codlasher

I was sent to bonnie Scotland some ten + years ago to do a course on 'Harvesting and the Environment'. The main reason was that we were moving from motor manual towards mechanisation. This course covered all the aspects of mechanical harvesting and extraction with a good section on 'elf and safety. Brash matting (a no damage policy) and oil spills featured high on the agenda. Ex oil rig pipes were also a handy addition to the tool box as these enabled crossings over watercourses to be made quickly and efficiently. This was a five day course culminating in a very informative visit to one of the James Jones sawmills where the produce was being hauled to. There was a good selection of people including machine operators and forestors so the course covered all aspects of the job from the cab to the the overview. FC Scotland were the hosts although I can't remember the name of the person who organised it. Worth looking into if it is still run.... Codlasher.

I'm sorry to hear your situation. Perhaps you could take a year out? Countryside jobs on line may have some seasonable vacancies in your area to tide you over. There are farmers looking to employ keen reliable drivers for their harvest time and your mechanical skills may well prove very favorable. Personally I would not completely give up on the mechanical side as this WILL stand you in good stead in the future.

I'm not a fan of eucalyptus plantations in the UK having seen the results of bush fires in Tasmania. The timber is good although that would not change my mind, plus there are no benefits to uk wildlife as has been mentioned. They use the contour method similar to mounding and some of their species is frost tolerant so these are the ones planted in the UK. Yes they do produce good firewood but is that all you want from your stand? I think, in all honesty, an Ash stand would provide a better cash return. This seems to be a little like the 1970's rush to find 'alternatives' like Southern Beech. Useless, always blowing over and worthless for anything! I am always surprised when folk quote 'massive growth potential' of a foreign species. Well planted British natives will nearly always out perform outsiders when situated in their best environment. That is then 'Good Forestry Practice'! Codlasher.

I was always told by my old friend that dropping a big lump of Oak onto a portable mill would cause problems......unless it was well sited on concrete. This was in the days when Forestor was probably the only portable mill around. I am interested to hear that W-M are having problems. I'm quite out of the milling loop now as my old friend has passed on and his mill has been shut now for more than a decade. There are Stenner 48" band-mills advertised for scrap value. Why not consider something like that. They can't have all dissappeared! They will soon though as the price of scrap is making the castings very valuable which is not good for your quest. Guilliet is another one to look for, v similar to Stenner, although these were mainly 36". If you can find an old Stenner they will be able to provide you with the base plan for the pit, where the bottom wheel will go. With a Guilliet.....you will have to be inventive. Robinson were good too but I don't have any experience with them. The APF this year will no doubt have many portables to look at. Well worth a visit:001_smile: codlasher.

The longest cut that I have done to date, using a chainsaw-mill, was 53'x 9"x9". I was asked to provide the blank for a larch topmast. It looks good rigged on the vessel:thumbup1: Getting it out of the woods on our old pole trailer was interesting too, It just cleared the gate post on its swing. If the trailer bolsters had been any lower we would have been in trouble. It went away on an extending articulated low loader with about 8' still hanging out the back. codlasher.

Hello to all you firewood folk out there. My first post! I have an older Posch 300 (Ford blue and white model) It's now some 25 years old and underwent a major rebuild during the last summer. When dealing with the supply of spares the answer from JP Wilson was always 'nae bother' and the parts were on my doorstep within 24 hours. There is a big plus for good spares availability and this is a plug for Wilsons coz they're always helpful. There were some minor upgrades that I'd copied from the 3000 (J Deere green and orange model) These were simple to add or remove, depending on what I was looking to improve. Two more adjustable brackets were added to the bearing carriage base and the removal of the coil sprung shock absorber which, in theory was a good idea, but made for more effort to move the saw pivot. A friend and colleague has the 3000 hence my enhancements to what is in all honesty, an unchanged machine after 25+ years of service. The changes are to the saw blade bearing carriage and the mouth of the hopper at the point where the produce drops onto the conveyor. His machine is now 15 years old and I remember it new.......It replaced a model similar to mine except that it was offered with a much longer conveyor belt which enabled a 16 ton grain trailor to be filled daily. Other changes are to the splitter knifes, this is hydraulically movable as opposed to the manual screw-me up/down crank. So to sum up on a personal preference I like my Posch, I think that the 350 is a little big for me as I certainly could not lift a piece of cord to fill the entrance. This would involve a jump to mechanical handling and related costs. As others have been mentioning, visit the Posch stand at the APF before you make your decision on which model to purchase......There's no choice of name though! (in my opinion:001_smile:) Tipped blades too, a pair, one at the saw doctors and one working. In a perfect world......I only have the one, it's sharpened and the odd tip replaced in the summer-time I hope this summary helps towards you making an informed decision. Codlasher.