aspenarb

The running costs of the truck will depend on what truck you go for. Firstly the subject of MPG, the newer trucks are more fuel efficient and have better aerodynamics . An old pig like mine could be as low as 5mpg if your dogging it fully loaded or as high as 12mpg running light downhill with the fly`s going the same way. I know a carefully driven newer Volvo will crack 10mpg freighted so there is a big difference between old and new. Insurance fully comp on the truck and three trailers is £1500 a year with no goods in transit insurance. The Taxation class is an interesting one, it basically revolves around weight vs axles. Three axle tractor units with three axle trailers @ 44 ton are £1200 a year. If that was a newer truck with a reduced pollution cert and road friendly trailers ( rear steer) it comes down to under half that which is less than some 4x4 cars. So newer is better on fuel and cheaper to tax. The trade off is a truck thats simple to work on and wont stop until you pull the stop lever Vs a newer truck littered with electronics that needs main dealers to keep it all going. Check out the the taxation classes vs weight and then see the difference in costs drop off as you add axles. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/419799/V149_Budget_2015_Final_version.pdf Bob

Just finished trans-locating a field full of 5`+ hawthorn to the boundary's of this place. App 5000 plants around the perimeter to form a hedge. Do you like the drive? Bob

I was going to buy this Chris but never checked out the numbers for a comparison , Its been on ebay for about six months, may be worth a punt. JCB Eaton Hydraulic Pump 101-1633-009 | eBay Bob

I prefer the older non electronic stuff but you have throw the towel in at some point. The electrickery part is the biggest problem and it was causing problems here with all the different makes of vans. What I did was buy the full Ford diagnostic kit and am slowly moving over to the one make so that the one tool can scan/diagnose all we have. Its not a vehicle choice thing but because we already run a Ranger , couple of transits and a connect,it just makes sense not to be at the mercy of the main dealers. Bob

I dont understand the scare mongering around running HGV`s . We maintain our own trucks and other than the time which amounts to very little they are very cheap to keep on the road. Tyres get chopped to bits on sites so I will only fit runners at £80 a piece and the servicing cost are no more than a 4x4. The old Foden I have run now for about 12 years has had a clutch @£250, some air valves @ app£100, and one brake drum which was £80. Its always run through its plate ok and I think the biggest costs are the damage like tearing off mudguards , tyres and mirrors. The small 10ton LDV is not much different all that has had is brake shoes and rear light units ( must get them guarded). The trailers are no problem at all. Bob

If access is the main problem why not just use an artic with short trailers. An artic with double drive wont get stuck and a 20-30 foot trailer will get in anywhere a rigid truck will. A lot of scaffold company`s in london use them because they are more maneuverable. Also leaves the truck free to pull an assortment of trailers for other work like baulker bins and low loaders. The extra trailers dont cost to keep other than the annual test. Bob

A decent 6x6 would do you for that job, Things like the Iveco 6X6 with 250hp and 26 ton gross, mine is not finished yet because life has got in the way but hopefully will it get done soon. If you get one thats piped for air they can also pull a 15 ton trailer.

The staff at Tescos this end are none to bright. Alter the denomination when paying after they have pressed the go button on the till and they get all cross eyed. I wanted something that was £10.50 something and handed over a £20 note, I suddenly realised I had the small change part so handed it to her in anticipation of just getting a £10 not back to save having a pocket shrapnel. I really struggled to explain to her that it was the same thing. Bob

I picked up a DVD on ebay a few years ago which covers all the Stihl products, its also got all the parts manuals/numbers with exploded views. It saves a fortune in time and money when ordering bits , no more wrongly ordered parts now either which was becoming a problem I did the same for Jonsered and Husky. STIHL POWER EQUIPMENT WORKSHOP REPAIR MANUAL on DVD ROM Stihl Power Tools Disc | eBay Bob

Kevin if you think you may be doing more in this sector and you are bang up to date with HMRC you can enter into the gross payment scheme. You will need to apply and be doing north of 30k per annum . A bit of gumph on it Obtaining Gross CIS Payment Status Bob

We have used their products for a very long time now and they never disappoint. Bob

When they ask how things are going just say very dry, then tell them that the last job you did that was this dry was in the Sahara.You will either get a brew or a slap. Bob

Have a flick through the Bible https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/366129/cis340.pdf. Page 69 Operations excluded from the scheme . Convincing an accounts department that you are exempt is the hardest part but forestry operations are in some cases exempt. Bob

