devon TWiG

pretty sure this is Prunus serrula

It was recently in the press that 20 % of all prisoners are caravan dwellers ( well they have a roof over their heads now and cannot nick much !!! )

Does anyone else on here use saw chain oil to lube their drive chain on their bike ? I have been doing this for years , mineral or bio !

I have no idea if any one runs courses, but there are plenty of good books, also loads on the internet , and national trust and other large collections usually have most of their plants labelled or I am sure there are plenty of Arbs on here will let you work for free all day carrying Leylandii out of gardens so you know exactly what it looks like and will never forget it !! lol

. Your dimensions would make it a double pallet so around £60-70 I think. Your limited to about 800 - 1000kg on a pallet so you should be ok --------- Probably nearly double that price now ( I deliver palletised goods for a living ) do not request AM / next day to keep costs down , sometimes if other goods can be stacked on top of yours can be a bit cheaper as well ( saves space )

Matty F, you are not far wrong in your assesment of most turners , as most are retired etc and do it as a hobby and do not sell for profit/ income .There is far more wood from arb arisings than is ever likely to be used in the craft market . I get my wood from several local contacts and they are happy to let me loose in their firewood pile for as long as I want , I usually look for ugly knotty stuff, fork/ crotch sections and less common species , the wood is always wet / damp / green and I can usually fill my car ( honda jazz) for 40- 50 £ ( more than firewood and no work ) which we are both happy with , however I only cut up small sections /2nd measures of wood , nice oak, elm .yew butts etc are priced higher by negotiation ! I probably only buy a few hundred pounds worth a year , and I do quite a lot of turning . It would be very unusual for a turner to spend hundreds in one go ! Unfortunately if people see a turners wood suppliers catalogue and see the prices , they do a quick calculation that all butts are worth thousands !!! ( they rarely are ) I really do not know any one who has sold wood of much value to a turner so if it is your wood do what you want with it !! If you have a buyer then you will get to know what he wants and save it aside for him .

The volume of sap is constant throughout the year , it just moves more in the growing season than it does when dormant ,the chemical make up ( sugars ) will vary throughout the year as well . Green wood weights of a given volume do not really vary from the growing and dormant season .

Holm oak is very dense , slow to dry and very keen to warp and split , I think if you were to plank it you will suffer very heavy loss. If it is cut in to small sections then it may be of interest to the craft market , although few use it so not many are looking for it , and even less will be willing to pay much either . As seventh devil says it can be spectacular quarter sawn to show the medullary rays , I have a small stock of A4 size pieces set aside for a project , when i get around to it !!

It would lead to a lot of broken wing mirrors and the livestock would get out as well !!!

Most college courses are in " arboriculture " not just tree surgery, although most employment is in tree surgery, a qualified arborist after some experience will usually be a better tree surgeon . Physical fitness, attitude etc are probably as important . Different climbing techniques matter very little as a keen enthusiastic arb will seek out and try new equipment and techniques and settle with what they feel suits them the best . Also multiple gadgets etc can lead to confusion if an aerial rescue is required ! . Many people are out there every day doing good work, safely and efficiently and enjoying it, in many different ways .

I deliver and shift quite a few woodburners ( I drive a lorry ) I was wondering about this a while back .... Wood price has gone up quite a bit in recent years ..many people do not use their stoves as main heating source .. often woodburners are replacing open fires ....coal is used in multi-fuel stoves as well ... firewood is being imported ... much pallet wood etc is scavenged that never used to be ...IF fracking takes of big time then gas price may fall making wood seem overpriced and messy work ... Also much wood that did not have much of a market other than pulp , pallet wood , pit props , chipboard manufacturing etc now has a ready market to the firewood industry with more merchants and suppliers than I have ever seen ( on here and in real life ) selling by the load and many in nets ... so in short I think market forces will settle things, but all of this depends on the weather as well I guess !!! On another thread on this site I could hardly believe the amount some of you guys are burning for personal use !!!....

