agg221

Sort of, but my logs are never perfect cylinders or slightly tapered cones. That means I have a general idea but am then trying to account for any slight bend. I can sometimes get slightly more out by biasing off centre a bit at the larger diameter end. I end up trying to get the best centre line, then work out where that will hit at each end, then work out the shortest distance to the edge from there and use that as my radius to calculate the square as above. This is a lot easier to do than it sounds! Alec

An old post, but whilst the ring-barking question was answered, the 'how do they know it has DED?' part wasn't. If you look at the canopy in the photo above, you can see yellowing and browning on the right hand side. You can also see from the car for scale that it is around 6m up. That is always the beetle's preferred height, although it will go up or down if it has no alternatives. Note, the rest of the tree is still green so this is not associated with the ring barking. The beetles feed where the leaves meet the stem and the fungal spores pass from the beetle into the tree at that point. The infection then spreads down the tree so where you can see the yellowing that is in the wake of the infection. In some cases you can prune it out before it spreads - not sure if Brighton adopts that policy. In this case it is too late. See the browning close in to the trunk and note that it is in young, fresh growth. Firstly, this is one of the problems with the pruning approach as the beetles prefer to feed on vigorous upright shoots where they arise after pruning and secondly it then re-infects much closer to the trunk so it pretty much goes straight in and after that there is nothing you can do but fell it. There is however a lot of good news on elms, just not the English Elm (aka 'Atinia'). Alec

The border is quite long. Whereabouts along it are you? If it's Thetford way I may be able to help. Alec

Surprisingly there is quite a bit of carbon steel in planes - one of the British Steel mills in Scunthorpe specifically serves the aerospace industry. I was asked where it went and the only place I have established specifically is in the landing gear. Alec

It could work as low-cost lawnmowers but I'm not sure it works commercially (not my area of expertise). The question is, what does grazing them for the spring/summer on your land add to them in value vs. them being sold straight into the meat trade when they leave the dairy industry? They are still going to be older meat regardless of what you do with them. You will have transport costs to add, so even if they have exactly the same carcass value you will lose by that much? Alec

What's the fencing like? If it's OK or fixable (or a hedge...!) you could probably run a few sheep on it at little more than cost. It depends on the area and how quickly you can build up contacts - you might need a route through lambing that doesn't involve you sat in a shed for weeks on end but a rare breed sheep with suitable wool to sell and cover the costs, or a good meat breed sheep from the area that's too slow for modern commercial farming and grow them up for butchering for your own use or selling to local restaurants and farm shops might do it? Alec

A thread which happened in my absence. I have grown both espalier and fan from scratch. Espalier is fairly easy to manage, fan more tricky but you need a fan for things which won't spur well and are prone to branch dieback. The best espalier I have grown is a pear at our previous house, up the chimney breast, inspired by the ones at East Malling. Two new sets of owners since and both seem to enjoy and maintain it. Should be fairly productive by now I would think. Alec

There is a Series 2 in bits which is making slow progress - this weekend will be topcoating various things black if the weather holds. There is a 2a in the shed in need of the gearbox taking off to sort the clutch, oh and a bit of welding on the chassis rails and outriggers, and the oldest known S2 109" Home Market Station Wagon is currently residing in my garden (not mine but I have the keys). Is that enough Series Land Rovers do you think? Alec

I will, as soon as I have a vehicle to get out in. Now do I go for the Midget or the dumper... Alec

This thread has taken a disturbing turn in my absence. I have just come in from bending up a new wing for mine. I know I know, unnecessary expense but the bottom part would no longer hold the accelerator bar in place and I can't get the weld to stick to the rust for some reason. I could have just built it up in MIG wire or welding rod, but in the end a bit of steel was cheaper and quicker. I am alternating between that and welding the front wing on my wife's Midget (I weld, she grinds it all off again...) and the latter is definitely more complicated. I wish she would settle for the same shaped wing as the one on the back of the dumper! Alec

It's annoying, but as Khriss says it will be fairly simple to sort out. I would take the fuel line off at the two anticipated filter points, clean those out. I would then try turning it over with the end of the pipe to the injector in a jam jar and check fuel is pushing through. I would then follow Khriss' suggestion, take the injector out, screw it to the pipe and check that fuel is squirting through well into a jam jar. After that I would put it back together and try again - that may be enough to get it running. If the fuel is getting to the injector but not spraying out nicely in a fine mist then it's injector cleaning time, but I don't think that's the problem as it wouldn't run properly then and this is a starting issue rather than a running issue. My guess is that it will be a partial blockage, probably in a filter. One other thing, when you run the pipe to the injector into the jam jar, once you have ascertained that fuel is coming through, add some to the bottom of the jar and immerse the pipe end. Then turn it over again and see whether air bubbles are coming through into the jar. If so, it suggests you have an air leak somewhere in the fuel system so you aren't pumping as much fuel through as you should be. It will still run like that but be much harder to overfuel for starting. Alec

Was it particularly dusty or had the log been dragged? It has been my experience that a slack chain tends not to be slack right up where it is being driven, particularly on a wide cut where it will be putting plenty of tension on it. My immediate thought would be grit or dust on the log which will get mixed with the oil and form a grinding paste. It can happen most obviously when the log has been dragged or is lying by a dusty track and has been there long enough for mud and dust to have been splashed up onto it. The same can happen at the base of roadside trees while still growing. If it is that, in theory pressure washing removes it but I tend to de-bark where I can to prevent it. Much less of an issue in woodland and back garden trees. Alec

