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Both of the above are governed by the rootstock - apples are pretty much universally budded/grafted onto a stock, which has been selected for soil type, ultimate size and ease of propagation (most apples don't propagate very easily). There's no absolute way of telling the rootstock, but a photo of the whole tree, knowing it's 5yrs old and the original soil type, would allow a pretty educated guess to be made. Another thing that's important is to make sure that you don't plant it deeper than the grafting point. If you're not quite sure what you're looking for here, put up a photo of the lower part of the trunk - from where the roots are up say a foot, and I can draw you an arrow on it. Don't assume the original planting depth was correct! Alec

Tennis ball is quite big - normal dessert apple size. If it's a normal dessert apple, and you're looking for the variety, what would really help is the ripening season. Most common 'pink' ones are Discovery and Beauty of Bath which also develop pink flesh, or Katy or Bella Vista which don't. Damage to the tap root - highly likely to survive it. Give it a good strong fencepost type stake - ideally chestnut as you want it to last. Then tie it on firmly but not too tightly with an old bit of bike inner tube. Give it some good organic matter - compost etc, both dug in and as a good mulch around 3ft diameter, and remember to keep it well watered next year. Leave the stake in permanently, but remember to check the tie each winter and loosen it as necessary. Only if it's Bella Vista don't bother with the above - use it as kindling. Alec

I can't be absolutely certain, but I'm pretty sure they're beech. Compare with: Beech Trees in Winter (image preview: FOT646819) | fotoLibra Sycamore are more 'twiggy' at the tops - lots of zigzag bits. I think the painting is of barns at High Halstow in Kent. JPH - I agree with David that lime is most likely for yours - the main branch structure is also correct for horse chestnut but the finer branches are all wrong and it doesn't look blocky enough for the heavy leaves. I could be persuaded that the one on the left was an elm, although it would be a semi-mature one as the top isn't rounded enough. There used to be a lot of elms in this area. Alec

This is one of the ones hanging on my parents' wall: http://www.francis-iles.com/passingshow.jpg There are a fair number of other Rowland Hilder images on the same site - the gallery bought all his paintings on his death. Alec

Hadn't noticed this thread before - I also find myself looking at trees in the background of paintings. I have a particular affinity with Constable as we back onto the Stour, up-river of where he painted but similar scenery nonetheless. I think artistic reference continues in similar vein, even in the era of the camera. My parents had a number of modern paintings and I recall a conversation with my late father one evening when we were identifying the various species in the background, even in some slightly abstract paintings, sometimes winter scenes so going just by typical form. My wife really couldn't understand how we could tell, but then she's a Philistine who can't even identify an ash by silhouette! Alec

Oh yes, probably got more clocks than chainsaws only I don't dare count them. Firstly, they don't need pressure testing and secondly, they're even lower revving than my saws... Don't know your maker, but then there were a lot of them by the 1830s. We've just finished restoring a nice 1790s painted face on a 30hr movement - just got to get the case sorted now - walnut so a bit trickier but I have something suitable. If you get stuck for oak, let me know as I have some smaller bits kicking around. Alec

For anyone planning on buying through ebay who isn't desperate - wait. Come March, prices will start to drop, probably min around mid-August, then climb again as the evenings get colder and people think about doing a bit of firewood for themselves (even though it will be far too wet to burn!) For comparison, I picked up a very decent condition 026 last July for £98. Admittedly that took careful scanning of bad listings, but even the well listed ones were only making about £150. Alec Alec