I am old school and if I cant afford it I dont buy it, its just the way I am but these lease plans are tax efficient. You do need to keep up to speed on this because of things like this that creep into play. https://taxagents.blog.gov.uk/2014/06/25/annual-investment-allowance-tips/ It sort of moves the goalpost a bit in favour of just buying things outright. Bob

On the chippers I put them in the rubber line that runs from the tank to the electric fuel pump , that way you are keeping the crud out of everything. Those packs of 25 used to come from Maces but they went pop last week similar things on ebay. Inline Fuel Filter - Large X 20 Diesel, Veg Oil - Clear Plastic Red Mesh | eBay

What we have in this country is an immobile workforce. In places like Italy and Spain workers are happy to up sticks and go to where the work is. In this country people want work brought to them and unfortunately its not that easy, the migrant workers are exactly that , they go where the work is. The unemployed stats also dont take into account the percentage of those that are unemployable , there are millions in this country that have issues that render them unemployable . This as an employer narrows the choice and the migrant workers start to look like a no brainer, its not about greed and money because some of us just need the work done without all the flannel. I employ some Polish labour and pay them the same as any english worker, this unfortunately is because the youngsters around here have not got a days work in them. Bob

Ok on diesel, I buy them buy the bag and fit them on everything, even the telehandler. They have a stepped inlet pipe so you just trim it off to go to the next size of pipe. They are worth fitting because if something conks out you can eliminate the fuel at a glance. Worth noting they are directional.

Spot on Tom . Also worth pointing out that the " hoards of offshore cash" are always ploughed back into the economy anyway. No investment banks will sit on this, they put it to work. I know of several developers that use offshore money to fund projects that british banks wont entertain. Bob

TW tanks seem to suffer with crud getting in. For a while I thought it was the lads being sloppy with the cans but after taking a tank off one of the chippers I noticed the rain and dust was getting in under plate on the tank. The seal under the filler flange on the tracked chipper cant cope with the distortion of the plastic tank so lets in debris/water . On the smaller TW the tank flange is set down in a recess and the same thing happens. I have tried gagging it with silicone but that just falls apart after a while. I now just take them off and clean them out periodically, I have also fitted those in line clear plastic throw away filters so you can visually see the problem prior to it conking out. Ring Automotive In-Line Fuel Filter Large mm | Components | Screwfix.com Bob

A few years ago we cleared trees and vegetation round a large chunk of MOD land that was app 60 kilometers to make way for stock fencing. The ground conditions varied from soft sand to nothing but rocks and flint, the lads with the tractor and knocker on the soft stuff would bang in hundreds of meters a day but on the horrid boney old ground they were brought to a standstill and had to hand dig in most the posts. Long before you commit to a method it may pay to get up there and dig a few test holes so you know what you are getting into. Bob

I dont have a horse in this race, I have TW tracked and tow, Dosko now relegated as a spare , Schliesing in the barge , TP on the mog and a Morbark WTC , I think they are all much of a muchness , they all have their quirky design faults and niggles . I am not blind and the subby`s I use have some of the chippers mentioned on previous pages. One has the Greenmech 9" tracked chipper that works on the banks, that thing makes our TW look a bit lame and definitely out performs it. Another contractor has just purchased a Forst. I am really impressed with the build quality and lack of plastic on that, another has a big vermeer and that too is a brute, the fan on the vermeer can get the chip to the headboard of the bulkerbin in one hit which is a long way, with all the others you have to shovel it forward. Shows like the APF really dont help because there is way to much choice but I do like the look of that Forst so I will be watching how that behaves over the coming months. Bob

The obsession with clean "looking"exhaust emissions is causing respiratory problems because of the ultra fine particulates. A diesel clunker from years gone by belched black smoke which settled on the ground as soot which is probably the lesser of the two evils. Anyway the easiest way to cut emissions is to improve the roads systems so journeys take a fraction of the time. You could start with the nonsensical traffic lights at Brookwood that have a permanent quarter of a mile tailback every way 24/7 ,this tailback miraculously does not exist when the lights fail which cuts my journey time and emissions on a 5 mile round trip to my other yard by an amazing 50%. There are tens of thousands of these traffic systems in place that are not fit for purpose. Bob

Mines Elvis Presley`s Jailhouse Rock and I have been about for over 30,000,000 minutes Whats yours? Playback.fm | #1 Song On Your Birthday Bob

Good find Wills, that will be on the shopping list. There are enough of those engines fitted in bits of our kit to justify a set of those. Its a bit late for the one on the chipper because its been beaten with a hammer for a few weeks. I short changed the Massey of a screen guard and paid the price, less than month on site and it needs a new screen. The old Massey was like this. So I suppose thats my weekend off down the swanny

Lost for words , donated. Bob