Billhook

I am not suggesting that anyone should cut corners on maintenance or procedure. What I am saying is that in this particular case I am an owner operator and the machine seems to be well built compared to many. Because I have owned and operated it for over ten years I am well aware of its limitations, more so perhaps than if I had been working for a firm which kept hiring a different model each time they needed one. The regular time consuming job is painting the windows at the top of a forty foot tower. Because I am in the same place nearly all day it means that I am often on my own, but with wife and mobile nearby. The basket is nearly touching the wall and I put the thick rope out of one of the windows to run in between the basket and the wall. The only point the rope is anchored is to a beam inside the tower. I spend days doing the job and the possibility of perhaps someone backing into a leg in spite of warning tape is always possible (especially in a van), likewise, the longer you are up there the more time there is for a mechanical or hydraulic failure. All I have to do is drop a paint brush and grab a rope and true it may happen too quickly for me to do anything. But imagine the scenario of the postman coming in and with mind on other things, backs round heading for a leg. From my position I can see clearly what is about to happen, grab the rope and prepare to jump out. The alternative without the rope is to watch in horror as the accident happens giving you time to see your life go before you as you plunge forty feet to the ground. It is only an option I use on this job. For other work I use the fall arrester attached to something above where possible. Is this deemed to be a bad idea also as it seems many of you would prefer to take your chances being strapped to the basket? Falls from the basket are usually because someone is leaning out to try and saw off a branch just out of reach. It has to be better practice to move the machine rather than strap yourself to the basket so that you can lean out of it.

Then I must refer you to my earlier post. Would these guys have survived serious injury if they had another option? It does not matter how good your pads are or how good your groundie is, if a bloody bus comes round the corner and collides with a leg. It may be that the ground which was apparently sound when you first looked, had a sink hole and there are times you are aware that something is going wrong with either the legs or the mechanics and you do have enough time to hang on to a rope and believe me if I had the option of falling 17 metres strapped to a basket or take my chances with a stout rope, I know which option I would choose.

The rope I am talking about is about two inches in diameter and hemp not nylon, like the ones used for climbing in gyms. http://www.traditionalropecompany.co.uk/images/pic-04640.jpg Did you never do rope climbing in the gym at school? It is not too hard to let yourself down slowly using your legs and body. Certainly preferable to falling! If you are in a tree it may just let you guide yourself to a safe branch. If you are doing building maintenance then it is sometimes possible to "walk" down the wall.

Yes I see in the training manual this is the perceived wisdom but I would feel much happier to have a stout rope attached to a secure point above me, long enough to reach the floor and close enough to catch hold of should an incident like this occur. A belt and braces approach. If you attach yourself to the basket you are bound to go down with it. Two men thrown 25ft to floor after bus hits cherry picker in Tunbridge Wells | Kent and Sussex Courier or this Tree surgeons hurt in cherry picker plunge at Milborne St Andrew (From Dorset Echo) Don't you think that these men would have had a fair chance of avoiding serious injury if they had such a system?

Thanks for this reply and for the one from Dean Yes I always have a full harness and I have done an abseil course though never bought the equipment. The 20 metres of rope and petzi sounds reasonable. The only advantage of my heavy fall arrester is that allows quite a bit of movement but will lock in a second whereas a rope would need to be fairly slack to give me the equivalent movement which may mean a small fall or swing should the basket drop away. Are there any fall arresters that once they have saved you, allow a steady descent if you pull a lever?

I think that abseil rope system is what I need. It is not so much trees and chainsaws where I would have someone on the ground, but I use it a lot for painting and maintenance work on gutters, electrics etc where I may be in one position for some time and it is a bit tedious for someone to stand and watch paint dry. On a few occasions I have extended the boom and one of the legs has moved a fraction and cut out the hydraulics on the microswitch. Usually a phone call and half a wind on the leg jack is all it needs but I have a rope just in case. The rope is not obviously as good as an abseil system hence my question about the best one to buy. I cannot see why having a fall arrester strapped to a stout branch or other anchor point above where I am working is a bad thing. If there is a catastrophic hydraulic/mechanical failure or the ground gives way under a leg or someone drives into it surely it is better to let the basket fall the 17 metres beneath you rather than go with it, even if it does mean you are left dangling, scared but alive!

I have a 17 metre Simon Topper MEWP. Good machine, well built and stable. I do like to fix a line on to whatever I am working on as an additional safeguard in case the machine should malfunction or topple or maybe someone collides with it while I am up there. At the moment I have a rather large and cumbersome fall arrestor. Never had to use it thank goodness but even if it was in action it would leave me alive but suspended 17 metres in the air. Is there a better solution using a line system. I am not a climber and at over 60 a little too old to want to start. I have abseiled for charity and was hoping that one of you could recommend the best system for arresting my fall and then allowing me to lower myself to the ground in the easiest fashion.

I am the other side of the Wash in Lincolnshire We went off to Donington Park on Saturday to watch the Historic Racing and it was freezing drizzle with a biting wind. It was entertaining to watch the old cars struggle a bit and there were several ground loops! Hardly anybody there and felt very sorry for the rain soaked traders who were expecting better. But the Blackthorn was fully in flower in all the hedgerows on the journey.

