agg221

Almost. It's actually the ethanol (alcohol) in the petrol that soaks right into the rubber, causing it to swell and reacting chemically with the structure that makes rubber flexible. The ethanol also keeps the rubber supple while it's present, but once it dries out the rubber goes hard and brittle. Aspen doesn't have any alcohols in it, so doesn't cause the problem. The problem is set to get much worse btw as the UK is following the US and allowing a much greater amount of ethanol in petrol, which will mean petrol degrades faster, and rots rubber components faster if left standing. Alec p.s. I use my 076 for felling larger stuff and the 076/070/090 for milling it, depending what size it is and what mood I'm in.

I would, particularly if you can find the receipt or other proof of purchase (even electronic). You at least want to be sure where you got it so you aren't getting 'free' parts from the wrong supplier. I believe GHS offer a 1yr warranty and your photos prove it wasn't lean seized through a fuel issue. I would ring them up, explain what happened and offer to email them the photos. My guess is they will send you a replacement FOC by return. Alec

He won't be able to hurt himself. With no tensioner the chain will come off the bar as soon as he pulls the throttle, jamming itself up somewhere before it even spins. I am sure he will then bodge it somehow (glue the bar on in the tensioned position with some Araldite?) and it will work briefly, then fail and he will give up, put it in the shed and buy something new and shiny from B&Q. Alec

Likewise, thanks to James. Ripsaw works a lot better now Alec

If there is stress, it will move. It will do it whether you dry it first or don't dry it first. The only way to stop it moving is to use it in something where it is nailed down so solid that it can't move. I know straps are fairly commonly used, but in practice I think they only make a lot of difference if you don't want to stick a big weight on the top, e.g. if you want to kiln dry it. The board on the bottom of a stack has the full weight of the tree on it - it's only when you get up to the top that there isn't much weight on it, but sticking the outer slab back on will soon do the trick. The issue at this time of year is more about slowing drying down to avoid cracking. Stacking in the shade, with thin sticks (10mm or so) would be my preferred way to manage this. Ref. milling small logs. I do quite a bit of this (most of my milling is also for personal use, it's just that a lot of it is for construction of boats/extension etc. so the sizes are large). The cutting pattern shown is nice - haven't tried that but worth using. There is a technique which someone put a video link on here for, showing someone cutting timber for a house in the Philippines, freehand with a chainsaw. I've used it since and the rocking pattern with the saw shown here really does come out with a good, flat surface, taking almost all the waste out of freehanding (although I've adapted it slightly in that I usually hold the saw by its full handle, and generally wear shoes). Link is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02QWRo1W4II Other techniques for steadying. If milling on the ground I have some wedge shaped blocks I can stick under the curve. They want to be steeper than the curve, so they bear on the outside rather than the middle so the log doesn't pivot on them. If I have a half-log or quarter-log up on edge, I bang in a couple of short, sacrificial pegs about 1"x2" section against the flat side, then lift it up against them. I then stick wedges under the curved side. If milling lower than the pegs I just cut straight through them. On a full log, I have tried sticking a short coach screw through a crosswise batten, up into the log. A 2" coach screw embedded 1" (other 1" in the batten) will hold things still and the bottom edge is scrap anyway. Alec

It may well be cheaper. I used to run a Vauxhall Combo 1.7l diesel, non-turbo, then a Ford Escort van, 1.8l diesel, non-turbo, as private vehicles. I could only find two insurers who would do it so there was no competition. Best quote I could get was Norwich Union at around £550 fully comp. I switched to a Volvo V70, 2.4l turbocharged diesel, with towbar. Insurance dropped to about £200 fully comp. Car = lots of competition. Insuring a commercial as a commercial has plenty of competition, so could drop costs. Alec

Agree entirely with the above comments on use of Granberg chain and the need to check the nose sprocket on the bar. It may be possible to change the nose sprocket to 3/8" so long as one the right shape for the bar is available. Alternatively you could fit a .404" drive sprocket to the saw. The bigger problem is likely to be the bar mounts, which are different on the 880 to the 660. Most very long bars are only available with the bigger bar mounts. The saw will pull it, but it will be very slow and you will need to hold it back to stop it bogging down. It would also be a good idea to raise the grinder right up on the teeth to minimise the hook, and resist the temptation to force the pace as this risks serious damage to the power head. You will probably also need an aux oiler as the saw will be well over design capacity. Alec

It is indeed the new bands. To be honest the finish usually comes out like that, it's just that some of the bands tend to follow the grain and give a wavy surface rather than flat. If you tension them enough to stop it, they snap at the weld. This was with the first of the new bands and although the surface area cut so far isn't that large, it's cutting true and hasn't snapped, so all good so far. Will be a real test when it starts ripping through long lengths of elm. Alec