It would be handy if there is - a look at that would soon see if it is severely restricted by clogging. I don't have a PH1 manual, only an AVA1 manual which is similar but sufficiently different not to be relied on. That had the bowl filter and then a button filter right before the injector, accessed by unscrewing the fuel pipe to the injector. Both need washing out in diesel apparently. According to the manual, you should replace the filter element in the bowl filter every 500hrs. It hasn't been 500hrs since 1956 has it....? Alec

I think you have a fuelling problem. Mine has very little compression (can keep swinging it with the decompression lever down) but it still starts. It could be that the journey home shook something up a bit from the bottom of the bowl and you now have a slightly restricted fuel line with some bits of rust or dirt in it. I would be inclined to pull the fuel line and flush it through well - not too big a job and at least if you know it is fuelling properly right through to the injector then that's one area you can rule out. Don't forget to clean out the tank in the process! Alec

Well, it's got a good beat...! Alec

This thread has also reminded me of something. The JCB factory in Rocester has a multi-storey office block at the front. It's all open plan, probably 200yds long end to end and each floor has very high ceilings. The floors are laid out with a central walkway and every now and again there is a JCB product, mostly a backhoe loader or a loadall or similar. One of the people I occasionally visit has his desk right next to a 15cwt dumper, I would guess of 1960s vintage. It still has the original manual in its plastic wallet fixed to the wing. One time I was there a couple of us were contemplating that we could probably get it running - visions of sneaking in a can of diesel, driving it around the office belching smoke and just how long you could get away with it before you got grabbed and stopped. I doubt there are many people who would know how to stop it though! Alec

Pah! I have just formed and welded a new base to my steel pan seat, mainly because the two replacements which had been welded over one another had both rotted through along with the original. I have seen versions with the seat on a spring. Mine just bolts straight on the top so no suspension/cushioning of any kind. It will however get a coat of paint, if only to extend the time before I have to do it again. Alec

I have been very tempted to do that for mine. The parts book lists the roadgoing kit for it - two mirrors on stalks and a squeeze-bulb horn! Alec

Alternator? There is something wrong with it if it has an alternator. All proper dumpers have no electrics whatsoever and run on brute force and periodic application of string and weld 😁 Alec

There are other ways of shutting them down that aren't too slow. The official way is to lift the priming lever to horizontal but an alternative is to manually push the throttle rod right in which drops the revs below what will run. Takes about 15-20seconds to stop from idle. Alec

Yes, that looks exactly the same as the AV1. The block with the bolt through it should pivot upwards. I presume on start-up it will drop back down. On mine I have never needed to do this (but then mine probably hasn't ever had an oil change either...) Alec

OK, found it and unhelpfully it says under 'starting procedure' to 'refer to engine manufacturer's handbook'. However, on the stopping procedure it says to lift the priming lever to horizontal, which may be a useful indicator. This is for the DB and DC series Benford which may just be late enough to have used a PH1 engine rather than the AVA1. The AVA1 has a priming lever halfway down the crank case on the lhs looking from the back. Prime by pumping until it squeaks is the instruction. There is then an overload stop on the back of the injector (opposite end to the spring) which you lift up, give half a dozen more priming strokes, spin up and drop the decompressor. If my camera worked I would send a photo from the manual - I think this is very similar to the PH1. Alec

Try to avoid the easy start - they develop a habit for it. I have an earlier version (1956 Benford) with a Petter AVA1 engine in. The procedure on mine is very basic - decompression lever up, swing it up to speed, drop the lever, away it goes. Is yours very similar in principle? When you swing it over, are you getting even white vapour and a smell of diesel out? If not, I suspect you have not got enough fuel coming through. If it was running, did it run out of fuel? It takes an enormous amount of cranking to pull enough through again. It could be blocked somewhere in the line? I've got the manual for it and will have a look - I do vaguely recall a procedure for starting which involves a throttle setting but mine has never needed it (to be fair, the accelerator on mine hasn't worked for years so you just stick your hand in the relevant part of the engine and pull the rod out - Health & Safety....!) Alec

Rich Rule and Steven P have made some very good points. If the people you are working for are decent then the end of your probationary period would be a good time to discuss the route forward. That would be a combination of salary, training and career progression. If you are learning, you are progressing and only a little of what you have done before will carry over into this new career direction so in a sense, it doesn't matter whether you are 18 or 25, you are still at the beginning. I suggest looking at your personal future goals and see whether you are likely to meet them through the progression available to you within this industry, and on a timeframe you are happy with. For example, how much do you need to earn for the lifestyle you want to have? Would being an average to good climber allow you to earn that much? Do you want to climb for the rest of your career or is it a stepping stone to something else - building your own business etc. You will probably end up having to make compromises somewhere. Job satisfaction vs. income vs. lifestyle. Pretty much everyone does. You will need to decide whether there is a satisfactory balance point for you somewhere in this career path. Alec

I don't think this is necessarily the customer's fault. The customer may well not be very knowledgeable, so they have to go with what they are told. This means they may not be able to tell whether what they are being told is right or not. If they have two people - one tells them that the bill will be £X+1300 because traffic management is needed and another tells them the bill will be £X, traffic management is not needed and the other people were trying to rip them off by adding the traffic management costs, how would they know which is right? Alec