or a split or incorrectly fitted carb boot, or various other things. Some of these can be found visually, others need vacuum leak testing. Unless you have the kit to do leak checking, I would seriously suggest getting this done at least before you start doing anything else. Otherwise you may well end up spending more money on another set of parts in the very near future. Alec

The one that went on my 066 came from Garden Hire Spares and has been fine so far. Hasn't worked as hard as it used to when it was my primary milling saw, but has done a bit and seems happy enough. Not entirely sure what brand it ended up being. Golf and Meteor seem to be recommended if you can find them. Episan may be OK too, which I think come from Greece (Spud is your man for this question really). Which side is scored - inlet or outlet? Do you know why it failed? The former can be diagnostic of the latter if you don't actually know. It's significant, as using new pot and piston kits as a diagnostic tool gets very expensive. This is why not pressure and vacuum testing (or having it done) is a false economy in my opinion. 54mm is standard, so personally I'd stick with that. There was an 066 Magnum, the early ones of which had a dual port muffler and a heavy duty crankshaft. Even that didn't have the 56mm bore, so I'd leave it alone myself. Alec

I do it to oaks for milling, but that's to stop the fibres tearing out so you get a cleaner full length butt. Alec

Yes, but you can buy the correct size aftermarket piston. It's the pot that's not directly available. Alec

The key question would be how cheap is cheap? Assume it's local enough to pick up, so no postage costs. New piston is available - not sure whether the pot is salvageable or not? If the pot is salvageable, a piston will cost £30. If the pot isn't salvageable, and you can get away with an 038 Magnum pot, you will be looking at £50 for the pair. Assume it will need various sundry items, like a plug, and assume it will cost you £60 in parts. I can't find a comparative price for an 048, but an 038 Magnum seems to make about £150. So, if the 048 is going for, say £50, it may be worth taking a chance on. More than £100 and it's definitely not worth it. Of course, fixing up an 066 is always going to give you a more useful saw in the end. Alec

Al - do you have the specs/part number to hand for the 038 Magnum pot cf. the 048 pot? You can buy an aftermarket 048 piston, and 038 Magnum pot, which may go together? Garden Hire Spares (I've used their parts before with no complaints) sell the 048 piston, the 038 Magnum pot and piston kit, and the 038 Magnum piston on its own. Garden Hire Spares are a 'real' company - i.e. they have a physical presence and you can ring them up etc. They may therefore be prepared to sell you just the bits you want, as the 038 piston is a line item in its own right. I've found them quite accommodating in the past. Alec

Unless things have changed while I wasn't looking, the bore will be Nicasil plated, not nitrided. You wouldn't rebore, just strip the plating and replate, but I can't find anyone in the UK who is prepared to repair them (I am working on a way of doing this). I'm also not aware of any aftermarket ones. The good news is that Spudulike does have quite a good recovery rate so long as the plating isn't damaged, so you may only need a new piston. Alec

Possibly. Depends which bits. The standard 038 is a 50mm bore, the Magnum is 52mm (matching the standard 048). I'm not sure whether this is true for all years though, or whether there are any other incompatibilities such as placing of holes etc. Probably not, but the ideal is to download yourself a few parts lists (038, 038 Magnum, 048) and see whether the part numbers match. Alec

You need someone to confirm this, but I think the 048 uses the same 52mm pot and piston as the 038 Magnum (and the 045). Aftermarket 52mm 038 pot and piston kits appear to be available (on the inevitable ebay) for about £50 inc. p&p. If the pot is OK you can get a 52mm piston for about £18 inc. p&p. If it's running and the scoring is light, check the plating in the bore as if it's not damaged keeping the original pot is quite viable. Alec

Another option would be to look for a decent secondhand saw. The problem you have with buying a new saw is that realistically you will notch up so few engine hours that, relative to someone using the saw several hours a day, you simply won't spot problems for years that they may find in weeks. That means it will be well out of warranty anyway before a low-hours problem shows up. On the other hand, a used saw will not notch up hours quickly, so you should get years of use out of it relative to someone who is running it day in day out. Secondhand can be risky if you don't know what you're looking for, but you could ask Spudulike if he's got anything in that he's gone over. Alec

When I did my back I got fed up with 'wait for it to get better' from conventional medicine. I also admit to a mistrust of that view, as it's what my Dad was told when originally diagnosed with a frozen shoulder, that turned out to be melanoma, which by the time it was correctly diagnosed had progressed and become terminal. Not knocking the doctors involved, as it was a pretty rare instance, but nonetheless it's made me very wary of leaving things on assumption that they will mend (plus I am impatient ) I went to see a chiropractor, who made my back feel better in one visit, then instigated a programme of increasing gaps between sessions (a couple of days, progressed to a week, progressed to fortnightly, to a month etc). I appreciated the baseline assessment, and the attitude of making things better, not extracting the maximum possible amount of cash, together with sensible exercises which I still do (and she sorted my neck into the bargain when I happened to mention it was a bit stiff). What I really appreciated was that it worked. I would agree that it's hard to know whether any particular practitioner is good or bad though, particularly being relatively lightly regulated. Alec

Basically, as Jonathan says. There are a few points of detail you'll need to agree with your purchaser however. If everything is a perfect cylinder then it doesn't matter where you measure. However, they'll taper, so the normal is to measure in the middle. The measurement assumes the butts are straight, with no defects such as rot-holes from old branches - if they're not then you'll need to agree on an allowance. You can see why you have to be careful on the above. Say you have a 2ft dia butt x 16ft long, with a gentle curve in it, causing a maximum deviation of 8ins. Clearly you can't make clear boards 16ft long, so it wouldn't be fair to calculate the volume as 36 Hoppus feet. If you based your calculation on maximum straight boards you could get out of it, you would calculate a girth based on the ellipse 24x16in, which gives a volume of 28 Hoppus feet. However, if the buyer only actually wanted 8ft maximum length, cutting it in half would halve the impact of the curve, so you end up with a volume (sum of the two lengths) of 33 Hoppus feet. This may look complicated, but in practice the variation in price on the above is only about +/-£20 in £150, and it's handy to have a buyer, so my inclination would be to make the calculation in the way which is most favourable to the buyer. This will keep them happy, and mean they never feel they've been short-changed. It will also make them more inclined to bother with the slightly trickier bits, which will probably mean you sell more in the long run. The key however is to agree what method you are applying. Alec