SteveA

Agreed ~ nature does wonders at converting things back to looking, um, natural. p.s.... we find tractors / wheeled vehicles do way more damage compared with a digger (that isn't being turned on the spot).

If it were me I wouldn't have this problem because my New Years resolution was to stop buying anything from Amazon. But on one hand it does look a bit naughty to be selling Oregon stuff that isn't Oregon - on the other hand Jon from Rye Oils seems to be going out of his way to fix the problem. Give the guys a chance to sort it out, I say....

Think you're right about ground clearance being a negative. I sometimes think a front/ back dozer would be of most benefit for pulling out sections from the woods where it's tight to turn around.... and would save churning up the ground so much; with less turning. I'm sure I did see a photo of a digger with twin dozers but maybe it was a dream?! ....can't find any photos now!

Yeah, the dozer can be at front or back.... or even left or right! (depending on cab position). I tend to prefer to use/see the dozer blade at the front. Some modern diggers have a dozer blade at the front & back don't they?

For beginners try to use the mini-digger slowly and as smoothly as possible - try to work without jarring the machine at all. It's an extension of your own body.....think in 3-dimensions. After a few days of solid use (and a few sleeps) the controls become more natural & familiar. Lower the engine speed slightly to save on fuel & noise.... they are still very powerful at lower revs..... use full throttle occasionally, if you really need to. Or full throttle if you need to drive it somewhere at tortoise-neck speed! Leave the engine ticking over for a few minutes after doing some heavy work (or tracking) to let the hydraulic fluid get pumped around & cooled down. There's a fair bit of maintenance.... the maintenance schedule is there to help; read it. Expanding tracks are far more stable. Save the soil structure by driving in big circles. cheers, steve

Good questions Pete - looking forwards to hearing some answers for this. Cheers

Absolutely Yes! We're building a barn with Larch at the moment. Not sure if you've seen it but there was a Channel 4 Grand Designs house in Monmouthshire (near Tintern Abbey) that used Larch and they were required to have it strength tested (because it was a bit of an unknown). The results came back way stronger than other wood varieties. Cheers, Steve

The first time I used a chainsaw: a) Which way does the chain go on? b) No PPE (apart from a loose fitting helmet with mashed up mesh) c) Had no idea how to check & use the chain brake (I worked it out, eventually) d) Very blunt chain - how to sharpen & adjust tension??! e) Never heard about kickback (but I do remember it happening a few times) So with all that in mind I went on to fell a tree in my partners front garden. It came down beautifully (the top narrowly missing smashing in the front window, down to pure luck). I then went to chainsaw through a trunk to the side of the house - but by this stage the chain was so blunt it had no hope of cutting anything. So I gave up on the chainsaw and picked up a blunt axe (which worked better!).... then (with me swinging like a monkey) the trunk came over.... on top of me, and straight over my elbow! Ouch!! .....nothing broken but a lot of pain for a month. Following doing my CS30 (& with hindsight): I think DIY use of chainsaws is absolutely crazy & there should be much stricter legislation. I also think training courses (directly related to health & safety) should not be charged VAT.... because the best way to avoid accidents is by education. This would save huge amounts of money at the NHS & Sickness Benefit. I consider myself lucky.

What Mr Fox says :thumbup:

Haha! okay, so now I know it's your fault! Because of doing the barn I'll be pushed to find any spare time for a week. Dammit!! Maybe I can squeeze a couple days in?? I'll give you a phone tomorrow. cheers

Cheers Murray - hope you're good over there. Been waiting for a date to do CS2 but haven't heard a peep. Deadline for submitting to Farming Connect looms!!

I've been looking at Cladco to supply wiggly sheets for a Dutch barn (for hay). For the barn we're building at the moment we'll be going for zinc standing seam - although pure zinc roofing is incredibly expensive! ....may go halfway and use aluminium sheets with a zinc coating. Euroclad make some called vieo & they also offer free training courses for DIY fitters.... very tempted with that! VIEO Roof System : Euro Clad — Metal Building Solutions cheers, steve

Where we're up to so far....

The bottom ring (whatever you call it) sits on dense concrete block foundation piers, 12 in total.

This truss is slightly different bracing to allow for a mezzanine floor, for better access at head height.

Hi Simon, thanks for your link.... you're doing a proper quality job there mate! Well done, looks ace Ours is a bit, ummmm, a bit less precise shall we say. Here's a photo one of the trusses (Larch): Cheers, Steve

15" for every day stuff on my 550xpg and I carry an 18" Sugihara in the rucksack in case I need to cut bigger stuff. cheers

Reading between the lines - what else might one expect from a Tory newspaper in the run up to a general election?

That's good to hear. Number one is the really tricky one.... some kind of hybrid Turkey oak??

1) Tree one was straight until 3m (10ft), then the trunk has bends for another 3m (10ft) until it reaches the main branches of the canopy. Had a few small side branches. Fairly round, but not perfectly round. 2) The trunk on tree two (with the hairy buds) was very straight until 6m (20ft), I don't remember having to remove any side branches from the trunk on that one. I would say it was very round. 3) Tree three was a bit more bendy and with more side branches. Not perfectly round.

I think they should go - because it's not right to have people in power with huge responsibilities working against their own job description.

- Tree number one is confusing me because the buds don't look like Quercus cerris / (Turkey oak) yet on the same tree the bark does have orange colour in the fissures. Do any other oak varieties show an orange colour? - Tree number 2, I would say is Quercus cerris / Turkey oak... and is a very hairy bud version! - Tree number three doesn't have any orange colour in the fissures of the bark so I reckon that could be a Quercus petraea / sessile oak.

I also thought number two tree buds look very hairy.... & not just on this twig, all the twigs at the top of the tree looked like that... here's another photo of number two:

Is this Turkey Oak? Tree number three/ photo number three:

Is this Turkey Oak? Tree number two/ photo number two: