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Watch out for those ones. They write themselves in as executors and you're tied, so they can charge a fortune. If you write named people (relatives) in as executors they can choose to put everything in the hands of a solicitor of their choice, who will still definitely be in business and since you can obtain quotes it means they will charge the going rate. For what it's worth, whilst any solicitor can write a will, there is an additional qualification called STEP which is pretty rigorous and relates to estate planning. There's a website for STEP qualified solicitors - Geoff, not what you need in the short term, but we used Elizabeth Dunn of Ashton Graham KCJ who works out of Ipswich (and Bury St Edmunds), is STEP qualified and was very good. Our wills are pretty simple but she asked some useful questions which I wouldn't have thought of. Alec

Thought you might find this thread relevant: http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/tree-health-care/27232-reduce-fire-wood-what-would-you-do.html Alec

If you're using aluminium on steel, paint the steel first - primer and topcoats. The corrosion problem is due to electrical contact between the steel and the aluminium so the paint keeps them separate. If using aluminium, I'd check the data sheet for the grade - I would want something that says 5xxx (where the xxx are three other numbers) for the best combination of strength and corrosion resistance for something like this. GRP is probably a better bet though. Alec GRP

Personally I like the old Stihl red and grey colour scheme, particularly in the days when the dogs were also painted red. A nice retro look for your MS whatever. Geoff - are you describing a Stihl or an Allen Scythe? Alec

Maybe I should get Spud to port the 090......! Alec

Puts me in mind of a story told by Clive Anderson on QI about the former Lord Advocate, Lord Mackay of Clashfern. Lord Mackay was a Scottish Presbyterian and a very frugal man. He once held a small tea party, where small pieces of toast were served with a tiny pot of honey. One of the guests picked up the pot, examined it, and said "I see your Lordship keeps a bee!" Alec

It doesn't matter which order you carry out multiplication or division operations in (this is a general mathematical rule). I prefer to state it as divide by 144 first as I find it a bit more logical. 144 is 12 squared. The quarter-girth measurement is made in inches. Squaring it gives an area in square inches. To convert to square feet divide by 144, so this is basically the 'face area' of the log in square feet. Firstly, I find this more logical and hence easier to remember. Secondly, I find remembering the comparison between several logs easier if I just have to remember a smaller number in square feet, and then multiply by the length in feet to get cubic (Hoppus) feet. Hope the above is clear! An example of why. Say I have a real log, rather than a neat, hypothetical cylindrical forest-grown log. It's 24' long and 2' dia or so for most of its length, with a severe narrowing to 18" about 16' up, due to a previous side branch. If I'm looking at maximum use, I could treat it as two cylinders - first one has a mid quarter girth of 19", so an area of 361 square ins, or 2.5 square ft. Its volume is 2.5x16=40 Hoppus feet. The second one has a mid quarter girth of 14 ins, so an area of 196 square ins, or 1.36 square ft. Its volume is 1.36x8=11 Hoppus feet. This makes a total of 51 Hoppus feet. However, say I want to consider using it as a full length beam. This means I can only use the smaller area, so already know its area (1.36 square ft) and just multiply by the length of 24ft to get 32.6 Hoppus feet. I now know I'm throwing away 18.4 Hoppus feet if I do this (or using them if I can as thinner boards etc). I find this really useful in assessing potential ways of breaking down timber with step changes in diameter, bends and kinks, rot or other damage etc. but I have no idea if it helps you in the slightest! Alec

A quick search reveals: Nettlefold Engineering Distributors was created when Nettlefold & Moser Ltd merged with the Willen Kay & Hardware Co Ltd to form Nettlefold-Willen Ltd in 1972. Nettlefold & Moser Ltd was created in 1950 when Nettlefolds Ltd and Mosers amalgamated. Mosers, an ironmongery business, was incorpoated in 1899 and flourished as a material supplier. Nettlefolds Ltd amalgamated with Guest, Keen & Co. Ltd in 1902. The Nettlefold Engineering Distributors was thus a wholly owned subsidiary of GKN and member of the Fasteners & Hardware Division of GKN Distributors Ltd. Its function was as a supplier to industry of such items as fasteners, cutting tools, hand tools and tube fittings. They had a branch in Southwark, and there's a copy of their 1951 catalogue for sale on Amazon, which indicates that they sold machine tools.