On this we agree. On this we disagree. Dealers are people, and people are different, but my local dealer's objectives are to firstly prove why anything that went wrong is my fault to avoid any liabilities, and secondly to sell me a new saw. I have had this several times, at three different local dealers, one of whom was responsible for mis-fitting the lip on the bearing seal on my 066, costing me a new pot and piston kit. The last time I went in I said something to the effect of I wasn't sure what had gone wrong, and could they make an assessment as to the failure to work out whether I was doing something wrong. They said, oh that's an old saw (1994), we wouldn't want to repair that, you should buy a new one. I said, if I buy a new one and the same thing goes wrong, will it be under warranty? They said no, not if it's your fault. I said, so how does that help me? They didn't have an answer. To be honest, I'd rather see a separation between the sale of saws and parts, which works perfectly well remotely in these days of internet sales (and you can legitimately buy any saw you like secondhand with no safety talk etc. so the legal argument won't wash) and the service/repair aspect. Yes, some people could be good at both, but not many I suspect. If the local dealers go under in the process, I for one won't miss them. Alec

Not sure I agree with that. As testcricket says, on commercial work you often have to get several quotes. On domestic work, don't forget that most customers don't have a lot of experience to draw on, so they don't know how much it's likely to be. For comparison, I had a preferred building contractor for my extension. He was preferred because he is reliable, honest and works to a very high standard. However, I got other quotes as the figure seemed higher than I was expecting. It was - there was another way of doing the job which he hadn't thought of, and it saved a very large amount of time (and hence cost). Now, if I had felt like it, I could taken the other person's idea and given it, and the job, to the preferred contractor, but instead I used the person who'd come up with it. Think about this in relation to, say, a removal. There are several ways of doing it - anything from a crane to a MEWP to climbing it, with different size teams etc. All these will vary the actual cost of doing the job, which is worth seeing as the customer. Alec

If you're happy with good secondhand then it's worth dropping Spudulike of this forum a message. He has a fair selection of models which he rebuilds for sale. They've been thoroughly gone over, which takes a lot of the risk out of buying secondhand. 026/MS260 is designed for hard work in a way that the 029 isn't. If money is tight so you're limited to one saw, it's worth working out what you think you are most likely to do with it - if it's all small stuff and lots of cuts then something of this size would be ideal. If it's bigger stuff then an 034/036 might suit better as it will run a slightly bigger bar (~18in) which makes ringing up a lot quicker and easier. Sorry, can't comment on the Husky equivalent as I've never had one (nothing against them, just ended up with Stihls). Alec

I used to have an L-reg one with the 1.7 Isuzu in it. Total pain - the engine wasn't covered in any of the manuals, it had a pump on the back of the alternator which meant you had to get them re-wound as nobody stocked it and the engine was designed around 100k miles, after which major bits started to need replacing with alarming regularity. That funny roof thing at the front that raises the height from the standard Corsa rusted out like a colander in under 10yrs. I think they've got that bit sorted at least now, but I much preferred the Ford Escort I had afterwards - only sold it this year as I couldn't get both children in (legally....) Alec

Children keep giving me colds. Just got a new one starting courtesy of the elder daughter. Admittedly, being out all day building the extension probably isn't helping it. Alec

I went for half-lap rather than tongue and groove, as it's easier to get a single board up if you ever need to for access to cables and pipes. It does mean that you can't hide the fixings, but I was quite happy with exposed brass screw heads as I don't mind 'honest' fixings being visible. Yes I did use a router, and would do so for tongue and groove too. It's only a cheap router, but I buy decent quality TREND cutters. There's a cutter which has a bearing below it, so you can run along an edge - change the bearing to change the cut width. I used boards finished at an inch and took half inch deep by 3/8 inch wide cuts out, which worked fine. The last room I did was with 12ft boards and I reckon it took under a minute to go down a board, so edging the lot for a 20ft x 12ft room in 6in width boards only took a couple of hours. The next lot will be a bit more of a challenge - upstairs will be reinstating elm boards of semi-random widths, up to about a foot wide and I'm also on the lookout for a load of brown oak of suitable dimensions to make 8.5in widths x 10ft long. Alec

Another vote for oak. There aren't many timbers that are hard enough to stand up without marking - many look good when first laid but show every dent (even if you don't put your stilettos on...) I particularly dislike ash, as the grain is very open and goes grey and horrible within a few weeks. Other timbers which stay looking good are elm, but it's very hard to get, and walnut if you want something dark. Can't comment on suppliers as I've only ever laid oak after milling it and seasoning it myself. I've only ever air dried, but left it in the room for about 6months and laid it in spring, after the central heating had dried it out. Alec

