agg221

I have applied the principle once - was probably about 40ft, two pieces for use on a barn, done with an Alaskan. In practice, I suspect the section you would need when building regs are involved may be extremely large, making it impractical, but if I am wrong I suspect the best bet would be to make some of the local independent architects aware of the capability, as the challenge is probably raising awareness of the capability, such that people specify them. Alec

If you are prepared to put in a bit of time, the railways sleepers would definitely find a new home. What species are the tree trunks, how big and in what condition? From the picture, it looks like some could be a decent diameter so these may be worth someone's effort to mill if the species is useful (oak for example would still probably be in good condition). Alec

What does it smell like? If the last one smells vinegary I would guess iroko. Alec

A lot depends on personal taste. Ash would be lighter coloured than oak, beech more red-toned etc. All the suggestions made so far will be hard wearing and durable. If you still have that milled ash it would come out quite well by now I reckon Alec

For a 3ft bar you definitely want over 100cc or it will be very slow going. Do you want new or old? If new, the MS880 is probably the best option (some people like the Husqvarna 3120 but it less popular for this in general). If old, the 070 and 076 are good options - good parts availability. The 084 has some obsolete parts and I wouldn't go for an 090 unless you want to go for a bigger mill as you get very little increase in cutting speed on 3ft but it is a lot more thirsty. The MS660 is excellent for up to 18" width (25" bar) - not noticeably slower cutting and a lot more economical on fuel. You can always break down the log with the big saw and bar, then swap over for taking boards. Alec

This works well in principle but I am just old enough to remember it not working well in practice when tried in the 1980s recession, but I can't remember why it failed. The irony is though that, if you run the activity on the equivalent of minimum wage, paid by the state, it is directly equivalent to a public sector job...! Alec

Agreed, it can only be this way around, however what has typically happened previously is that the public sector has had neither the peaks nor the troughs of the private sector - typical settlements were 2.5% from 2002-2008, compared with nearer 5% in the private sector. Historically, this would have been countered by continuing modest rises during the recession, outstripping the private sector and it would have closed the gap and all come right in the end. In practice, the 2009 rise (2.3%) at the same time as the private sector was contracting was seized on in 2010 with a lot of aggressive manipulation, designed to turn private sector workers against public sector workers. With the Conservatives, it goes well beyond the necessary into the ideological, as evidenced by the raising of pension contributions without reviewing the value of the pension pot first. Alec

I have no evidence as to whether they are or are not overstaffed (I don't count political rhetoric from either side as evidence). I can well believe that they may be, however my comment was not about staffing levels but about pay. For teachers (since I have direct experience of this one through my wife) pay was frozen for 4yrs. There was then a 1% rise last year, with a 1% rise planned for this year. In the same period, pension contributions were increased by 7%. Calculated against RPI, it equates to about a 20% cut in buying power, with the gap continuing to widen rather than close (national increases are anticipated to be 3% this year for comparison). I don't have figures for the other public services, but I anticipate that they will be similar. Hence my original comment that if you work in the public sector you are not feeling the benefit of the end of the recession. Alec

Unless you happen to have the misfortune to work in the public sector Alec

Alongside pictures, dimensions and quantities of each would really help. Really it needs length x thickness x minimum width if sawn waney edged, or absolute width if sawn straight edged. Also need to indicate whether they are clean without cracks, or whether there are significant defects, and whether they are straight grained without knots, knotty, pippy/burred, and finally, is it normal 'oak colour' or a rich, dark brown. The above will all determine what it is best used for (and of course influence the price). Alec

