Pinkfoot

1 hour ago, Stubby said:

Unconditional loyalty .

You can't beat dogs as companions 

Got myself a contract doing internal drainage pumps tidy up once a month.

Aebi Cc66 is perfect for the job ,topped it up with a FS461 to celebrate.

Dogs are workers and my best mates too.

1 hour ago, doobin said:

I'm with @Haironyourchest, only as a curveball I like to use the smaller autocut head (just change the internal nut to suit the larger strimmers). This gives you the large sweep as craved by @Stubby, and I don't bother with a guard.

 

My preference is 2.4mm Stihl circular line. I've probably used close to 50 large spools over the years, and in my experience if a line welds inside the head then the rest of the spool will too, so bin it. That said, I've only had a handful of 'bad' spools. I've tried the water trick, it may help with abrasion resistance but did nothing for line welding inside the head.

 

If it's grass and other soft vegetation you are cutting, you don't need anything heavier.

It's all soft stuff and it will have a month's growth or thereabouts.

Do you use the four way head? 

31 minutes ago, Stubby said:

I have 45cc and 55cc Husqvarnas strimmers Been strimming for years .They are the best strimmer / brush cutters out there . The Oregon jet fit head perfectly suits the 55cc machine as it has bags of torque and can spin an 18-20" sweep of Deasert extrusion 4.00mm square cord at full chat . No welding of line , no eyelets popping out  , no winding on the " right " amount of line . Will clatter down pretty much anything . Its dynamite . 🙂  ( I did say at the beginning of this thread that opinion will be divided ) .

You're using 20" lengths?

That must be quick 

8 hours ago, woody paul said:

Don't know if you have tried Desert vortex line but that stuff is tuff use it in small strimmer to cut grass will knock brambles back as well. 

 

I have just got some of their diamond line ordered but willing to try others

3 minutes ago, Haironyourchest said:

I have a FS460, sees a lot of hours in the summer. Been strimming for years. It's the best strimmer/brush cutter. The auto head with 3mm or 3.5 mm perfectly suits this machine. In terms of efficiency, cost per hour, there is no better head.

 

There is a bit of finesse required though. You got to load this head with the right amount of cord, not too much, and it's got to be a cord of a certain hardness, or the stresses inside the head make the cord weld to itself. Also the alloy eyelets can get flung out and lost if you don't clip the head cover in properly, and them it gets spun off when you rev up. And the spring can fall out. Get spare springs and eyelets. Once you understand the quirks, it's dynamite.

 

I will give it a good try

2 minutes ago, Haironyourchest said:

Stihl Autocut 46-2 tap-n-go head. 

 

There is no argument here. Get a tap-n-go head. You won't have to stop to change the cord. You won't have to cut the cord. Your cord will always be exactly the right length, or nearly so.

 

 

 

 

I have the Autocut and have just ordered the oregon head and Stubbys diamond line .

I will give them a decent test

Stubby.

You haven't got the plastic cone on.

Is this legal 'cause you might die?

1 hour ago, Commando said:

As advised by #Stubby many years ago😄

Old codgers know the dodges

1 hour ago, Stubby said:

Someone who does the same as me ! Also soak the line in a bucket of water . nylon is hygroscopic and absorbs water making it less brittle .

Cheers older chap .

Glyphosate/mcpa mix murders nettles and you don't have to use a strong dose .

Some of the best stuff against thorns is Ventile.

What would be the best head for this machine and grass?

I have 17 small water pump sites that are cut once a month.

What is the most effective and efficient head for this job ?

Regards

Has anyone tried mcpa mix with roundup ?

It mullers most stuff and is much more effective than straight glyphosate on broad leaved stuff.

On 17/03/2021 at 19:13, Stubby said:

Also , if you leave any of them , no matter what model , on the tail gate step of your truck and drive off you will never see them again ..... The voice of stupidity . ☹️

You're not stupid ,just forgetfull

10 minutes ago, Stere said:

I have some giant loppers  but the trees might too  big diameter fot them

 

Forestry, horticulture and garden pruning loppers

WWW.LAKEWOODPRODUCTS.CO.NZ

---

Pro-Pruner loppers, tools designed for forestry pruning large branched trees up to 65 mm. Loppers are complimented by a...