They could have been as low as 10% when leaving the kiln ..... however wood will only be as dry as its surrounding humidity , so will probably have absorbed water from the atmosphere , even indoors in the UK at this time of year ... so kiln drying was a bit wasted really , but will still be great firewood I would think !

Put a rope through a convenient high.ish fork in a ,tree tie one end to the log the other to the tow hitch drive forward lifting the log in the air , with a second rope tied to the log and through another fork , tie off the end with a few wraps around the tree ( arb lowering style ) position truck under log and lower ( carefully and slowly ! ) in to back of pick up ! This should be OK for logs up to about half a ton ( pick up capacity ) with practice this can be very cheap and effective for occasional use , take care not to stand under the raised log at any time !! With two pick ups and another person it becomes quite easy , assuming there is a conveniently situated " craning " tree .

Methusala the ancient bristlecone pine , Massive london Plane , and a very large gnarly old oak ! ( possibly replace Plane with a Baobab !!)

It is useless for outdoor use ! however it is fine if used for joinery etc ...A few years ago I turned a few bits ( quite large ) with beautifully spalted sapwood in to bowls and hollow vessels which all sold quite quickly . Nearly all timbers have some use !!!

" Brown Oak " as we know it , is caused by a discolouration by the fungi fistulina hepatica . However a brown ( often a bit ginger ) discolouration can also be caused by laetiporus sulphureus which is distinctly different and mostly of little use or desirability ! Either of them will lead to a dry cubical decay if left too long.

This is a very large and far reaching subject with so many variables . Far too complex to put in to print on here ! It takes a lot of experience ( and mistakes !) to be able to assess and judge the potential of a bit of wood especially from arb arisings !! If you use woods from a regular supplier / merchant sawn and kiln / air dried then things are more predictable , do not be afraid to experiment but accept disappointment as learning !!

Cordyline australis or more commonly known around here ( devon) as the Torbay palm , they can be killed of in a cold winter but will often sprout again from the trunk .

Topping strop with metal eye encapsulated in spliced eye , home made lasted for years !!

Climbing trees has never been easy!! ( depending on the tree ) you need to get fit and stay fit, then it seems easier , but in reality is still hard work . You can get gadgets and develop techniques to make it easier ( faster ) but it is still hard work !! especially when dragging a saw around ,whilst wearing waterproofs , on a wet windy day in an exposed tree , full of ivy !!!! all good character forming stuff and no need for the gym in the evening !! happy days ...

A lovely pair of tables there mate , Thanks for that comparison, I use Liberon finishing oil almost exclusively and will probably continue to do so . If any one wants a very shiny finish I sometimes use Microcrystaline wax after oils are dry ,and recommend it highly .

It is Grisellinia littoralis in case any one was interested , it was at least 40 foot tall 2 foot dia , dead and covered in ivy ,and smelt like disinfectant ! very close grained and dense but takes a good finish well >

A few pics of what can be made from Horse Chestnut Burr, I got the log last spring it was fairly dry/ dead so i soaked it then wrapped in pallet wrap , left it all summer and have turned these in the last month or so , hope you like them . Have you milled it yet ? These pics might be useful to show any potential buyer of your wood what it can look like !! Shame I am not closer ! I am always on the look out for very knotty , burred, forked, spalted twisted ugly wood !!!! just the sort of stuff most people kick to one side , in fact one guy I often get wood from often says what the *&^%"! do you want with that lump of +%&*£ and I usually get it for very little !! Quite a few end up on the fire though !!

If anyone can correctly identify this wood I will very, very impressed !!! ( I know what it is , It came from a NT garden on the coast near me and it is slightly spalted as well , I have quite a few more to finish ) It is about 10 " in diameter .

IF & WHEN the weather ever improves I would be interested in coming along , I do not work as a climber now but have had 20 + years experience , and still have gear ( do the odd job ) and would be interested to see the latest gear and have a climb , especially without a saw !!! .... I am Newton Abbot as well !...