Pedroski

£80/day - you're kidding? Also, re declaring income - register as self-employed, do it properly. Understand that the more money you DON'T declare, the lower your income on paper looks. This can make it very awkward if you want to get a loan for anything, including mortgage, or if you want to start renting somewhere to live. You need to charge a proper rate so that you can cover everything properly including tax and NI to be properly legit.

Don't count on all accountants to know what they're doing. Accountant my work mates uses doesn't know anything about working tax credit and child tax credit, which seems a bit daft considering he does a lot of accounts for low income self-employed people!

That's bad. Where is the logic in what Stihl decided to do in their choice of bearing? Fools!

I can tell you where not to go. Work mate took a saw that kept cutting out to one particular place. Picked it up weeks later after being told again and again that it wasn't ready yet. The firm billed for him for new carb (not carb kit, but complete carb) + labour, and told him it was all fine. Anyway, took it away, started it, and exactly the same - cutting out. Called the firm up and the fella tried to say it had been started after being repaired and was working perfectly. So mate poked around....noticed a small pipe disconnected, reconnected it and it was perfect. The problem all along was caused by one little pipe being off, that if the repairer had genuinely replaced the carb then he would have spotted. So don't go there. If you want someone reliable then you could go to AMP in Hallyburton Road, Hove, tel 01273 418918. They're really easy to get to - about 5 mins from the A27.

Nice one

Good luck Bob - I'm sure all will go well. I thought it was bad enough when my heart just went weird when I had the catheterised cardiac angiogram! I'll be thinking of you.

Thank you! It's 11mm, static (although I'm certain that static lines are semi-static in reality). Feet are only a diddy size 7, but she is so petite that they do look like flippers! She is a brave sort, and does loads of climbing (rock and wall), as well the Combined Cadet Force, and loves everything outdoors. Of course, me being Dad, secured the base anchor with a Fig 8 and back up so I could lower her down if she got nervous.... but she didn't. Rapped down, went straight back up, and I hardly got a look in apart from first climb to check all good. We ended up spending 2 hours playing in that tree while my dogs were chasing rabbits! Apols in advance to anyone who comments on lack of helmet:blushing:

Simon, any more news yet?

Playing around this afternoon, Marlow Aeris line high in a tree and anchored at base of neighbouring tree, we (15yr old daughter and I) found it a doddle going up the rope with just a pair of Rockers and a footloop. Clipping into Petzl Reverso3 to rapp down. Great thing about the Rockers is that they stay on the line when rappelling down (unlike typical toothed ascenders that have to be removed). This means you're secured to the line all the time, and if you let go of the line when rappelling, the Rockers provide fall arrest. Piece of cake for ascending and positioning and fall arrest. Here's daughter on her way up, and also a pic of the two Rockers - top one (gold) is attached to footloop and also by sling to harness, bottom one is attached by short sling to harness.

Just charge your minimum fee. It's not your problem that there were no trees to include in it. If you were a DJ and were booked to do a wedding, would you reduce your fee just because nobody got up on the dancefloor?

There could be something in that, you know. The body has a tendency to crave what it needs, and I know that half way through a really sweaty day working I get a really strong craving for a nice cold pint.

That's a great article. Here's the link for anyone who wants to read it - downloads as a PDF. http://vtio.org.au/Content/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Single-Rope-Technique-i.pdf Web site is Victorian Tree Industry Organisation

Thanks Ashtree. The letter from DVLA does, like yours did, say and can carry on pending their decision. In a way I'm tempted not to bother as I hardly ever drive anything needing an LGV/HGV licence, when I do it seems to be unpaid for a family member, and when I look at agency work it seems to be £8 to £11/hour which is less than I get in a garden! It kind of seems pointless but is something I was hoping to be able to fall back on if need be, especially after £600 for the ticket years ago and £120 for the medical! Can't see it paying for itself now Thanks again, esp first post and all, and welcome to Arbtalk

The Petzl catalogue shows the set up clearly. You can download it from Petzl web site.

I'd love to, but I've got a bit of a dodgy chest at the moment

8ft girth/circumference ain't much. It's 2 and half foot across. Ya wusses.

Dry ski slope.

It might be worth letting DVLA know of the error, because even though they've put that on your licence, you legally only have LGV1 entitlement if you've passed the LGV1 test. I'm sure you already know this though. Something that really hacks me off is all this CPC borrocks that's been brought in. What's that all about if not just some money making scam?

Did you take a pic of the tree when you priced it? Love to see it. A whole week on a little 70 footer sounds, even with tight access and fences, like a play in the park

Martin, I fear you are losing your way here. At the beginning of the thread you said Honestly, you don't need to spend over £500 or £600 on a saw for what you want to do. For that money, you could get a brilliant saw for the job, and have a big chunk of money toward a pair of quality chainsaw trousers and the other PPE, a good splitting axe, etc etc. My work mate has been doing his own firewood for donkey's years using small Stihl 021, and he gets through loads of it with 2 burners and a poorly insulated ancient house. You can read all those glamorous specs on say the 550XP, like magnesium crank case, low vibe, low emissions, side mounted chain tensioner, quick release air filter, blah blah blah, and they all equally well apply to the Makita and many other saws mentioned in this thread, that cost far less than £500. Yeah, the 550XP has got centrifugal air intake to keep the filter clean, but the Makita has got the intake on the left away from the chain, which also keeps the filter clean. It's no big deal, especially not for logging your own firewood a few times per year. Just saying

Also, an easy way to keep track of what you're spending is to make sure that every single expense is done on a debit card. That way, you've got it on your bank statement, you've got the receipt for the expense, and it makes it all much easier to tie up when you do your tax return. Nothing worse that paying expenses in cash then losing track of it. So even if someone pays you cash, don't be tempted to pay for your fuel or clothing in cash just because you've got it in your pocket. Get your debit card out instead. It's also easier if you have a vehicle solely for work use and add up ALL of the expenses for it (and of course never use it for personal use I'm sure no honest MP would ever do that)

Cheers HBD. I'm chilling now - just been round a friend's for dinner and a glass or two, and feeling far less worried about it

The exhaust goes through the discharge shoot, doesn't it? Supposedly to keep the shoot dry. Ours does that on start up and has done ever since we've had it, and we've had it for years.

I don't believe this. I've got some medical thing going on at the moment after having pneumonia at end of last summer. Docs found I have a PFO, which is a small hole between one side of heart and the other, and is something that 1 in 5 people have. Been having shortness of breath for a while and this is being looked into. Never had blackouts or anything like that. Consultant said I'm not gonna have a heart attack, all ok but checking lungs now Anyway, just came to renew my licence which needs medical as 45 years old. Doc included all paperwork relating to my current condition with my renewal form. Waited and waited for licence. Then got letter saying it was being referred to their medical advisors, and now, a month later, another letter to say they were writing to my consultant to determine my fitness to drive! Waiting, waiting, waiting.... and apart from occasional shortness of breath on exertion, I feel ok. The LGV licence is my back up for periods of no other work! If they don't renew it then I've wasted 120 smackers on a fracking medical, and won't be able to use it. Knowing my luck at the moment they'll turn round and won't let me drive at all! STRESSSSSSEDDDDD!!!!

Justin is one of the blokes at FR Jones - see ads, and see posts from Jonesie.