 

 

 

But they do cut pretty big stuff compared to other loppers but probably only about 45mm comfortably.

 

Agree about using a 1/4 chain  for a finer finnish.

 

 

Thank you for the offer .

Loppers are a bit brutal in this application,the anvil crushes one side of the stem and bruises it so a saw is the best solution

35 minutes ago, Peasgood said:

That is a very brave move isn't it?

I thought even proven red sports are prone to reversion.

It's an Italian clone I think "Schniko Red " I think it's called.

They can get too red for the supermarkets,!

It's still a risk though ,supermarkets may change their minds

15 minutes ago, Paddy1000111 said:

Well, how long does it take to make a cut like that? 10 seconds max? Do you stop for lunch and a battery swap? I don't do apple pruning on a commercial basis, last year I probably only did about 30-40? I didn't use a chainsaw for more than 10 minutes for all of them put together so I would be quite surprised if you did 40 minutes of finger on trigger cutting before lunch but like I said, I don't do commercial so I have 0 idea how you prune! 😂

 

Outside of that it's a 201c-m if you want petrol!

What time is lunch?

We're on docky,09.45 ,dinner,12.30 ,tea after 4 pm.

I will be cutting all day and grafting once they are all prepped.😁

38 minutes ago, Paddy1000111 said:

That's what I thought! A 200 seems to be massively overpowered for a wrist thickness limb. 1/4 chain should make a cleaner cut too 

Battery life is only 40 minutes max. and charge time is fairly lengthy. 

Even with two batteries I am not sure that I will get many done in a day.

What do you think? 

1 hour ago, AHPP said:

And consider Makita equivalents if you already have batteries but you’d probably want to consider moving anything over to 1/4” picco. How fine do the cuts need to be? Curious about the whole process to be honest. Would be delighted if you did a thread on it and other fruit production matters.

 

Thought about filming it as I have a action camera ,just need to sort the app out for it.

Those trees are Gala and the owner is changing them to a very red gala .

We did 10,000 two years ago and only a few thousand last year due to administration problems.

1 minute ago, peds said:

Sounds interesting, I'd also love to see a dedicated thread about your orchard work. It's something I'm hoping to get involved with in the future. 

I work on a tree nursery.

This is extra curricular activity for me.

But I will try to do something.

I was at the orchard this morning cutting graft wood under moonlight at 5.20

9 minutes ago, AHPP said:

And consider Makita equivalents if you already have batteries but you’d probably want to consider moving anything over to 1/4” picco. How fine do the cuts need to be? Curious about the whole process to be honest. Would be delighted if you did a thread on it and other fruit production matters.

 

Thought about filming it as I have a action camera ,just need to sort the app out for it.

Those trees are Gala and the owner is changing them to a very red gala .

We did 10,000 two years ago and only a few thousand last year due to administration problems.

9 minutes ago, AHPP said:

A 120 would be a joy because of the lightness but will frustrate on power at 6” (3” would be fine, 4” tolerable). A 200 would be a joy because of the power but only if you’re strong enough to position it for what presumably need to be quite precise cuts. Depends how strong you are and how ergonomic it is to make the cuts. Sixty cuts a hundred times sounds like a lot of cuts to me.

That’s assuming you want battery, which for stop start work I would strongly recommend. If you can walk two paces from cut to cut and want petrol power, 150 backhandle.

Cheers for that.

I have around 6,000 apple trees to graft every year for five or so years.

I have also been given the task of preparing them which involves lopping the top off flat . They are only as thick as your arm .

I would like recommendations for a light buy fiesty saw that would make the job quick and more enjoyable.

A few years ago I made my own kiln in a refrigerated lorry body.

It was fibreglass and  I stuck a 28 kw workshop stove in there.

Burned sawdust or wood.

It wasn't the best installation but it did work.

I cut the roof lights out so it could vent and small house fans blowing under the bulk bins .

I bought a diesel space heater later on with a thermostat so it cut in at 50 °c.

This worked well but I will change it around next time , mainly for logistics.

Feeding the stove was a pain so was loading , had no forklift but the idea worked.

Ideally two stoves outside in their own insulated room blowing hot air into the kiln.

Pretty much.

I know the work related injuries/pains that I have and I know that you have worse!

And you're an old fart