I've done this, and it works well, but you sometimes get a butt with a lot of stress in it which opens up like a banana when you mill it. A cut dead up the centre takes most of the stress out. If it stays flat, I can then carry on and mill boards, if it doesn't I stand it on edge and do the same again up the middle and the quarters then stay stable so that I can mill boards off them. Alec

You will need to use battens - they create the air gaps that let the moisture out so that the timber dries. Unlike Burrell, I actually enjoy setting up and taking the first cut. I find something satisfying in the precision of aligning it - I try to take it dead down the middle, taking out the pith end to end if the log is straight, so that it gets rid of it, and takes the maximum possible amount of stress out. Alec

Found a spare 15mins this evening so milled up the piece of plum from Nepia. 3' long, 14" across at the widest point. Still looking for more plum/damson/blackthorn/prunus pissardi if anyone happens across some. Alec

Quite agree on the sapphire face - I have a Christopher Ward automatic which I have worn pretty much daily for the past five years. It's been climbing mountains, in the back of engines, milling, everything. Face is still perfect although the bracelet is gradually beginning to wear. The clasp on these is brilliant too. I have late 1950s Rolex Perpetual with original acrylic face and a leather strap which comes out for best, and a late 1960s Stihl automatic which I wear sometimes but needs to go and get serviced before I wear it again. Alec

Your comments really doesn't give a lot of confidence in his competence. Personally, I would be looking to take it back and get a second opinion. One thing - how long ago did you mix the fuel, and how long ago did you fill the tank? Alec

Yep, definitely a good use of a Saturday evening. My neighbours are a bit close to where I mill, so I tend to stop by 8pm, even though they've said they don't mind if I carry on until 10pm. I tried out a new bandsaw band this evening from Tuff Saws, using up the sycamore offcuts - infinitely better quality than the previous bands I've been using, and now I've got something that's cutting nicely I've set up the plum from Jon (Nepia) for milling tomorrow morning. Alec

OK, a starter for 10. Firewood prices roadside seem to be between £30 and £60/ton, depending on species, where you are etc. That tends to be processor type cordwood in large quantities, but it would give you a starting point to base your figure on. Alec

Thanks for the recommendation. I've been having some supply issues with bands for my Ripsaw mill, which is essentially a chainsaw-driven, horizontally-mounted bandsaw. The quality has been poor and I've had re-weld everything. It was very encouraging that Ian's website guarantees to re-weld any band which fails at the weld (I'd say 90%+ of the ones I have bought fail there, but when I re-weld them they don't). Had a very useful conversation with Ian, have ordered some bands and will see how they go. Alec

Breaking with the above opinion slightly, I might go looking at a secondhand Stihl 038. They're solidly built and parts are plentiful and cheap, and it will chew through stuff like this at speed. They're not really pro, more 'farmer' due to power to weight being a bit worse, but this wouldn't be a problem if you're not using it all day every day. Alternatively, the 036 and 034 are, in my opinion, underrated for this and often make a lot less money than they should (I've seen a scruffy but fully working 036 make under £60!). Both can be had within your budget. I am less anti-ebay than most, so long as you buy with your eyes open. I would buy 'cash on collection', and if it claims it's a runner, test it before handing over the cash. Any genuine seller should be happy with this. I would then plan on getting it to someone who can a do pressure, vacuum and compression test on it, and give it a service. Assuming all is good bar a few service parts you'll have something that shouldn't be as frustrating and temperamental as many other more modern saws seem to be. Alec

With the number you'll need, either you are going to have to give your saws a lot of abuse in the hopes of breaking them, or it will end up like the Fairy Liquid advert where the kid keeps hoping the bottle will run out... Alec

Brass screws aren't very strong, but you don't want steel ones in oak as they tend to stain black (although you might get away with not seeing it for indoor use as the stain won't spread far enough to be visible). The best bet is to drill your hole, then run a steel screw the same size down the hole to cut the thread in, then put your brass screw in, 'feeling' the thread, like you would when putting a nut on a bolt. A small dob of vaseline or similar on the screw also makes it much easier to get in, and out again if you need to. If the hinges are scratched but you don't want to risk taking them out, you could take the scratches out by working through the grades of sandpaper - fix it round the squared off end of a lolly stick using double-sided sticky tape, to make an emery board. You want to start coarse, around 120grit, and get down to 1200 grit, or even 2400 grit if you can find any. Then switch to metal polish on the end of a cotton bud - I use a car type paste polish like Autosol rather than Brasso, as the residue brushes off and doesn't stain the oak like the ammonia in Brasso does. Once clean, a quick coat of furniture wax and they will look better than new. Alec