Hadn't thought of Blazing Saddles - good one. I've always liked the really heavily stylised ones - the original spaghetti westerns with Clint etc, of which for me it's a toss up between Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More and High Plains Drifter. I also quite liked The Quick and the Dead, and whilst not quite a western, Desperado has some very 'Clint' styling. Alec

At the moment, it's originally hawthorn in some places, blackthorn in others. I'm also leaving in dogwood and spindle, planting a few field maple and where it's a bit shaded I'm adding hazel. Reasonable mix? Also, when looking over a length, how do you decide whether to lay or coppice over? Alec

Hi Burrell, I have the same set-up - slightly longer rails though! I find the skip tooth chain from Rob D works really well with it. Alec

Thanks Both, The two replies suggest that hedges should be treated something like a linear coppice. It puts me in mind particularly of the treatment of an overstood coppice, where you leave a few poles to keep the stool going. In hedgelaying, these are the pleachers. Compared with a coppice, the difference is that laying them slows down the growth rate, and relative to full coppicing (i.e. not overstood), leaving the pleachers reduces the amount of regrowth from the 'stool'. There are two slightly different ways of treating hedges, based on your objective. One is to regard hedges just as a barrier. To do this, you trim the growth back to about 2in extension per year on average to avoid creating birds' nests on sticks. This maximises the interval between laying. The other is to also regard them as a source of firewood. Here you actually want more wood growth, so you leave it alone and 'coppice' (re-lay) on about the same interval as conventional coppicing. Round my way (Suffolk/Essex/Cambs. border) there isn't actually a correct style so far as I'm aware, so I tend to use South of England as it suits me, and use anything vaguely straight, between 0.5-1.5in diameter and over 8ft long as a binder. Not particularly pretty, but it works and I don't have stock to protect against. Alec

Be careful with this. Somewhat counter-intuitively, you're actually more likely to seize the saw this way than running it full throttle! This is because there's a difference between throttle and revs. Starting from a saw running at full revs but not in contact with anything, you could drop the revs either by giving it less fuel (backing off the throttle) or by making it work harder (using the power to cut, rather than just drive the chain round). Being a 2-stroke, the engine is using the oil in the fuel as its lubricant. If you back off the throttle, you're decreasing the amount of fuel and hence running lean. Run the same revs at full throttle and, although the saw is working harder, it's running richer and hence better lubricated. Doing it by ear, if the saw is properly set up, rev the saw up to full throttle as you're starting a cut very lightly, then increase the pressure on the cut very slowly and you'll hear the sound go from a 'clean' note to a slightly burbling sound, then back to clean again. Somewhere around that point is about the maximum point on the power curve. It really doesn't want much pressure to do this - if it's perfectly set up then full length of the bar, cutting under its own weight, is about right. Alec

Before we had the children, I used to do some canal restoration with one of the regional groups. We went out for a weekend once a month, to various sites across the UK doing anything from scrub clearance to excavating (big toys ) to rebuilding locks and bridges in brick, stone and concrete. A good, free, education in basic civil engineering with something worthwhile to show for it. Alec

