pleasant

OK, can you PM me some pics. Chat on there. Cheers.

I must have a couple of dozen shelf queens classic saws which i show- stihl 090 028avs echo twin a couple of pioneers etc etc so yes i am a collector. Would be happy to have it in my collection if its presentable. Rather keep the old stuff going tbh

I try to relate to customers the scenario whereby they want the thickest nylon line fitted on thier brush cutters, because it keeps snapping. Yes, well it is designed to snap...if it never did, then something else up the drive train will and that will certainly be more expensive than using the recommended size line in the first place. If you consider your chain whizzing around the bar as the nylon line, then the thicker/larger/heavier the chain, then more grunt the 'engine' needs to rotate it at the required speed to do the job. Heavier/thicker line added to an average sized brush cutter will simply slow the rotational speed down, so although it won't break quite as much, it will certainly not cut as well........the same can be said for a chain rotating around a bar on a saw.

They are pretty good tbh. Did have a lot of gearbox issues on those, but apparently since been beefed up and issues hopefully sorted. You are restricted to a very small dealer base though if you need Weibang specific spares, such as a blade and they don't make spares readily available unless a dealer also stocks the machines, so a decent dealer that has an account with the people who supply Weibang, that also sell some of the other brands they import cannot order you a blade for example if they are not already a weibang machinery stockist.

Not sure what you are hoping to prove by doing that to be honest.

Remember going to the Transatlantic at brands and walking around the old pits behind the stands. There was Ron with his leathers at half mast tied around his waist with his bare chest out leaning over his bike tank saying to his pit crew they would have to dent the top of his tank in so his gut would fit in it! This is back in the late 70s early 80's with Randy Mamola, Barry Sheene, Mick Grant, Kenny Roberts, Agostini etc

Hmmm....be careful around male celebrities in the 70s at 11 years old. 🤥

Sadly the only one ☹️

Bobby Barnes. When he retired from wrestling he bought our local newsagents and ran that for a few years when I was young. Nicked a mucky mag from there once...and got away with it. I was the toast of the lads in my class afterwards, coz you had yo be pretty brave to nick something from Bobby Barnes. 😁

remember that type of thing happening on the old Stihl 010/011/012 models. Was a special tool to hold them in place.

On a brand new saw, yes we do. However pdi's are conducted by a fully trained technician who is trained and insured to fit chains and conduct a customer handover. At the end of the handover the customer is required to sign a pdi handover to reflect he has been advised how to operate and knows the do's and dont's and has been given the handbook etc. The guys who deal with customers who come in with their own saw who just want a chain, that then sometimes ask us to fit it, are not trained, so only supply not fit. Supplying a chain for a pre-existing owned customer saw is a different scenario than a customer hand over of a new saw. As an aside, I was told many years ago from someone who had been in the trade for a very long time, that if someone asks you to fit a chain to a saw because they don't know how to, then that person shouldn't be using a saw......and I think he was right.

It's not ILLEGAL to sell a top handle to a non qualified operator, but the HSE in conjunction with the industry have a recommended standard which has been in place for 20 years plus, so nothing new. HSE advise dealers NOT to supply non certificated operators with single handed use chainsaws, and insist dealers keep records of identification of those that are qualified that have made a purchase should the need arise to trace the saw back to the supplying dealer in the event of an HSE attended incident. If a dealer has supplied a top handle saw to a non qualified purchaser then the dealer could be held to account for a degree of liability in the event of an incident, and thus will bring the dealer and possibly the manufacturer into disrepute, which in turn could cause the dealer to lose its franchise. I have had an instance locally whereby an HSE officer was driving past a site and noticed a top handled saw was being used as a ground saw (also discouranged by the HSE) and immediately closed the operation down to ascertain the qualifications of those working on the site. Personally, I do sometimes wonder why anyone would want to operate something as dangerous as a top handle saw without the correct training...putting your own safety issues aside, there is also the little matter of no insurance cover.

...interesting

Yup, that would be fine, and we would book it in under that basis, but if you have taped up a secondary micro switch to enable you to use it one handed or a deflector flap spring is missing so it doesn't close then we would either suggest we fix those issues while we fix it for the initial repair, not take it in, in the first place if the operator starts 'telling us we are wrong' or advise the customer we will hand it back 'as is' but sign a disclaimer. No one is advising someone HOW to use a machine if they don't need advice, but I repeat....we are liable if we don't inform the customer his/her machine is unsafe to use upon return. You wouldn't believe what we get asked to do to machinery that is clearly unsafe.....asked to remove a chainbrake lever because it keeps clicking on....fit ANY blade to a mower as long as it will fit in the cutter deck . Remove bail arms on mowers so engine doesn't cut out when emptying grassbox....get the picture? No one is dictating to a customer, no one is being awkward, but sometimes customers do need a safety reality check. And lets be honest WHY would you want to continue to use a machine once an expert has told you it"s unsafe to use? If my garage told me my cars brakes could fail at any time, i wouldn't give them a 'blunt response' but either act on it or ignore it at my cost. People today are very quick and happy to blame others when it all goes wrong I'm afraid and its called CYA. Cover your ****. Hope that makes some sense.

I am assuming you are looking at that from a pro user point of view? I am relating predominately to domestic users who need guidance, and that is why the majority come to us in the first place- for help and advice. However public liability and HSE do not affect them, but customer user safety does. If we let a machine go out whether domestic or pro use, knowing it would fail manufacturer safety standards and HSE standard for a pro user, then we are obligated to inform the end user as such, and like I say either ensure it does conform or a disclaimer is signed. If you gave me a 'blunt response' for informing you your machine is not safe to use (which is my legal and insurance liability obligation) Then I would think you were some sort of idiot- particularly for knowingly to continue to want to use a machine which was unsafe. We don't fit new chains to saws for the same reason. If a customer comes in with their saw and asks for a new chain for it, we are happy to supply the chain, but we decline to fit it if asked, on the grounds that once we touch that machine we are liable. A new chain needs re-tensioning shortly after doing several cuts (as I am sure you know) If we fit it, and the customer doesn't re-tension it as he should and it flies off....we perceivably could be liable for injury or damage as we fitted it originally and the customer can play dumb about us telling him to re-tension it to save his skin after an incident I appreciate you may think it, but telling us you don't agree with it is irrelevant.