I agree with the above. The only additions I would make are that cherry and elm seem to be quite desirable. If you have storage space there is steady demand for heavier section oak (6-8" square), for fireplaces, gateposts etc. This is also much more cost-effective to mill as timber is priced per cu.ft and there is much less milling in thicker bits. Keep a note as to how long it's been milled, as an air-dried 6" mantelpiece that's been down for 5yrs+ makes about double a green piece of timber the same size, but it's very easy to forget how long ago it was milled. Anything else I will pretty much only do if someone specifically asks me to. Alec

Kind of. The saw blades are set and sharpened first, then induction hardened on the teeth only. This means that the blade in the condition you receive it is not in the condition it was in when sharpened. It's a bit like the effect on a chain of leaning into it when sharpening with a grinder - same metallurgical process and afterwards a saw file won't touch it. Hypothetically you could reverse the process, i.e. anneal the whole blade and then sharpen, then re-induction harden the teeth, however the blade would distort due to the uneven stresses, so you would also have to put it through a set of rollers, then re-set it and start from scratch again. The above thermal cycle for annealing would induce grain growth, so you would not get back to the same metallurgical properties (it would be much more brittle once re-hardened). As such, the only way to get right back to where you started performance-wise would be to re-cast the steel, re-roll the plate and start all over again. Practically speaking though, the steel is not as hard as diamond, so can be sharpened with a diamond file, but the teeth are harder than a steel file so can no longer be sharpened conventionally. The 'sharpenable' blades are made in either 'blue steel' or 'white steel'. They are not as hard as the disposable blades, so can be sharpened with a Japanese saw file. These differ from conventional Western files not just in shape but in hardness - the steel is left almost dead hard which makes it extremely brittle, but capable of cutting the tool steel teeth. Alec

I'd say October was a little pessimistic, but it depends really on how the year goes. If we don't get an Indian summer then September would be OK. James is right - you can mill earlier if you have a way to control drying, but you have to be very careful and it's a lot more work. There are two issues to avoid, the first being surface checking and the second case hardening. The latter is where the cells in the outer part of the wood dry completely, causing the little holes which interconnect them sideways (called lumens) to close up. This stops water from being able to get from the inside to the outside and it never dries properly. If you want to do it, choose a stacking site in the shade, without too much wind exposure - the north side of a hedge is good. Either mill right next to it, or stack your boards straight onto a trailer, or in the shade, with no spacers, covering them quickly enough that the surface doesn't even go dry, then cover the lot with a tarpaulin or some plastic sheet. If you do the latter, when you build the stack, do it in the early morning or late evening so nothing dries too fast. Stack with much thinner spacer sticks than normal - I would use 3/8". Have some ply or similar to hand and cover the exposed side(s) and put it over on hot days, taking it off at night and on cooler or wetter days, for the first month or two. I have done the above when I had no choice as I was milling trees on a field with access only after harvest in early August which turned out to be a 30degree heatwave. I had complete success, but it's a lot of hassle compared with stack and forget as you can do in autumn/winter. Oh, and the bit with the sapwood rotted off, will still be wringing wet inside. Alec

Mix ratios are all about the quality of the oil, rather than the saw. If you've got top quality oil recommending 50:1 then you mix at 50:1. Lower grade oil stating 25:1, that's what you need. For info, I have a 1948 Teles 2-man saw, together with an Allen Scythe courtesy of Geoff, which gets some serious use a couple of times a year when it mows the paddock with thistles in it taller than me. Both state on the fuel tank cap that they should use Castrol XL at 16:1 but they really like Aspen at 50:1, as do my lungs compared with the smoke they used to kick out Alec

I think he just feels the cold

The down side to this one is that the sapwood band looks to be pretty wide, which isn't that uncommon in open grown oak of this size. My estimate is that the heartwood is about 10" across. People using oak for interior joinery can use sapwood if they don't mind the colour variation, or want to make a feature of it. It's not very durable though for exterior or construction use. I wouldn't want to buy something like this as I use oak outdoors and need it to be durable (I sometimes deliberately let the sapwood rot off before milling - only takes a year or two which indicates how non-durable it would be if you used it). I would reckon on there being about 4cu.ft of heartwood there, at about £7/cu.ft - note this isn't Hoppus but true cubic feet calculations which is why there is a lot less material but a higher price per cu.ft. If someone offers you more that £30 for it I would take it. I'm reasonably close and would be happy to mill it if someone needs it doing - could get the portable bandsaw through that which would minimise waste (only takes a 1mm kerf). Alec