gdh

It's usually a sign of a blunt chain or bar, you can change just one to find out. Processor bars usually wear more on one side/rail so I've found you have to file the good and bad sides to keep it level. I use a vallorbe bar dresser which helps a bit.

Also worth checking that the bar hasn't opened up very slightly.

£60+vat roadside in mid Wales but I've seen it from £45-75.

It's a bit small so I would probably guess at £20 a ton standing depending on brash/tidying requirements.

It's nice to see someone post something positive about a company, I think too often we only post when things go wrong.

For what it's worth I've always had good service from them and the chains especially are great.

Assuming they're calibrated correctly there shouldn't be enough difference to worry about about but they won't be as accurate as a weigh bridge because there's a little a bit of swing affecting every time you weigh.

We have one on our timber trailer and I remember testing weighing a 9 ton load on and off and having a 20kg difference.

Weigh bridges aren't perfect either because they don't take into account how fuel in the tank or stuff in the cab.

2 hours ago, peatff said:

 

How is that an old bar ? It's still got all it's paint on it.

Haha, it's from a firewood processor so they tend to wear in one spot not all over. Although I would guess that one had a damaged rail after only a couple of hundred tons, it doesn't look that heavily worn.

For doing processor chains I just use an old bar screwed to the workbench. It saves undoing a vice to turn chains.

5 hours ago, coppice cutter said:

Was that your problem?

Yes, the plastic clips didn't hold properly and it would cut out. It's fine after.

1 hour ago, coppice cutter said:

The clip was modified for the mk2 version, possibly yours was the previous model?

Yes, I think so looking at it. They just added a metal clip over the battery to stop it shaking out.

We use shearcordless. Had to have the battery clip modified straight away but after that no issues in 4 years and I know a couple of professional shearers who use them for dagging now instead of the traditional machines.

If he can put it on Facebook but not manage to provide a video or even photos I would stay clear or offer to pay transport and payment on delivery.

If they're tidy trees I'm sure someone would do it usually (I would) but boundary trees are rarely straight and if they're oversized or need winching over it would probably cost more than they're worth. Public land is a whole new set of problems...

Alternatively you could get someone in to fell them then sell the timber. Pictures would help.

If could have only two saws I would have a husqvarna 550 with a 15inch bar and a 572 with a 24inch.

I use both regularly and the 550 is a great little saw for daily use and the 572 is good for felling and stumping oversized stuff with the advantage that it's still fast revving and light enough to use on smaller stuff. I think a 24inch bar is the best length for it.

1 hour ago, trigger_andy said:

 

 

Like they system I linked to earlier?

I missed that. Yeah, it looks ok, I only have experience with the firewood ones but that looks like it's designed for finer dust which should be ok unless you get unlucky.

You could use a firewood processor dust extractor and a cyclone but decent ones will be 2k plus so not worth it unless you're doing a lot of milling.

If you go down the route of an extractor fan it needs to be a heavy duty one that can take slithers of wood that might go down the pipe. 

It's an interesting idea and with 10 chains running on a firewood processor plus saws I would be tempted to get someone to sharpen them but I think the honest problem is you wouldn't be cheap enough.

An 84 link (24inch) chain takes me 10 minutes to hand sharpen back to new condition (well, close 😉) and only costs £11 new. By the time I'd taken them off and packaged them to send I couldn't justify more than £2-3 for a perfectly sharpened chain. I'm not a fan of the edge the machines leave either 

The only market I can see is people who can't sharpen or users with damaged chains if you want to go down that route.

With the 550 I think 15inch is perfect. 18 at a push but I wouldn't go longer personally.

1 hour ago, shavey said:

Did you find the edges on the grip too square too start with when new on high tensile barb wire it would break

I think I've snapped a couple near the start but didn't really think about it. The only modification we made was to weld the plates on so they don't come loose anymore.

This was my best buy for fencing. Much nicer than playing around with chains and less risk of taking one to the head if it snaps.

You can do short stretches of netting with two people but I'm normally using a quickfencer or just chain the netting to the digger with our old holding bar 

 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Draper-57547-Fence-Wire-Tensioning/dp/B0002GUM6Y/ref=asc_df_B0002GUM6Y/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=226152056294&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=11855480945434765388&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9045389&hvtargid=pla-421602825083&psc=1&th=1&psc=1

I think you're more unlucky to get a bad chain. Out of 80ish rotatech chains I've had in the past 4 years 90% have been sharpened down to the limit and I've only ever snapped 2 when hitting something on our processor which I can't really blame on them as it happens with all brands.

I usually run new chains for about half an hour then tighten them. There's a limit to how much anything will stretch so if it keeps happening to the point it comes off then I would check the tensioner.

Ripper blades are slightly better and were slightly cheaper so we've stuck with them. Stephen Cull is very good to deal with but I believe he's retired from sharpening.

Plenty of topics on them but in short they're good chains at a very good price. We use them on chainsaws and the firewood processor every day with no issues. Just have to get used to filing at 28° 😉

57 minutes ago, trigger_andy said:

 

Vented bags are brilliant for drying logs. Builders bags on the other hand are not.

 

I mean compared to crates, even on vented ones they're too fine to let wind through like an ibc or box. 

I think there would be a market for 1inch mesh bags.

Bags aren't the best to dry in but I would definitely cover the tops. Rain on the sides won't matter too much but heavy or constant rain will soon run right through if the top's exposed.

Don't think I've posted this before.

Two of our tractors, only 50 something years between them...