Couldyajust

Up to £181 which is still not a bad price & finishes tomorrow morning.

If the client wants it reduced by 50%+ then they are probably not that attached to it why not suggest felling it & planting something more appropriate for the space available.

The 360TES arrived this morning negative point was no PDI it was still in the factory sealed box, not a big deal but all the best dealers carry out a full PDI to ensure there are no issues with the specific machine sold before it leaves them. No climbing jobs today so naturally I mastered levitation before testing it to keep the H&S brigade happy. Initial thoughts are why didn't I buy an Echo topper sooner I have been looking at them for ages. Handles very nicely plenty of power even though it is not run in yet. I will be looking for a shorter bar than the 14" supplied as I always prefer a 10"-12" bar on a topper. Tomorrows job removing a storm damaged multi stemmed willow & a couple of silver birches in a confined space with lots of targets was going to be a case of pull them over with the monkey winch, clear up & finish early but is very likely to be a dismantle instead now weather permitting so I can test the saw more extensively (play with my new toy).

I contacted them via ebay today asking if the 3/8 058 chain is going to be made available on there (also reminded them about this thread as they have stopped posting on it). If they do put the 058 on ebay at similar prices to the 063 then I will be getting a couple of chains, not paying the website price though.

You own something that's NOT ported I get a lot of agricultural type hedges to do, very dense mixed hardwood often not trimmed for 3-4 years. Ambitious for any hedgecutter. On softer stuff like conifers or willow the echo does a very good job or on anything recognisable as a hedge rather than a row of densely planted trees come to that. This year I also had a brief run on hedges that hadn't been trimmed in 40+ years as ownership had been in debate. When ownership was finally agreed upon I was expected to work miracles. None of my hedgetrimmers were up to that, 9"+ blackthorn stems & 50'+ mixed broadleaf trees to turn back into something that resembled a hedge was too much of a challenge so had to get the chainsaw & polesaw out instead.

Not that hard to free climb on ivy but it won't be very pleasant for the poor sod who has to get the pressure washer out to clean them off the pavement when a piece of ivy breaks away unexpectedly & they have no line attached.

I have one of those its the Echo HC-341ES 40" it is usually the one I reach for leaves a brilliant finish but I do find it struggles with thicker stuff on neglected hedges so have a 30" stihl HS86 for rough stuff & a HS246 hedgecutter attachment that fits on an 026 for the really tough stuff that doesn't quite warrant getting the chainsaw out.

I was looking at an 84 link 3/8 058 chain, price on website is £18.53 inc vat & delivery around 22p per link. Ebay price (if they listed that chain) would be closer to 10p per link if prices of other chains are anything to go by. Ignoring chain I already have & prices paid for it I could get a 100' reel of Husqvarna H42 chain from Jonesie for £245.26 & make the loops up myself at a cost of around 15p per link. There is no incentive to buy Piranha chain through the northern arb site at those prices if however they listed suitable loops on ebay (or if they matched ebay prices on the site) then the prices there would mean they are worth buying.

They are available on the website if you want one clearly marked as C2SFT chain: 1.5mm (.058") Gauge Chains - Northern ARB Supplies However they are not listed on ebay where the same chains are sold at considerably better prices.

It would usually be a Walbro K20-WYL on a TH23. The Kawasaki KH23 service manual does suggest that some were manufactured with non adjustable carbs though.

The price difference on ebay seems to relate to buying multiple chains, buying 2,3 or 4 chains works out much cheaper than buying a single chain this discount does not appear on the website. Also the piranha guide bars are on ebay but not on the site. I did notice there were 24" 84 link Piranha chains for Husqvarna on ebay so assumed I had found something suitable for my echo but when I read the details they were 063 gauge rather than the 058 typically run on a 24" husky bar. I hope people are reading the details on ebay before buying rather than just assuming they will fit because it says it fits a particular model.

Yesterday (on my own, without any PPE) I dropped one trunk of a multi stemmed willow which became hung up in another tree I then proceeded to pack up the saw & went home leaving it like that. Anyone who saw that would definitely think I bodged the job & disappeared in a hurry. If that was posted on here I would be slated, called a cowboy etc... The reality is I was only there to pick up a load of logs from a previous job & spotted the root plate lifting seriously in the 50mph gusts so mentioned it to client as it had the potential to do about 20k of damage if it dropped on to the static caravan it was leaning over & we were forecast 90mph gusts through the night. I was asked to do what I can (bearing in mind I had minimal kit with me & it was rapidly getting dark) so I dropped the heaviest trunk that leaned in the direction of the caravan against the lean intentionally getting it hung up to wedge everything in place. Didn't get it quite where I wanted it due to lack of wedges or winch to guide the fall & fighting against the wind but what I did stabilised the tree & I will be going back to deal with it properly in a couple of days as soon as I can fit it in.

Not tried them yet. Although they do now stock chains in the sizes I require ordering through the website where vat & delivery is added on it works out almost as much as oregon chain from my local dealer & more expensive than making loops up myself. The chains listed on ebay are about half the price & would actually offer a saving but they don't currently list sizes I require. If they put some loops of 058 gauge in larger sizes on ebay rather than just 063 I would try them or if they start offering full reels at sensible prices I could just buy a reel or 2 & make the loops up myself.

I've never done that & I always put fuel in first. Although there may have been an occasion or 2 over the years where I was distracted by someone/something & forgot to screw the oil cap back on the saw & dumped a tank full of oil on the ground when I picked it up before I realised. It comes out a lot faster than it goes in.

Had a look at their ebay price for the 562XP (1,027.95 Euro) so I reckon it must be a typo on the website probably supposed to say 999 rather than 199.

At that price they must be discontinuing them/clearing old stock or something along those lines, or its a typo. Can you buy them in & buy them in & become the sole UK stockist of 562's or does that sort of thing upset your suppliers. I have often considered buying an Alpina from them as I have 2 Alpina saws which I have had for years an 0-70S & an A40 which have always been very reliable with good performance & little maintenance required but you don't see that brand in the UK anymore so I don't know if the build quality is still as good as it used to be or if they have turned into domestic use only saws like Homelite & McCulloch did.

Eiddew (welsh for ivy)

I'm tempted at that price as I suspect a mill would probably spend most of its time gathering dust with me so it is not cost effective to spend much. If I used one the standard 24" or 28" bars on my primary (80cc) saw would probably be adequate for the bulk of what I would mill, would it be better to buy the larger 48" mill for the relatively small difference in price to give myself the option of using bigger saws if needed or would I be better off just getting the 30" mill & upgrading at a later date if I did get into milling.

Have had to revise my opinion here as things have obviously improved since I last dealt with this company. They are now using DHL as couriers & I just got a text from DHL confirming the parcel is on its way & will be arriving on Monday so that is about a week from ordering to delivery which is not too bad considering the distance.

Helygen Wiail - (Welsh for Osier)

Cedrwydden - cedar

Oestrywydden (welsh for hornbeam)

Helygen Frau - Crack willow

Bedwen arian (Welsh for silver birch)

All settings are in the service manual. http://echotool.ru/files/43_4_00-36A-04_5a41f8b184.PDF