martwizz

http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/chainsaws/34008-2nd-set-dog-dawg-spikes-ms240-2.html Post #14 I just bought a set from the US, very pleased

I once had to do a 30% reduction on an ash tree in a woodland. Super tall and skinny, almost no branches for the first 40ft. Got almost all of the way up, having to tie into the stem over dead stubs, lots of branches snapping under my feet. It was my birthday. I froze for a few minutes, had to come down. I wanted to keep my momentum up, so I looked at another tree on my list. An absolutely massive beech to reduce, full of deadwood, very epilated, looked bloody horrible. I absolutely hate giving up, but I decided to call it a day. I had enough. That was the start of a chain of events that lead to working for a different company... definitely glad to be honest. When its your life in the balance, and you aren't comfortable, people telling you to 'man up' is the last thing you need. Don't feel bad, take a step back and start working towards that kind of tree for another day. And thanks for sharing

Hey, welcome to the forum and thanks for posting. There are loads of threads like this, if you use the search function, you can probably find hundreds of posts with advice for this subject. Because this question is posted very frequently, you probably wont get that many replies. I would recommend that you volunteer for a few days with a local tree company and see how you like it before you make the financial commitment of college. If you can graft well, have common sense, there is no reason a company wont snap you up as a regular labourer, so you can build up some experience and familiarity with the job. Things to consider are that you are entering the industry at a relatively high age, you're going to be hitting 35/36 before you are a decent climber, and by 40 climbers are often looking to move on to something more ground based. Also keep in mind that although the videos on youtube show knocking out big tops in the sun, there are plenty of jobs which are not nearly as exciting, like messing around in conifer hedges and brambles in the rain. Don't let me put you off, just make sure you put the time into making sure the decision is right for you before you blow several £k on college. "The grass is always greener on the other side; that's because the other side is covered in bullshit" Best of luck!

A few pics from my HB20's first grind - a gnarly multistem cherry stump; with plenty of big rocks and bricks. Flew through it, no problem! Excellent machine, looking forward to using it again

Collected mine on Monday, got plenty of work lined up for it! First job hopefully Sunday. It was a lot bigger than I expected! Its a pretty beasty machine. I was worried it wouldn't fit in my van. But it did! And it seems like a match made in heaven.

I just cable-tied some ply to the sides, thick ply to the ladder rack, and made a roof panel which is held down by ratchet straps with some little retaining batons to keep it in place. Works a treat! Just take the sides + roof off when not in use, so that it doesnt soak up too much rain.

I've had mine for 3 years now and its been brilliant. I'm a medium guy, but definately glad I bought the large, so that its easy to fit under the hardness, and over several layers of clothes. My cuffs are elasticated and divert a large portion of water away from my arms, although some will always get through regardless of what coat you wear I think.

Both their videos are top notch!

I believe the 25" width is after the outside wheels are taken off, I think with duals on its just over 34 or so.

I havent retreived anything like that, but I've got this video to share: [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5ElGt6iAYw]Helicopter Pilot Saves Kid's RC Plane - YouTube[/ame] Also this website Dan Kraus - Cat in a Tree Rescue

Woohoo!

I think I am glad that College students, including myself, are shown a simple and SAFE method first and foremost. There are plenty of opportunities to learn the fast/efficient/modern/alternative methods once in the workplace. The alternative to this are the 'apprentices' who are learn on the job with the man who has been climbing on a prussik for the last 20 years and perhaps still wears spikes when he feels like it, whilst using a top-handled saw in one hand by default. I must add that my tutors encouraged my group to learn alternative techniques, and there were hitch-climbers and things kicking around at the end of my college course. But certainly, the amount of climbing we did didn't really allow us to get the most out of these, and the pruning works that we undertook barely scratched the surface in comparison to real life scenarios.

Re: organic search results. If you run your site through a checker like this: Nibbler - test your website you will get a score, based on things like code, backlinks, social networking. You then get a score. Google bases all of its search results on a complex algorithm which takes all these things into account! While it is not necessarily as quick and easy as adwords, it means that you might maintain your top spot one you decide to stop paying. Also people like myself, who have adblock installed, dont see the sponsored results at the top or sides of a google search (the spot that adwords pays for)

The custom made pulley saver I bought is far superior to the official green one, which barely ever retrieves. I tend to take it out before I leave the tree as a good habit nowadays, so I guess I may as well just start using a sling and pulley. it rarely takes more than 2 or 3 mins to climb up and get it at the end of a reduction, rather than risk pulling it out (although if you want to change anchor mid-climb, it is a factor!)

liked, please like back!