The second plate says it's a Teles. It looks similar to the Little Tiger and if I'm reading it right the line across the centre is stamped 52/12 for December 1952. It suggests that Nettlefold and Moser would be dealers? Is there a plate on the engine anywhere (probably Villiers?). It should give an engine model from which you can get the .cc Alec

Yes, I'm much better at TIG than anything else. Great for real control, range of thickness and doing stainless and aluminium, but the need for argon doesn't make it user-friendly for domestic use. Really enjoy it though - ideal for fixing broken bits of chainsaw! Alec

With a ticket offer like that, I would go for Japan. I went there some years ago and found it a fascinating mixture of old and new culture, and stunning scenery. Alec

Excellent - cheers. I reckon you could start installing the on people's mills for them and charging £1.50 a go Alec

I'd be interested in details of the extension. I'm mostly running hard nosed bars but it was really noticeable back-to-back with Martin last week that his mill was significantly quicker. The only known differences were the chain and bar - mine being slightly longer and hard-nosed. I reckon it was worth around 25% on speed, so plan on going over to roller nose at some point. Re OP: I understand the motivation. Your saw will be working really hard on anything of 2' and up. Quartering would therefore be well worthwhile. I suggest a mini-mill for quartering, as it will give you a better starting face, particularly on the butts which are too large to get through with the Alaskan and the ones where the middle is rotten so perfect cuts at the centre aren't so critical. Alec

Agree on Rob D. 16 tons is a lot to try out milling on. What diameter/length are the butts and what thickness are you planning on? If under 2" I would seriously consider hiring in a bandsaw as it will save you enough in time and kerf to offset the cost. Alec

On the subject of metering valves - anyone know the correct setting for the old type on a Stihl 076? It's the kind where the pin from the diaphragm sits between two arms on the lever, rather than on top of it. Cheers Alec

Nice to see that part of the story (and also nice to see that my lump is still standing upright!) This is the same piece of timber that Luke Quenby posted about originally, and I'm breaking down the top end of: http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/alaskan-mill/55984-chainsaw-milling-very-large-oak.html The main bit is off to become a chainsaw sculpture for the new RSPB headquarters. I'm heading over tomorrow evening to work on the next bit of the top. Alec

That's him - his name is Martin btw. Alec

That's brilliant, and looks in pretty good health too. Alec

I tend where possible to 'rebuild' the tree, in the open, on the shady side of the field. I then put some ply on the top with weights on to keep it flat. This gives really good air flow but stops rain from landing directly on the cut surfaces. Alec

Have you tried dropping traktorist2222 on ebay a message? He keeps a good stock of used spares. He's German, but his English is excellent and he is happy to ship to the UK at a decent price. I know he stripped down an 044 recently as I had the pot and piston. Alec

Yeah, try doing one on an 076. Involves dismantling half the saw and sacrificing the back handle cover in the process! Alec

Contemplating the pile of saws - think I'll take the carb off the 076 and give it a good clean as it's still not running. In the meantime I took advantage of the nice weather to do a bit of trimming up in the garden, and got bitten by the Silky. According to my wife the hole-count is 12. All bar three have stopped bleeding. That'll teach me to try to do gardening won't it! Alec

Buckthorn is a good one - make sure you get male and female plants. How much security needed - gorse is a nice yellow, as is the Dunwich rose. If thorns weren't needed, various of the dogwoods give attractive winter colour. I particularly like Cornus sanguinea 'Midwinter Fire'. Some of the Viburnums give excellent autumn colour. Alec

Early one morning, 4yr old daughter comes into our room. Daughter: Mummy, Daddy, there are ducks on the lawn, come and see from my window. I get up and go and have a look. Me: No, they're not ducks, the two grey ones are pigeons and the two speckled ones are hen pheasants. Wife: Pheasants, we could eat one for dinner. Daughter: No Mummy, don't be silly, you have to shoot them first! Alec

If you reckon the contamination is only in the bark, not the wood, could you run an old, scrappy chain round through the bark to mark the line and the gob first? The bark is relatively soft, so the chain will still cut when dulled, but leave you only clean wood to cut with the decent chain. You could probably mark up a few at a go to avoid swapping chains too often. I have an old, nearly worn out chain I use on suspect stuff as it doesn't matter so much if I hit a stone or something. Alec