WorcsWuss

I would say don't get too hung up on 'making sure you get the best bit of kit'. It's all very subjective and to be honest, it's actually only when you become very experienced that all the tiny nuances of different items of equipment actually start to make a real difference. As a beginner it's as well to just get something simple, durable and good value. I know that there are far better harnesses out there than the one I use, but I'm happy in it and for my level of ability it suits me fine, I'm not swinging around 40 metres in the air all day long with a 660... I'm pottering about on weekends at usually no more than 12 metres with a top handle saw.... I really don't need a Tree Motion or ART jack! Ropes do wear out so I wouldn't worry too much about getting it wrong, it's not forever, if you stick to the usual brands you won't go far wrong... besides, you can never have too much rope... and what one experienced climber says is stretchy compared to the dozens of other types he's climbed on, will probably feel just fine to you without that yardstick.... If you can get yourself into a harness and hang in it for a while then all well and good, but if you can't then just buy the one which you can afford, you can always upgrade later on once you've established exactly what it is you're looking for. Hardware lasts well and cost wise is all much of a muchness so splash out on some DMM stuff and you'll be pleased as punch. You may as well buy Ultra O crabs now, eventually you'll want to try a hitch climber anyway and you can use them in your kit until then.... The way I look at my kit is whatever gets upgraded becomes back up kit anyway so it's not like it's a waste....

This is a great film, soundtrack is brilliant too.... have a hunt for the film he did with a film maker as part of a competition I think, around some disused rail sidings.... not quite as epic as the way back but some of the things he does will make you flinch!

Good start! Come on guys, so far we're going to benefit from this more than the Children's Trust, get buying those tickets! Ticket sales need to exceed the prize fund value! And while I'm here.... I really hope I win the pimped out Arbor Trolley...!

Bought my tickets now. I was going to donate a prize but then realised that buying tickets is more helpful than donating prizes now.... I'll get in earlier next year! How much has been raised so far Steve?

Do you mean using a prusik as friction hitch to climb on? Prusiks tighten under load so if you're repeatedly loading and unloading one to move up a line you're going to get cheesed off with it pretty quickly. I only use a prusik as an anchor or loading point on a rope.

I just stuff my throwline in the way it came out, not had a ball of knots yet.... and 50m. Stuffing the line back in the bag is the worst job of the day though....

How did I acquire a reputation as a cider addled space ranger so quickly....? And before actually meeting anyone [other than Drew years ago as a cider addled space ranger!] in the flesh....!

I would say the 'small tractor' has got to be the most versatile solution.... You can either go down the compact tractor route, Kubota or similar, or an older machine like an International 474. As said, attachments for these are cheap as they don't have a power source built into each one. You also have weight and manoeverability on side, far better in poor conditions than a skid steer or ATV with any weight on board. You should find one of these comfortably within your budget. And that doesn't necessarily mean it will be lawn tractor sized or an older 2wd farm tractor. We used to have a Ford 1910. Was about 35 ish hp, 4wd, had a 1t power loader on it, 3pt linkage & PTO. Physically it was the same sort of size as a 135. Think that would have been within your budget when we chopped in in against a slightly larger machine.

Groovy, so Stein is actually 'all British'.... Deserves my support then!

So which came first? Is FS a British firm and Stein American? So is Stein USA owned by a British company, or is Fletcher Stewart American? It SOUNDS British! I knew someone would resolve this for me!

I presume the 'RC' stands for Reg Coates who I think is the man behind some of the Stein stuff, whom I also believe is somehow involved with / owns Fletcher Stewart. Anyone ever noticed how similar Stein USA's site is to Fletcher Stewart's...? Hopefully this UK manufacturing will continue. The day I see 'made in China' stamped on something my life depends on is the day I knock it on the head thanks!

You forget just how much it actually hurts to bail in a park until you do it again....! I so need to get away again, my kids have scuppered it for the last couple of years, it's not an easy holiday to do on the cheap when you have little ones!

Only to pull one out.... Sorry, you did ask.....

Cracking job! I need to make some sides or thralls or something for my trailer, something like this would be ideal! Time and money, time and money...

How much do you know about them already? The names are fairly descriptive... A fan drain system is multiple drains running to a single discharge point, better for small areas. Herringbone is a central main line with collecting drains running into it from both sides, like a fish bone. A grid system is as it sounds but will likely have multiple discharge points to allow for irregular fall over an area. Use of each depends on the fall and shape of the area to be drained. Generally for land drainage construction of each is of a 'french drain' type thing, a channel filled with gravel with a ribbed perforated pipe set near the bottom of it. To improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the drainage system, it is a good idea to deep mole drain the entire area during a prolonged dry spell prior to laying the drains to open up the soil structure...