...ALTHOUGH aforementioned prussik is ok if you are looking to reset/advance the system if you are pulling timber across a lawn, for example. But for a one-off high pressure pull, such as a backwards leaning fell, it should be a fixed point

You want as little sitback as possible on the friction hitch, you have a good 20cm of sitback in that system, which is fine as a safety, but you will loose a great deal of pull if you let the system sit back onto that hitch. I hope that makes sense A shorter hitch would mean less loss of pull when releasing the system. ALSO i wouldnt attach the top carabiners to the robe with a prussik, tie a midline bowline and clip the karabiners into that. This is far less likely to bind, and 100% less likely to slip down the rope. Plus it removes the requirement for an extra prussik loop, keeps it simple. Make sure you tie it into the correct loop though, the eye and not the tail! (the tail also forms a loop with a midline bowline)

Having strong ties between your website and social networks increases your websites quality scores and often results in higher 'organic' search results on google (the ones you don't have to pay for) It also doesn't hurt to add other local business' and raise local awareness of your service/brand!

I'm in my final year of my FDSc in arb. I'm probably going to defer the top-up years so that I can focus on work. For the time being, CPD and general academic advancement is on hold while I decide if consultancy is an avenue I am likely to persue, or if I am going to try and take my life down a business ownership/expansion route. I would love to attend the odd conference, but being on the IOW gives me that additional leg of travel which makes it a complete pain in the bum. Nothing ever comes over here though! No courses, demos, talks, inspections.... Its a shame, there are a lot of business' with a lot of potential which are stuck in the stone age. I know this is the same elsewhere, but the access to information is much less available over here!

Trees - Their use, management, cultivation and biology - Bob Watson [ame]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Trees-Management-Cultivation-Biology-Comprehensive/dp/1861268858[/ame] Great book that covers the fundamentals of pretty much everything. Sometimes not in huge detail, but a very wide array is covered! If you are looking to 'drop a few bucks', I've had my eye on the Encyclopedia of Forest Sciences. It costs about £1200 for a new volume though! [ame]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Encyclopedia-Forest-Sciences-Julian-Evans/dp/0121451607/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1392757080&sr=1-1&keywords=Encyclopedia+of+Forest+Sciences[/ame]

For your first reduction, I think you did well. How did it go? Did it take longer than you thought? Did you get much hung up? Have trouble getting out to the sides? Did you start at the top or do the sides first? Tell us more about it

I just had a call from 01618 141 278 Northern man, claiming to be from google, in charge of 'tree surgeons' I listened for a couple of minutes with suspicion, and then informed him I wasnt interested in adwords as i was growing my website ranking organically. He slammed the phone down without saying another word. Please be aware of this scam, it was a first for me, but obviously it has been going around for a while.

[ame]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Encyclopedia-Forest-Sciences-Julian-Evans/dp/0121451607/ref=s[/ame] <-- link to book I just wondered if anybody was lucky enough to own or have access to a copy, I'd love to see a picture of how big it is. Looks like a really beautiful book, I'd love to own a volume, but not at that price! Although there are some second hand sets knocking around for around £250.....

My advice would be to specialise in one area of woodland management specifically, to start off with at least. Too many guys make the mistake of starting as a tree surgeon, and add gardening to their leaflet...and lawn mowing... and decks and patios. There are enough tools and skills required to do the first job well, the huge array of equipment to be capable as a jack of all trades usually leaves said businessman as a master of none. If you are looking at a more practical side of woodland management, perhaps start off in a niche that you think you can get regular work in, get the specialist tools, and then expand from there. For example, offer a hazel harvesting service. Continue working for someone, even part time, while you build up your services, reputation and finances. As a more academic/consultancy oriented example, you could start a surveying service, invest in some mapping software and GPS tools, and start with that. Rather than spending money on a big 'we do all woodland management' website, renting an office, a nice chair, a fancy tablet, and twiddling your thumbs while you wait for your first call. It sounds stupid, but there are too many people that take this approach!

There are loads of problems with this service, I've read about clients complaining to the company after the job, leading to no pay for the contractor, who still has to pay the commission. You also have to pay for every lead regardless of winning the job, and the company actively recommends your competitors and stuff. I'd avoid it myself. I actually investigated it in this thread when it was beating me on google with 'spam' style websites filled with hundreds of key-words. http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/business-management/67743-spam-website-trusted-treesurgeons-com.html Here is an example of a thread with plenty of feedback regarding their services. http://www.pissedconsumer.com/reviews-by-company/service-magic.html