One issue I suspect you will find is that serious work is only undertaken when there is a) a problem and b) a commercial proposition. This is because a breeding programme for trees is necessarily very long, between propagation and first assessment is typically a minimum of 5yrs. This makes it very expensive, which usually means a significant return must be realised. The exception is perhaps when the subject is highly emotive, such as ash or elm (and oak would be), at which point public funding can sometimes support it. The problem is that it doesn't tie in with any of the usual funding mechanisms for academic work, which run on a 3yr PhD timescale which makes it more difficult to determine a mechanism to support. Tying off elm - you mention that you have covered it, but I wondered if you had spotted this: Martín JA, Solla A, Venturas M, Collada C, Domínguez J, Miranda E, Fuentes P, Burón M, Iglesias S, Gil L (2015). Seven Ulmus minor clones tolerant to Ophiostoma novo-ulmi registered as forest reproductive material in Spain. iForest 8: 172-180. (free downloadable paper) which gives a really positive story. Coincidentally, I am involved in running the equivalent trials for the UK. The only other place where research is active is Italy, which is also where the Elm Yellows work is going on: http://elm2013.ipp.cnr.it/downloads/pdf_presentations/Pecori_Elm_Yellows.pdf This comes from the 3rd International Elm Conference: Presentations There may be some more recent papers now by Pecori. Regarding the other reason for breeding programmes (commercial gain) this tends to be a function of value. Timber crops are unlikely to warrant the effort, but if your subject includes it, there is a lot of disease resistance work in fruit trees. The original work of East Malling Horticultural Research Station on rootstocks was driven by a range of factors, including disease resistance, and this continues (outside the UK, mainly US so far as I am aware) with recent work on cherry and pear stocks, such as Gisela 5, Gisela 6 and Pyrodwarf. Pear and cherry are the main areas of interest because there are fewer satisfactory options for size/disease resistance/stock compatibility than in apples and plums. Not very academic, but this is a good literal description for pears, including on the subject of disease resistance considerations: Rootstocks for Pear trees Alec

There is some work related to Elm Yellows in Italy if that is relevant? Alec

I think the link between nepotism and a public school education is coincidental. Strictly it isn't nepotism (which is preferential treatment of a relative, originally a nephew) but cronyism, which is favouritism to a friend or associate. I think cronyism tends to occur in many fields, but politics is associated with power and influence, and those with power tend to have a money, and use this to purchase the public school education which builds the links with the establishment which perpetuates the cycle. One of my former administrators used to work in Whitehall - she said that Yes Minister is still an accurate documentary. I agree that a vote for the Greens, or Lib Dems or UKIP for that matter, depending on your preference, might at least save their deposit which makes it worthwhile. Alec

I was thinking about this over the weekend as I pruned the apples. My problem is that I can't see a solution from any of them. Politics in the 19th century was exclusively dominated by public school educated people from a privileged background. Government was something done 'to' the great unwashed masses, not on their behalf as elected representatives. Things moved on and the Conservative party of my youth (80s/90s) was run by bright people from fairly normal backgrounds - Maggie Thatcher was the daughter of a grocer, not sure what John Major's parents' occupations were but he went to a state Grammar School (and William Hague's background was pretty normal too). This lead to policies which were relevant. I didn't necessarily agree with them, but they genuinely sought to act on behalf of the general population - usually based on an aspirational ideology such as owning your own home, owning shares etc. Somehow, the party has reverted 150yrs to being dominated by highly privileged, privately wealthy people with public school backgrounds and no connection with normality. I don't have a prejudice against the rich, or against public school education, but I do have a problem with people who promote through nepotism rather than ability, and who do not take steps to address the gaps in their understanding by ensuring that they take soundings from people who understand the impact of their policies which they will not otherwise comprehend. Otherwise it becomes the callous application of ideology with no thought as to the suffering caused, or worse still, causing harm deliberately. Look at who this government has targeted. Bash the public sector - not just because it is top heavy (those losing their jobs are very rarely from the top end) but hit nurses, teachers, the police - ordinary front-line workers. Teachers have not had an inflation-matching pay rise since 2003 (yes, that's under Labour due to the pay settlement agreed by the Unions) but then hit them with pay freezes and refuse to comply with the law and value their pension pot because it would inconveniently reveal that there was not a gap, because they did not take a pensions holiday, unlike many in the private sector. Then use it as an excuse to put pension contributions up to a level which causes teachers to drop out of the scheme because having a pension is a luxury they can no longer afford, but still bang on about the fantastic pension scheme, the 'short hours and long holidays' and generally give them a good kicking. If teaching is such a fantastic, cushy number, why do more people not choose to do it, and why is the average time working as a teacher 1yr before they drop out and join the private sector? The same applies to bashing other, ordinary public sector employees. It is not their fault that they took jobs in the public sector - the jobs were advertised and they applied, yet they are now publicly castigated. Of course, if you and your friends have your children privately educated and can afford private healthcare, why does it matter to you what happens to public services? Bash the unemployed and call them benefits scroungers. Who cares whether there are jobs they can actually apply for, or whether they are in reality unpaid carers for family members. If you have two children, childcare costs mean you typically need to earn £27k gross per annum before you are better off working but it is easier to criticise than to understand, and it makes a good target for the tabloids. It is easier to hit people who are weak, and they are less likely to be your friends (and less likely to vote for you). It's called bullying, and it is the politics of contempt, inciting the mob against people who cannot defend themselves. It is also not about the money, it's about the ideology and who might vote for you. Next target is the young. Parental responsibility ends at 18, but the plan is that no benefits will be paid to under 25s. Think about it, if your parents slung you out on your 18th birthday, could you instantly afford to rent somewhere to live? If not, how would you get a job if you couldn't get clean and look presentable, and had no address? But the young are less likely to vote, and certainly less likely to vote Conservative than pensioners, so lets not means-test the winter fuel allowance and let's give all pensioners index-linked pensions and a big rise (on the grounds that they are less able to increase their income - but how exactly is a nurse or teacher supposed to do this?) I see 5 more years of this as a remit to ride roughshod over ordinary people, causing pain and suffering as a consequence of ideology, rather than applying pragmatism and compromise to minimise the impact. There is clearly a need to limit spending, but I believe the state should be a safety net, providing security for those who have no alternative. The Conservatives currently do not appear to have this sense of social responsibility. Labour has this rather better, but unfortunately it also has a track record of poor economic performance, and it has Ed Milliband who I cannot see as Prime Minister. The Lib Dems have, so far as I am concerned, done surprisingly well. Having met Vince Cable, I would say he is pretty strong economically, and so is Danny Alexander. They have also tempered some of the excessive Conservative ideology-based plans. However they will be remembered for the single issue of breaking their promise on tuition fees, which means they will be set back several decades. The SNP is has made it quite clear it will be looking to achieve preferential treatment for Scotland. As such, it is not an appropriate party to form part of a national government (as the nation is currently defined) since it cannot rise above regional issues. The same goes for the other regional parties. The Greens and UKIP are typical small parties, with ill thought-out policies which are collectively inconsistent and as such it is fortunate that they will not have an opportunity to put them into practice. I rue the demise of Screaming Lord Such - the Monster Raving Loony Party is beginning to look like a worryingly viable option. Alec

