gdh
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Everything posted by gdh
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Bucket shouldn't be a problem on concrete but you could also look at a riddle bucket so and mud and stones fall out. It would mean less sawdust as well.
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I normally go bigger so you're faster on the road, especially towing but it's a balancing act with economy now. Those valtras you listed are around 150k now so will cost more in depreciation and fuel. But valtras do have good gadgets. 😉 With the newer valtras the t174 up to t254 are the same tractor, just tweaked. I would always go Vario/automatic with newer tractors. Once you get used to it you won't want to go back and having the speed and PTO rpm separate is a big improvement. Just for fun: https://showroom.valtra.com/en/t-series
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I do a fair bit of sharpening with all the saws and a processor so I put the saws in a vice to get the best position and hand file. For the processor and bigger saw chains I used to use an old bar screwed to the side of the work bench because it's quicker than undoing the vice but now I've got a Markusson triplematic which has been working well. It's a mess today I know 😉 20231210_170908.mp4
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Is this the wettest (firewood selling )autumn you have known !
gdh replied to cessna's topic in Firewood forum
I'm lucky that we can kiln dry everything but all the wood we take out goes back up to 17% in a couple of weeks even though it's in dry sheds. I thought things were improving last week but everywhere is getting cold and damp again now. -
Here's some photos then 😉
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I've got a tilt hitch on our 8 tonner and I would have one again but there are trade offs. Obviously there's the big cost but it also adds weight and a lot of unwanted leverage when digging, especially on rock. It's noticeably more length when you're using a free hanging grab as well but it does balance out by giving you a bit of extra movement at the end. It's strange how different countries do things. I saw the other day that America doesn't use pick up hitches on tractors, they have to jack everything up which seems weird to me.
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I like my Milwaukee one, it's well made, but I usually just buy cheap ones because they usually end up getting broken before they wear out anyway. Ironically I have a £2.99 one in my coat pocket that's lasted 3 years so I think it's just luck when you work around wood and sawdust.
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Prices are always higher in garden centres because they're aiming for the occasional user but log prices are definitely up this year. All costs have gone up but unprocessed timber us up 50% in the last 12-18 months after probably 10 years of only small increases so that's the biggest driver.
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Haha, it had rained for a month and gone overgrown so I got fed up and used the brush cutter. Luckily it looks good a week later. It's more designed for rushes and brambles but it does the job in wet grass 😉
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It's a 3m 40ton with 4 or 8 way wedge. Had to get something to deal with all the oversized ash...
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Yes, it's a 15ton one we've had for almost two years. Very happy with it.
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Our tractors at work doing a bit of everything.
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What lengths are forestry contractors cutting trees for firewood ?
gdh replied to cessna's topic in Firewood forum
2.4 used to be the standard but a lot are going 3 or 3.6m to save on the handling. I don't mind the 3m but the 3.6 are a bit long on long decks and I can only get one bay on the trailer so it's worth asking before delivery. -
Is this the wettest (firewood selling )autumn you have known !
gdh replied to cessna's topic in Firewood forum
It's definitely been a wet few months, we also do contract baling and this is the first year we didn't finish. A few customers didn't find a dry period to cut and had to sacrifice the crops. I haven't noticed the wind but as with all weather we only notice the peaks/extremes not the average. We've had a few bad storms but that doesn't help drying at all. Luckily we have a kiln for firewood so we can keep drying through the winter but the wood going in seems soaking this year. -
If you've got a good dealer locally I would stick with them. I've always preferred husqvarna but good back up is more critical. 550 MK2 is a good saw on a 15inch bar as is the 560 but everyone's going to have different preferences in that size range so just go with what you're happy with. Personally I would stick with one brand because it's surprising how many small parts are interchangeable between models.
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The problem is there's multiple sizes of builders bags and they all stretch. The traditional ones are 90x90x90cm which is.73cube but actually about .85-.9 when filled. Then people got sneaky and dropped to 85cm and now a lot are down to 80x80x80 which is just under .6 cube when filled.
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To be honest it's basically a luxury for me. After hand sharpening thousands of times it's nice to be able to just put one on when I walk past and it frees up my Sundays a bit instead of having a pile of chains at the end of the week. I thought about doing it more for others but I don't want to deal with all the postage and having to swap the chain every 10 minutes would be a pain if I'm not working near it.
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Don't panic! The chain is healthy and still in use on our processor. The video is the only one I had to hand, it's the first time I used it and it was taking too much but I've got it set up nicely now. Yes, no coolant on this machine, so only filings to clean up thankfully. I think it's about 4k now. It's the mid range one so it does the depth gauges at the same time but hasn't got a sensor for double teeth.
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Markusson triplematic. I've always preferred hand sharpening but this actually seems as good. 20230411_162103~2.mp4
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Yeah, I would be £2.50 plus vat and more for a 404 chain. It's a guess to be honest because I only got it around the beginning of the year. There's not much time involved, whenever I walk past I just hang another chain on and leave it going . I'm not looking at doing it as a big thing, just if someone asks I might as well make use of the machine.
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I haven't heard anything bad recently but I haven't used Stihl for years. I used to use Stihl and Oregon but for the last 5 plus years I've been completely Rotatech. I did a few comparisons on durability and there was nothing in it so I couldn't see the point in spending triple the money.
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I've got an automatic sharpener, only just looking at sharpening for others but I think £2.50 for an 84 link 7/32 chain. They're only £12 new so by the time you add postage you can't justify a lot.
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Haha, I wish. I'm mostly firewood processing, we just do a few smaller hardwood felling jobs in the summer with a digger, winch and forwarding trailer. I hire extra cutters when needed but I'm normally buying the wood so I only pay the customer for the standing timber.
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That's to the customer, although it's the same thing for me as they're self employed.
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I think £250 is top money in forestry. £150-200 is probably more realistic and seems to be the going rate locally (mid-Wales).