Both the MS341 and MS361 are 59cc. The 341 is rated at 4.2hp, the 361 at 4.4hp. The slight uprating in power appears to have resulted in an increase in maximum recommended bar length from 18" to 20". The easiest way to work out which parts are shared/different between two Stihl models is to google the parts lists and compare part numbers. If they match from the two manuals, the parts are shared. With regard to running your 20" bar - you would have to be particularly incompetent to damage the saw by running it, so incompetent in fact that you would break it in other ways first. Chainsaw powerheads generate a certain amount of power, as a torque vs. revs curve. In theory, this curve runs all the way from 0rpm up, but in practice below a certain revs threshold the clutch will just slip, and above a certain revs threshold the saw will overspeed, fail to lubricate sufficiently and melt the piston onto the barrel, causing it to seize. The highest torque (greatest power generated) is at lower revs than the maximum speed. The above defines the limits in revs over which the saw will run. There's a much narrower window where it will run properly. The top end of the rev range is defined by the manufacturer - this should be when the saw is running at full throttle, with bar and chain fitted at the correct tension, with the chain not in contact with anything (i.e. not cutting). As the saw comes in contact with the wood, it slows down as more work is being done. The slowest you want it to run is at the peak of the power curve, when the whole bar is cutting under its own weight. Running a powerhead with no bar attached defines the minimum load. Dragging chain round a bar puts more load on (i.e. torque). The longer the bar, the more work done in dragging the chain round. This causes the revs to drop, but within the manufacturer's bar length limits you can correct this by tuning (which is why you should tune for the bar length you're actually going to use). The other thing that makes a difference here is whether your bar is hard nosed or sprocket nosed. Sprockets use considerably less power, so the manufacturer's recommendation gives you bit of leeway if you're using a sprocket nosed one. When the chain comes in contact with the wood, more work is done (cutting) so the revs drop. The more teeth in contact, the more work being done. When the whole bar is in contact with the wood, cutting under its own weight, the speed should drop to the point that corresponds to the maximum on the power curve. So what does all the above mean? Well, if you take a saw, and put a bar on it that's longer than the manufacturer recommends, firstly you need to tune it to lower maximum revs. Ideally you would tune by using the longest recommended bar, then just tweak up the idle so that it still picks up properly (this won't hurt it). When cutting, if you put on a bar that's longer than recommended, it won't matter while you're not using the full length of the bar (in theory, up to about 90% of the recommended maximum bar length). When you start using the whole bar, you will have more load on the saw than it's designed for. The way to overcome this is to leave the rakers slightly long, so that the teeth aren't taking out quite so much per cut. The saw then doesn't work so hard. So, as a rough guide (others may have different opinions on this!): - You can go up to about 10% over length on the bar if you're using a sprocket nose, without making any changes other than proper tuning on the carb (although it won't hurt if you don't do this). As such, your 20" bar would be fine. - You can run longer bars still if you recognise that you need to tune on a shorter bar (max. recommended length), then set the idle for the longer bar and leave the rakers a bit long so the saw doesn't bog down. Well you did ask for comments! Alec

As the title says really. I'm gradually working my way around my boundaries, taking out the 20ft or so wide strips of scrub, leaving the hedge line, filling the gaps and laying it. I wouldn't say what I do is particularly pretty, but it's functional. What I can't find out is what you do with it once it's laid. Obviously it needs trimming, but periodic re-laying seems to be the norm, which suggests it needs to get taller. If you just keep trimming annually, letting it get a few inches taller each year, surely you end up with a very dense, twiggy mass, which is great as a hedge but very awkward to re-lay? When you do re-lay, what do you do with the old laid bits and the shoots coming up off them? Do you cut out anything that's been laid before, or leave it? You can't just lay over the top of it or the laid bits will get taller than the stakes. Any advice? Alec

Another make to add to the list is ESAB. It's worth considering the inverter route - you can use the same power supply run as a TIG for the thin stuff, and arc for the thick stuff. DC is cheaper - you can TIG ally with DC but you have to buy argon with helium added to it. Personally I like TIG. Its biggest advantage is that, like oxy-acetylene welding, you add heat and filler separately. That means if you don't get fusion, or you want to move things around, by playing the torch you can get material to move on the surface without having to grind it all off and start again. There's an art to it, as with any welding technique, but it does get good results when you get it right. I find arc the most difficult - the rod tip tends to wander around more than I'd like as you're holding only at the back end. To get what I mean, try putting on a thick pair of gloves and then writing with a pencil, holding it only your finger and thumb at the back end. It does cope better with slight traces of rust though - the sort of thing where something is pitted and inaccessible, like the insides of landy chassis rails for example. Alec

Sorry to derail, but is that the same Dave Harris who works for Essex Wildlife Trust? Alec