I know you don't like chainsaw milling much, having become addicted to the speed of your mill, but I'm quite happy doing it, either in back garden situations or anywhere else for that matter (although I will try to avoid repeating my recent experience of CO2 poisoning...!) Production rates are of course way lower, but so are overheads, and if you are contract milling on a day rate that doesn't make any difference anyway. I have milled quite a few back garden trees and have hit very little metal. I also find it is fairly predictable which trees will have it and where it will be, so I generally don't have problems. Old hedgerow trees are, in my experience, far worse. For me, the usual issue with small single trees is justifying the travel and set-up time, and the travel cost, against return. It will take me just as long to get the mill together and loaded (and put away again at the end) whether I am milling for an hour or a day. I make that tree 8.25 Hoppus feet, which would yield about 6cu.ft after milling. Assume buying at about £4/Hoppus, selling at about £15/cu.ft green, you get a gross return of £57. Hypothetically, imagine the tree is half an hour (20miles) away from me. Allow half an hour for loading up the mill, half an hour for unloading. Milling time, including set up and dismantling, plus loading up the timber, could probably be done in 1.5hrs on site. That's 3.5hrs (even if it's on the doorstep it will be 2.5hrs). Allow for £5 of Aspen and chain oil, and if travelling use the standard mileage rate of 41p/mile. In my example above, it would be £36 profit for 3.5hrs work, ie £10/hr if all goes well. This looks reasonably respectable, but don't forget it this figure makes no allowance for wear and tear or repairs on equipment and leaves you owning the risk of a ruined chain which would wipe out the whole profit in one nail. If it was on the doorstep the economics are more attractive - a total of £52 leaves a more attractive hourly rate and enough to cover the cost of a ruined chain if it should happen. Compare this with normal daily milling rates of £300, minus around £100 in costs and £50 in contingency/wear and tear and it is not so attractive. There is, as always, a matter of supply and demand. As stock, this tree is a bit short - cherry standards often allow 6' of clear board which would be preferable and there is enough wild cherry around in even longer lengths (there was some advertised on here in Essex earlier this year). This would be better for general stock. However if someone has an immediate use for it, where either they want it for their own use, making it much more attractive than buying timber in, or they are adding value (e.g. Steve's drum) the initial purchase cost becomes a much smaller part of the overall equation. I am on the lookout for plum to make my bedroom furniture - it is tricky to find clean butts in decent lengths/diameters and I once drove to Buckinghamshire to fell one for my own use. Similarly, I want some 7' walnut to make a set of high bookshelves and don't mind travelling a fair way for it, but obviously the further I travel, the less I would pay for it. Not sure whether the above ramblings help at all, but perhaps they give a perspective. In summary, if they can sell it for £40 they are doing well, but if you are prepared to ring it up into firewood lengths for a nominal sum and they don't count their time splitting it, they will end up with more value in firewood by the time they have seasoned it. Alec