A couple of examples. If we take in a mower in that has an engine issue, but has a damaged, non functioning or even missing deflector flap, then we either refuse to work on it unless the customer agrees to us replacing or repairing it before returning it to use OR we have to get the customer to sign a disclaimer stating the mower is unfit for use should the machine be returned with the flap in the same state it came to us in. Same goes for electric machines that come in for a simple blade sharpen or replacement if it has damage to the mains cables or switches as we have to flash test all electrical machines after we have 'touched' it. So we either don't take it in, if we do we have to ensure it passes a flash test or we issue a disclaimer stating it is unsafe to use and the customer is aware of this. damaged decks, missing exhaust guards all need addressing even though the machine may not be in for a repair to that area. Even bits of rope or similar to override bail bars on mower handles...all have to be removed before handing back to customers.

Bet your bits to a barn dance though, that if hse are called out to an incident that requires their intervention, they will send the guy that does know his backside from his elbow. Big gamble that.Machine non declared modded from factory spec and overridden safety devices. Insurance void and hse case in court rest assured

Genuine question. How does your insurance react to you using that 'modified' tool on a customers premises and surely should that cause injury, your public liability will be null and void?

Politicians are too occupied trying not to upset certain areas of the electorate. They have changed over the last 10-12 years or so to try and be all things to all men and not to perceivably lose votes by making tough, sometimes divisive and controversial decisions, and because of this nothing ever seems to change. If anything it just gets worse, because they are now seemingly afraid to do anything if it may cost votes. There is a lot I would like to hear and see to be done with the issues in this country- some of them, yes may uspet certain parts of the electorate, but I firmly beleive rather than lose votes they will gain them if changes were implemented. It is the silent majority that can swing power- not the radical minority that shout the loudest to get the headlines. Just my humble opinion.

Polymer deck are the same now, than they were 25 years ago. Aside from the design, Honda for example use the same materials for their current range than they did when introduced. Polymer does age, and will crack more easily the older it gets due to the oils in the material effectively evaporating in UV light. We regularly have machines in with polymer deck issues, but in a domestic environment customers are happy to continue to use them despite our warnings and the inherent danger of a stone flying out from the underside of a deck with a chunk of the skirt missing. Admittedly, Honda polymer deck are very good- in a domestic environment. If they would perform as well in a commerical use environment, then Honda of all people would employ it as an alternative to alloy, but they don't. The Kawasaki commercial engines are very good, but personally I would certainly go with a Toro pro machine with a Honda lump- simply because it's easier to find an agent and spare parts for a Honda than Kawasaki. Some Chinese stuff is very good- all European manufacturers have factories in China producing high end stuff to a high European standard- Stihl, Honda, Husqvarna etc, but in reality the only Chinese element of their machines is the par of hands putting it together and the geographical location- someone like Honda will supply materials, training, design, quality standards, whereby the Chinese stuff to avoid is made by a Chinese company, to a Chinese standard with Chinese materials- these are the shed stuff and other makes like Cobra/Gardencare etc. These are generally made down to a price to compete with the leading brands, and may well be ok in a domestic environment if price is your first concern, but not in a pro environment where it's your livelihood on the line. The only manufacturer that I know of that has a range of genuine pro use mowers with polymer decks would be Etesia, which are very good- particularly collecting damp/wet grass, but are not the price of a Gardencare product. Hope this helps you.

All Honda pro use machine are alloy deck. Honda core product domestic stuff is polycarbonate, and the budget Honda Isy range are steel.....which are the worse for rotting quickly if not regularly cleaned.

Defuse....even 🙄

I have customers with steel deck machines with deck perforation within 5 years of purchase, simply because they don't maintain it by cleaning the underside. Likewise, I also have customers with 15 year old steel deck machines with only surface rust....because they clean it. Alloy decks can, and do suffer a degree of 'powder' corrosion with age, but again this is accelerated by poor maintenance- however after many more years than a steel deck machine. If you want to replace your machine every 5 years, then don't look after it, if not- then do. A professional user wouldn't normally expect to be using a mower that is probably 15 years old anyway- the machine is written down after three years and has paid for itself many times over so corrosion shouldn't really be their first concern. Steel deck machines are not for pro use anyway, as they simply cannot be 'screwed together' as well as an alloy deck machine to give the sturdiness and reliability an pro machine needs. I take your point regarding a stainless steel deck, but putting rust issues aside, it would be no good in pro use environments for the issues I mention above- and the impact resistance of flying debris with steel being so thin. Stainless steel decks were offered years ago, but it really had no market, as for a domestic user it made machines too expensive and pro users aren't worried whether a deck doesn't rust on a walk behind as before it does, it's done its work.

ight Agree....maybe a tad more with decent pics and good wording. I sold one earlier this year on the bay for £130. Right time of year to be selling a saw to the weekend warriors for their winter logs

gardencare are a chinese manufacturer and apart from the engine is built down to a price. Plus there are limited agents about for spares warranty and repairs if needed. My personal recommendation would be a Toro machine fitted with that engine. Built like a barn door made for pro use and as they also own Hayter, any Hayter dealer as well as Toro can do warranty and source spares etc. However it wont be the price of the chinese gardencare