I have a length of cord with a fishermans either end which I'm going to use to have a play with a VT.... Here's a picture I found of a hitch climber with a friction cord tied with fisherman's either end... should suffice til you get an eye to eye... http://www.treeworld.info/attachments/f15/2970d1195134943-friction-hitches-climbing-lines-brad-1.jpg I use another length of the same thing with a VT on my lanyard.

You could use some paint on waterproofing fluid, I used Aquaprufe last time I did anything like this. Buy it from Travis Perkins amongst others... vile stuff to work with but will do the job. Put it on with a big creosote brush taped to a broom handle.... slap it on! If you want to make it look better you could sprinkle some fine chippings over it as you go...

That's exactly what I have trouble with. When I used to work as an ag engineer I found that my hands would fall apart when I wore latex gloves, so FECKING ITCHY!!!!!!!!!!!!! Probably very bad for them but I find now that if I dip my hands in very hot water then slather them in Snowfire, that dulls the itchy sensation for long enough for the Snowfire to soften them up and stop them itching and splitting more. I buy it from the local chemist, it's not widely available I don't think, I don't remember ever seeing it on a shelf, you'll need to ask at the counter probably. About 4 or 5 quid a stick I think...

Yeah, whatever....

I'm with Treequip. In the eyes of the law and the sue or be sued culture which has developed in this country, irrespective of whether the big guy was right MORALLY [which I have no doubt he was] his crime was greater than the little shyster who started this all off by being just plain vile. I think the guard should share in the responsibility for allowing the situation to develop as it did - he doesn't seem like a feeble bumbling old gentleman to me in the video, he seems like a militant trade unionist type who doesn't care how the rules are followed, so long as they're followed and he doesn't have to get his hands dirty. This is a comedy of errors and it will be the one bloke who tried to help out who will feel the 'full force' [right...] of the legal system. I wouldn't have done what he did, partly because I couldn't but also because I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't get away with it. I like to think I'd intervene as well, perhaps step up to the kid when the big guy got up and try to negotiate him off, rather than leaving the big guy to take all the responsibility for the situation, one which actually he had no obligation to get involved with and as such it's bloody unfair of everyone else, particularly the guard, to stand back and allow it to unfold as it did. Honestly though, like most others I'd probably just sit there swearing under my breath remembering why I NEVER take the train and vowing to never do so again...

Another vote for Snowfire, I always keep a tube of it with me at this time of year, seems to heal splits, cracks and sores almost overnight, nice 'manly' smell too... DEFINITELY worth a try, keep it in your pocket, it's like a fat lip salve stick... I get terrible dermatitis / psoriasis or whatever it is on my right hand sometimes... Snowfire is the only thing I found which touches it, tried nappy creams, the B natural stuff, barrier creams, everything. Snowfire is the stuff, no contest. I use it on the baby's sore bits too now! My only quibble is, being designed 'for blokes', whose idea was it to have to push the stick out the tube with your finger? I have little hands by comparison to most Scandinavian fisherman and even I have to use my little finger, or a biro...!

Nice to finally read something nice about the 261 on here...! I've read reviews and heard good things about it elsewhere but all I seem to read on here is what a great saw a 362 is, and how much faster it cuts, and how it's better built! Well, a Husky's bound to cut quicker with it's girly little sliver of a kerf, and I can't believe a vacuum cleaner manufacturer makes a better saw than a German chainsaw manufacturer.... I'm kidding, I don't want to start a fight! But thanks for the feedback on the 261.....

And there-in lies the problem... you tube, social networks and the media analyse everything to death. Something which should have been forgotten about the second the train door shut is being raked over ad-nauseam... and the bloke who stepped in is bound to be the one who gets the thin end of it all. I don't agree with people getting away with things and I do agree with people stepping in to help, I would, but I wouldn't be able to use physical means to try to resolve the situation... What I disagree with is that this was the best solution to the problem, not because some little scrote got roughed up a bit, but because the bloke who tried to do something public spirited will now likely get hauled into a police station for it... There were other ways to sort this kid out without the big guy leaving himself open to a trumped up assault charge....

So is the tail of the line on the left of the knot all the way down to the ground to allow you to pull the climbing like back with a ball / knot on it...?

I agree. Mistakes were made by everyone, starting with the kid, but it will probably the ordinary bloke who felt obliged to sort it out for everyone else who will come off worst. Whether it was morally right or legal to do what he did is irrelevant, he appeared to do it for the right reasons in the heat of the moment and in the most 'non violent' manner he could, but he shouldn't have had to get involved in the first place. The kid should have got off, or the conductor should have resolved it himself in a less confrontational way, or other people should have chipped in to coax the kid off or establish whether he was telling the truth and maybe help him out. His behaviour was inexcusable but I don't think it was bad enough to justify what may happen to the big guy. It's sad, 1, that it happened at all and 2, that the bloke who tried to do the right thing will probably get his collar felt for it...