devon TWiG

my understanding is that it is not about just a quicker journey but greatly increased carrying capacity !

I really loved multiplat , and did my own eye splices as well , although it will be rubbished by todays youngsters it was perfectly safe and I made a living using it !!

I think less and less landowners would be willing to have fallen trees tidied up , most consider them to have "enormous value"😁 , others wish them to be left for wildlife ( good idea for brash ! ) and most would expect you to be insured , qualified etc etc to work on their land ! so often a non starter .....

first one looks like Lawsons cypress

It really has been an incredibly prolonged wet spell ...since Sept ..demoralising to say the least , not just for work , quite a few jobs put off by myself and customers and others taking longer to do than planned due to conditions and just horrible ,driving lorries part time more often now , easy life , sat down staring out of window ( at rain !! ) listening to radio 😁

I used a willans for decades ....replaced it with a petzl sequoia .....seems fine but no where near as robust !!! however having a rope bridge seems weird at first and they do not seem to last very long , no real advantages / disadvantages

where did you get the wood , and is it fully dry / seasoned ? it looks like laburnum to me ( esp bark ) , but photos are not very good !

Green man wales .....have you got back to your trainer and informed him of what happened ?? he really should no longer be teaching methods which are out of date with H&S , neither should he be out of touch as to what the exam entails !! there could be a case if you failed your assessment that you could make him reimburse you .....perhaps get in touch with which ever training body he is from and make them aware of the situation ....

It can also be a problem for normal works if such things as bats , badgers certain bird species etc etc are present , with ever increasing rules I fear even more woodland will become neglected as costs for such things as surveys etc rule out any possible small profit that may be gained from working the woodland ....

Simple Simon ....if you live in a mostly rural area ( as I am ) then farmers are often in need of our services , and this will become more so as ADB takes hold , some trees will be too difficult for them to do , some farmers are too busy , some too old to be doing the hard work etc etc , you can keep prices low by not needing much machinery as they have tractors etc and brash can be left or burnt in situ , very few farmers will pay full "pro arb team " rates ....I do quite a bit of work for farmers now ...hedgelaying esp on one site , cutting firewood etc no sweeping up at end of day , no road signs etc etc 😁

A big woodland near me was cleared of its dead Elms in the late 70s and is now a stand of perfect tall straight Sycamore and looks great and cost nothing to plant !!

I think everyone agrees that there is a great deal of woodland that could benefit from being managed , yet reading TVI's story highlights the fact that it is rarely ( if ever ) economically viable . Even with grants which for most people are a ball ache to apply for even if eligible ! TVI has also found a benevolent and presumably wealthy owner ......I have looked at a few near me after being invited too , however most are steep , rocky , wet and with poor access !! best of all was one owner suggested I could take trees for firewood , only poor scruffy specimens , no decent ones and then he felt it would be fair that he received 50% of log sales !! ( i do all felling , cutting , splitting and delivery !!) needless to say that wood is still left untouched ...The problem is that most owners think the wood is fine left as it is and would not let anyone make money from it unless there is money in it for them and the economics rarely allow this ....sad ...

great thread TVI !! .....lots of useful and relevant information and it comes across that you are loving the work / lifestyle ....I have a small woodland 4.5 acres 75% of which is 30 m douglas firs which I am removing a few at a time mostly to let more light in to allow natural regen and some planting which is working out nicely , deer are my biggest problem , coming from an arb background I did not fully appreciate what destructive bastards they are ☹️

looking at getting one soon .... but this thread has left me just as undecided as I was before I read it !!😂 any other pfanner stuff I have had has been brilliant , so I have little doubt the protos will disappoint !!....

I am now 58 ...been at it since 1986 ( last century !!!😁 ) mostly climbing , often more than 5 days a week , only part time now but all is fine .....can do a good days work , two in a row feels tough at times , rarely do a full week , no need to , I have all I want , house paid off etc ,life is good , my hobby life has always been quite physical as well !