I'll second that. We had two huge Turkey Oaks on the farm which toppled over in one of the big storms. Too big and heavy to move and in an inaccessible place but the Lucas Mill made short work of them both. I milled a variety of sizes from 1"x 8" to 8"x 8" (now they were bloody heavy!) If you wait for the bigger sizes to settle and then re mill I cannot see why they are not used for many projects. On the farm I use the 3" x 8" on an eight foot wide grain pusher as being both strong enough for the job but also easy on the hardwood grain floor or should I misjudge and hit the wall. The odd plank which did warp too much I used as decking on a veranda of a log cabin which I built in 2000. Although exposed to the elements they are not in contact with the ground and have stood the weather for fifteen years with no sign of decay. I am sure that if you quarter saw and stack correctly you will find some lovely material to use for indoor projects and I have never noticed it smell more than any other wood.

BBrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr It is brass monkey weather here, The white flowers of the Blackthorn are fully out and yet again the old saying "Beware the Blackthorn Winter" comes true. Every year on the dot as far as I can remember. Is there some science behind this?

Local lad came round last night to tell me that the next door neighbour farmer and friend had died on Monday night. This spooked me more than a bit, but let;s hope that is an end to it. Superstitions about rooks ROOK: Should a group of them leave an area where they have settled, then a human connected with that land is about to die. They are an omen of summer weather to come: if they are high up it will be fine, but low down and it will be cold and wet. Adrian Dangar 12:01AM BST 18 May 2002 Comment There is something about a rookery that is quintessentially English: the reassuring return of the colony each February to rebuild bulky nests; the harsh cawing as the birds wheel in the sky, a sound as familiar as lambs bleating in spring; and the siting of so many ancient rookeries near great country houses, as if to confirm the superstition that these birds breed only where there is money. Unlike the murderous carrion crow, which builds a solitary nest and prefers the eyes of live lambs to leatherjackets and earthworms, the rook is a communal and dignified bird. Both are jet black, with an iridescent sheen of purple and blue. The rook, however, is distinguished by a pale grey patch of skin the size of a sovereign at the base of its beak. And, like jackdaws, magpies and jays, both are members of the corvidae family, renowned for intelligence and cunning. The rook's acumen extends to a sophisticated and well-regulated way of life in clusters of up to several hundred nests, the residents of which must conform for the greater good. Occasionally, a wayward or sick individual is condemned to death by a "rook parliament". In this bizarre avian trial, the entire population of the rookery takes to the sky in a cacophony of cawing and frenetic wingbeats that serve as a prelude to battering the victim to death. Rural superstitions acknowledge the rook's uncanny ability to predict disaster and there have been several instances where a human death has been preceded by similar eerie displays. In at least one of these cases, the birds deserted the nests that had served them for generations and never returned. It may be surprising that anyone should want to kill a bird so shrouded in mystique, yet rook shooting during May is one of the countryside's oldest traditions. At this time of year - some even pinpoint May 13 as being the optimum date - young rooks are clambering out on to swaying branches for the first time. Opinions are divided over the necessity for a cull. Some farmers reason that the damage rooks inflict on seedlings is made up for by their destruction of agricultural pests. However, the annual ritual involving 12-bore shotguns or .22-calibre rifles is eagerly anticipated in many parts of the country and hardly dents a population that is difficult to keep in check once the birds are mature. Provided a rookery is visited just once during this brief season, only a fraction of each year's young will be harvested. The unlucky branchies, as young rooks are sometimes labelled, are often collected to form the main ingredient of rook pie, a country dish that has been around for centuries and even merited a mention in Dickens's Pickwick Papers. Some claim that four and 20 blackbirds baking in a pie are not the songbirds that pull worms from your lawn, but that the nursery rhyme refers instead to rook pie, at that time a staple dish of the poor in spring. Some parts of rural Britain still indulge in this dish. The landlord of the Fox and Hounds in Acton Turville in Gloucestershire, Mad Chico, hosts an annual rook pie night. "I make an extremely moreish pie, with sausage meat, sherry, brandy and spices to complement the rook meat," he says. "It's so delicious I have to set some aside for any regulars that cannot make it." Until recently, the Carrington Arms in Ashby Folville, Leicestershire, held a similar evening for the Quorn Hunt's earth-stoppers. The landlord's recipe of bacon, eggs and rook breasts marinated in milk was so popular that each guest took home a slice of pie in a pot to eat cold the next day. Since the demise of the English elm, ash and sycamore are the preferred choice for rookeries. By the end of summer, the trees that have served as home for a few months are abandoned in favour of roosting sites sometimes many miles from the nursery. But flocks of rooks swelled by survivors from the breeding season endure as an irreplaceable feature of the English landscape. Sponsored

I would wear a dust mask and some eye protection as most parts of the tree are poisonous. At best an irritant but some people suffer more than others with rashes and sore eyes. http://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/wood-allergies-and-toxicity/ http://www.getwoodworking.com/forums/postings.asp?th=2378 http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/wis30.pdf

We have had a Rookery here forever and last year it was so big that small groups of Rooks set up three more mini Rookeries nearby. Not one nest this year and not even the remains of last years nests I seem to remember the usual huge gathering of Rooks and Jackdaws last Autumn and even some around earlier and there were a few about on the farm. Not seen any dead ones, there is no shooting here and we have not changed any agricultural practice. Anyone else have a similar tale? Superstition says it is a bad omen so perhaps Nicola Sturgeon will be Prime Minister after all!