The site I work on was originally heavily wooded and has spread gradually over the last 50yrs, putting up new buildings as required. A former CEO didn't hold with the inconvenience of TPOs, so he would wait until a weekend Autumn gale, take the keys to the JCB and when people came back in on Monday morning, the trees where he wanted to put up the next building would have mysteriously have fallen over in the strong winds. Actions like these do end up making councils suspicious. Alec

Speculation, but I wonder if that relates more to compaction than to risk? It has left the path a bit odd though - the perfectionist in me wants to run a Breedon gravel pathway around the front and install a nice information board just inside the railings Alec

I would have a very good look at the feature about 3/4 of the way up from the root to the branches, on the underside. If it's the bark falling off, fine. If it's a rot streak, factor that in. It could be a trick of the photo, but it doesn't look dead straight - there appears to be a bend about 2/3 of the way up from the root to the branches. If so, this will seriously reduce yield of clean, straight material. It is a little bit on the small side for ideal, which will also reduce yield (more steeply slanting waney edges). The burring on the side suggests you will get character, rather than perfectly clean boards. This could be a good thing. How much do you want/need it, do you have a use for it yourself, or a quick home to move it on to, or is it for stock? How easily could you come by another if you wanted one? All these factors affect the price. Price would range from £2 to £6/Hoppus foot, depending on above. I make it about 35 Hoppus feet, which would allow you to make a calculation. Alec

I think Mountain Man may be referring to ground level...

If you do, I would definitely be interested. I can always go as a day out with the children, but poking around the normally inaccessible bits would certainly be more interesting. Alec

From a materials engineer's perspective. Tannic acid plus steel is fine in the presence of water, but not with oxygen too. Zinc (galvanising) is sacrificial so it will last longer but not be truly permanent. I would expect either to eventually fail through waisting at the contact point with the tree, reducing the section until it ultimately falls below that required to sustain the cyclic load, ie fatigue rather than fast fracture. I would use stainless - either 304 (A2) or 316 (A4) would be fine. I have the tensile specs for it so if you went that way, I could give you the cross-section multiplier for it over a specified grade of carbon steel. What is happening above the split is interesting to me here. From an amateur perspective, Burnham Beeches spring to mind. Lapsed pollards, sometimes with entirely absent central sections of trunk, seem to stand fine and some of David Humphries' work on them to reduce sail and gradually get them back to a more 'pollard like' form following retrenchment may be pertinent here? Basically, my question would be, can it be reduced fairly heavily to get internal canopy regeneration, then reduced further and eventually managed as something more like a pollard form? Probably not cost-effective for a client, but if you can do your own work and do it for love rather than money it makes a lot of things possible. Alec

Those are quite stunning - thanks for posting the pictures. Burghley is not that far from us and I drive past regularly. Perhaps I ought to actually stop and take a look! Alec

This can work, but sometimes the same, worded the other way around, can keep things on a positive footing. 'My quote is x but with a prompt payment discount of y if cleared payment is received within z days'. Coincidentally, the same psychology as is used for parking tickets. Alec

Last night I was nailing battens to the extension wall in preparation for weatherboarding. I decided it was time to stop when I cut the longest one (the only one which will fit) 10cm too short. I had measured it in-situ and marked it but I think it must have slipped under my hand. I think the 10cm piece will be fixed down with a couple of screws and nobody will see it under the weatherboards. Alec

If the bar is 0.063" then the chain is not too wide a gauge, since this is the widest gauge bar. Do you have an old chain, and does it run fine? If so it must be an issue with the new chain. If you don't, and you have the same problem with two bars on the same saw it points to an issue at the bar mount/sprocket end. Alec