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Feel for you there mate, black cats always shine so much, and oh that smell and warmth when they've been lying out in the sun - you just have to plunge your face deep into their fur. Dogs just stink!

I'm with you completely there Stubby, though 11yrs your junior. Wishing it wasn't the way of the world, and things would be so much better if we could all look someone in the eye before letting out a complete train of thought that should never have been said. Still, an essential skill and tool for modern business. Thank God I'm not self employed anymore and needing to put myself out there!

I realise this is all drifting away from the original branch logger topic, but my two pennies wort, I use char from rinsing out the whisky casks at work as biochar on my own smallholding. It act not as a fertiliser but more a soil improver, very much like lime does. As quite rightly said earlier, it has no nutritional value on its own. The carbon remains locked into it for exceptionally long periods, as seen on archaeological digs. Instead the fertilising components, naturally and applied, are able to chemically bond onto the char, and slowly leach out rather than be washed either away or down through the soil profile and so remain close to the surface, available for root uptake. Another benefit to me personally, is the grains dont break down in size and so assist drainage on a peaty loam mountain soil, which otherwise waterlogs at the merest sniff of rain.

I think that's the point of them, cheap and disposable, a bit like razors. Use them till they don't do the job anymore, then get another one.

Save the money, buy her a set of wellies, or a plank laid out to where she parks her car.🤪

It strikes me that the well in that rim is very deep so most short valved inner tubes are going to want to pull inwards. Perhaps a brass valve extender as ysed on some dual tyre setups may help?

Dear God, I've lost the will to live any longer. Is there nothing that happens 'in the news today' that you guys can't turn into a tedious diatribe of competitive drivel, that suddenly loses all the interest the original topic ever had. FFS there's a whole world of interest out there but you just keep bringin it back to ME, ME,ME. I'm sick of reading this spittle dripping off your chins, hoping there might be a modicum of either wit or good comment about to be revealed.🥱

I've tried that and absolutely no result at all ☹️

The simplest ever, but funny... oh yes, the best. Thanks

Jeezus, looks like the making of a great chilli con carné. Prob give me the shits for 2 weeks

Is there more surgery ahead for you to correct the foot orientation?

Hi Dan, no, I don't recall knee issues, I did get a bit of soreness just where top end of shin bone joins knee, but a small cut off slip of the wife's pilates mat sorted this out. It's well made, but as a generic one size fits all design, personal pad adjustments do need to be made. The vid that comes with it is very clear to follow. Once you get the heights sorted, and strap lengths personalised, you don't have to do any more changes. Clip on and off superfast with the quick release buckles for getting into cars, sitting down, weight bearing training etc. Vibram pad on the sole too so not skiddy on most surfaces, but even if if does slip, your natural balance reactions take control as normal. Without it I'd have been beyond unbearable

6am? The only time I see this now, months shy of 60 yrs old, is when I have to get up for the first piss of the day. Yep, you're right, train, train and train again til it becomes second nature, and you're not scrabbling about trying to find the cheat sheets. To anyone offered the chance of getting on events like these, take it willingly. Your bleeding out buddy will thank you forever.

Fookin ' ell. We've some well dodgy tree identifiers in this group 😆

Great to see Greg Marah, Douglas Forest and Garden, involved with this one. He organised an event called Trauma in the Trees probably about seven years ago now, which covered both aerial rescue, and the most stunningly memorable first response training for our sort of catastrophic injuries, I've ever seen. Great stuff. He's also a supplier, with a try before you buy attitude, of top class arborist kit in county Cork, SW Ireland. Events and training like this are worth the weight in gold for giving real life experience in emergency situations, when panic just wants to take over the brain and stop you observing the whole scene.

I bet the smell was at least divine, if not overwhelming. Did a few Lebanon logs with the lucas mill, and found it like catnip for cats - just wanted to roll around naked in the sawdust 😁😁

Those pics looked like I'd had half the leg removed . No, the knee takes the weight passing through to the metal peg leg below. The shin is supported on the table running behind the body, with the ankle and foot hanging off the end. Clips on and off superfast. Best thing....look - no crutches. Takes maybe ¾hr to truly set it up for your height and balance, then you're away with it. Great instructional video comes with it. Best €280 spent...says my wife

Absolutely delighted for you. A massive weight and encumberance removed. Your skin is your own again. Regarding the crutches issue, now that all difficulties are from the ankle down, investigate the 'iwalk 2.0'. I had tremendous freedom with it following ankle fusion. I couldn't bear the hindrance of crutches for 6 months. You can't carry the cup of tea you've just made over to the sofa with 2 crutches, in fact can't do feck all when both hands are occupied. The iwalk allowed me to do all my farmwork unaided, ride my quad bike, dance, go to rock concerts (and dance there too!), cook for the wife coming home from work, up and down stairs no bother (though it's easier and safest to come down backwards). It most definitely changed my recovery and gave me independence. It also meant my wife knew I was capable of living each day without her needing to be constantly in attendance. The Florence nightingale bit isn't her strongest attribute! I hate being reliant on anyone and get really cranky if I can't do it my way. Previously with your pins and frame this would never have worked for you, maybe it's time now. Do check it out, it could be the release you need. Shaun

A 36 hrs later its still there making me break out in a childish giggle. Thanks

Isn't it normally the point when all reports have been submitted by the "independent " consultants and risk assessors, and their grossly inflated, double it,treble it and add a bit for inflation bills have been paid. Suddenly the initial idea finds it no longer has the funds it started out with, and the cutbacks financial prioritising starts to bring the whole project down on its knees

I milled some very large logs for a client once. They owned a liveable castle, and wanted some tables - large! Only the very centre boards (21' long, 4½' wide and 6" thick ) were kept for this. Other boards were cut thinner, but didn't really do it for me. - Too much going on with all the knots. Even with the lucas mill at its best, it was difficult to keep straight cuts as blade constantly alternating between rock hard knots and really soft intermediate trunk wood. The table pieces were lifted up over the steps into the front door and onto 2 waiting powered barrows to get them into the correct rooms. Even after kilning still over 350kg per slab. Another castle/ hotel I worked at, smaller diameter trees, got me to simply cross cut each whorl of branches, then sent them away to be bowl turned. One for each guest room +larger ones in foyers, dining and lounges. - never saw the outcome. Messy, oily, difficult wood to mill. Wouldn't be my choice timber.

I use these exact ones from oregon. Damned effective on 45cc+ machines. They're so good at mulching anything to pulp that you get complacent and lazy and just plunge into any size scrub. I can't seem to stop myself from smashing into large size gorse bushes that should be done with the chainsaw. Gearboxes, pinion shafts and the occasional driveshaft outer tube are all too frequent victims to the massive impacts, cutting too heavy material.

Well your luck just ran out with me I'm afraid. I only have 2 sections, the smaller diameter ones . At least my broadband mounting is safe and doesn't need disturbing

You know what... looking at design of poles and connector, I'm pretty sure I have all of the poles and connector holding up my broadband amplifier antenna up at optimum height outside my house. I'll measure up from dimensions given and come back . Obviously if I take it down I'll lose internet and won't be able to reply at all.!