I have posted this before about a 100 year old skier and ski racer. Lou Bacari. The interviewer's final comment is memorable. " How can I sit in an armchair and say I am too old to do anything when Lou Bacari is hurtling down a mountain somewhere" [ame] [/ame]

My next Sunday sermon will be on the iniquity of politics. Bless you my son

I am not sure about the smoke and mirrors theory. In the real world Billhook is partial to a bit of Scottish smoked salmon which is half the price of Tescos at Lidl. Lot of Karma proverbs from the bible which are appropriate considering the way they have treated suppliers Alleluia! Bible Verses About What Goes Around Comes Around Bible verses related to What Goes Around Comes Around from the King James Version (KJV) by Relevance - Sort By Book Order Isaiah 3:11 - Woe unto the wicked! [it shall be] ill [with him]: for the reward of his hands shall be given him. Matthew 7:12 - Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets. Galatians 6:7 - Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. Proverbs 26:27 - Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein: and he that rolleth a stone, it will return upon him. Romans 12:19 - Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but [rather] give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance [is] mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Ecclesiastes 1:6-7 - The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits. (Read More...) 1 John 1:8 - If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. John 14:1 - Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 1 John 1:9 - If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us [our] sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Proverbs 22:8 - He that soweth iniquity shall reap vanity: and the rod of his anger shall fail. Hosea 8:7 - For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: it hath no stalk: the bud shall yield no meal: if so be it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up.

I was hoping that one day someone would show me how to do a proper plunge cut!

A vent pipe to an upstairs tank is essential otherwise there will be an explosion!

That incident seemed to be the beginning of a culture of people who were in prominent and highly paid positions, refusing to resign when they have done something wrong. It seems to be a joke now but at the time much damage could have been averted if people had battened the hatches. I remember hearing the woman calling in live saying that her sister was living in Brittany and she was in the middle of a hurricane which seemed to be heading North.

I was thinking that 86" boards meant that it must have been one helluva tree!

I am not sure what to think on the subject based on what happened to the council houses in our own small village. There are six attached houses and the inner two bought their properties when they were given the opportunity first time round The new owners were very pleased and proud of their new homes and suddenly the gardens had a makeover and double glazing went in and they rather stood out against the others. This was at a time when it was hard to start on the housing ladder (when is it ever easy?) As time went on the residents of the other properties seemed to find ways of increasing their benefits. Usual story of limping around town with a zimmerframe but playing football with the kids at home. The motability brand new cars then started to stand out a bit against the tired looking vehicles of the owner occupiers. The latest thing is that the council decided it had too much money at the year end so they opted to re roof all the council houses, which were perfectly good concrete pan tiles which would have lasted another century. The whole lot looks a picture now with four properties with stark new tiles and two without. It must have cost a fortune with full scaffolding and two teams of builders there for ages. But all this is lost somewhere in the massive council tax bill that we have to find each year.

You can please the fools some of the time, but you can't fool the pleasers in the Summertime

That was very simple Gnome. It should appeal to simple people.

But these bastards are not necessarily Conservative voters. A lot of the very rich were backing the last Labour government all brown nosing (or should that be Brown nosing!) Tony Blair who seems to me to be the epitome of disgrace in all departments. He made a fortune, which he is now trying to cover up, on a lot of dodgy deals involving untraceable money movements to off shore far off places. Ambassador to the Far East, there is a joke. And to crown it all he is paid vast sums for telling people it was " The right thing to do" Now he is backing Miliband 100%. As good a reason as any for not voting for Miliband. He has the cheek to say that the British public are not capable of making the right decision in a referendum on Europe. He may be right about that as some wag wrote to one of the papers " Well the British public really cannot be trusted to make the right decision, after all they elected Tony Blair three times in a row!"

If you build a machine like the one in the video, you are still going to have to pick up the split/cut timber and put it in the furnace. Would you not be better investing in a second hand processor like a Palax Combi with a circular saw and conveyor which you could arrange to feed the boiler perhaps with the whole processor mounted on a sliding track. You could open the furnace doors and slide the whole thing forward so the conveyor feeds the oven. I would not bother splitting it, just cut up to 12" diameter 2' 6" foot logs. Then invest in a decent roller table(or build one) to present the five foot logs easily to the processor. Use your mini digger only for loading the roller table and the initial stacking. I find that with my trusty old Palax 600 combi which I bought from Jas Wilson in 1996 for £2500 I can process a large amount of timber in a short time and load it as long as it is presented to the processor constantly. Apart from blade sharpening I have never had a problem with it in nearly 20 years. It was pto but I fitted a 3 phase motor which was really easy as all the pulleys were already there, so now I can use either electric or pto. The electric motor makes it quiet and slightly safer to turn on and off.