Logjam

Used them in wet, cold Wales & have kept my hands dry & warm the last two winters. One pair have lasted me a winter for general work around the farm, operating machinery etc. First pair I wrecked by getting battery acid on them but current pair are still in good nick & worn everyday. Leather can get a bit soggy & slippery so need drying out away from direct heat to avoid leather cracking.

I'm in mid Wales & be happy to help. PM sent.

Interesting range of experiences. We moved into an off grid place a couple of years ago, too far out in the wilds for mains connection to be viable. Have solar panels linked to lead acid battery bank, diesel genny & Victron inverter. No real issues, top up battery fluid once a month & ensure genny has diesel. Generator also needs normal servicing, oil, filter, coolant etc that is easy enough to do myself. System runs everything, dishwasher, washing machine, microwave etc without any serious issues. Genny cuts in auomatically to balance the load if too many appliances switched on at the same time. Occasionally power will drop out if batteries are getting down around 65% & high initial load appliance switched on but genny kicks in & everything powers back up. Have learnt to check battery state in advance & manually power up the genny to avoid cut outs. Generator runs most days at the moment with short daylight hours & cloudy wet weather. During summer can go a week with just solar charging the batteries. We mainly use bottled gas for cooking, oil fired boiler for central heating & hot water. Also have solid fuel range that will run hot water, central heating & cooking but needs feeding with logs regularly to be effective so tend to only use it if we're in all day to keep it fuelled up. Like the fact that we are independent, especially after the recent issues some experienced getting power back on following storms. Looking at viability of installing a wind turbine to reduce generator use in winter.

If you're not already sorted I should be able to help. I'm near Knighton, could travel to you & don't mind weekends to help minimise kit downtime. Will PM with more details.

I've got a pair of Meindl Airstreams UK14/ EU50, no complaints, comfortable & suit my wide feet. If you want to splash out the Airstream Rocks are also available up to EU51.

Clue is in the photo.

Friend of mine just bought one of these, photo on their website doesn't instil much confidence!!

Your not wrong, I now have battery chainsaw & lawn mower as well so hoping the investment will pay off. So far so good, have cut 2 winters worth of logs, mown the lawns & kept paddocks clear of weeds with no petrol.

I've got a couple of the Bli200 batteries, generally use the economy power setting which is fine for nettles & bracken etc. & probably lasts +/- 1.5hr. Thick patches of tall grass make it work harder which might bring it down to 40-50mins with full power. Even so gives enough time to charge the spare battery providing you have a power source. Nothing in the manual about power of motor either. My (very) old 2t Stihl was 31cc & I'd say it's a match for power, probably not as robust so doubt it would take the abuse the old machine suffered or even still be running after 30+years. These days I appreciate that it's a lot less tiring to use & vibration is a fraction of an ICE machine, with the motor at the head there's no drive shaft so much lighter & no torsion when you squeeze the trigger.

I've got the previous incarnation 536LiRX & would use it in preference to a petrol machine any day. Keeps down weeds around the paddocks, mainly with the metal blade, deals with nettles, bracken, brambles etc just as well as my old noisy smelly 2t. Obviously not got the power of a larger petrol machine but benefits of low vibration, noise, fumes & running costs are a big plus for me. All depends what you want it for.

Still available but they have similar harness inside to pass the relevant impact test. JSP in UK make them for the export market.

Remember reading somewhere that CE test was only with the new type Zig Zags but Petzl conducted their own in house tests & Chicane proved compatible with older single attachment hole ZZ. Maybe somebody can post a link, can't remember where I saw it. So the original ZZ is only CE certified for DDRT - but it does work with the Chicane. Update - just realised it was Barry on here Okay we have an answer - They have confirmed that the outgoing ZIGZAG (ie D22A) is compatible with the CHICANE as well as both new 2019 ZIGZAGs. They have said that the configuration is not certified by a notified body (ie they didn't send it off to be certified along with the new products but that they have put the D22A through all the same in house testing with a CHICANE as they have with the new ZIGZAGs and are happy that it passed all the testing.

If you're concerned about chinstrap type for ground or aerial work the new Petzl helmets have dual purpose chinstraps. The DUAL chinstrap allows the worker to adjust chinstrap strength in order to adapt the helmet to different environments: work at height (EN 12492) or on the ground (EN 397). The clip has two positions, corresponding to the following two uses: - higher strength to limit the risk of the helmet coming off in a fall (strength greater than 50 daN) - lower strength to limit the risk of strangulation, by releasing if snagged when user is at ground level (strength lower than 25 daN)

Hadn't noticed any flex, because the OK makes a rigid connection to the Chicane it seems to keep everything in place. Like you say very easy to swap back to DRT if you want.

Had same when I bought mine, Rupe is not the only one. Already had Petzl OK biners so just got the Chicane, shape of the OK karabiners has indeed changed. Got the new shape, bit of a snug fit but keeps it nicely aligned. Also using it with the original single hole ZZ & works fine. Like the consistency & smooth control, don't need to fiddle about fine tuning hitch cord, it just works out the box, once you have the correct biners.

Depends which standards the helmet has been tested to. Forestry helmets are normally EN397 for overhead impacts, many of the industrial climbing style helmets have EN 397 and EN 12492 standards for overhead & side impacts. From Satra website https://www.satra.com/ppe/EN12492.php "The test in EN 12492 is essentially the same as that specified in EN 397, where a 3kg conical striker is dropped onto the helmet from a height of 1 metre, and any contact between the helmet and headform (although in EN 12492 the headform is in the form of a standard test block) noted. Penetration tests on mountaineering helmets can be carried out on any point around the shell of the helmet however, unlike EN 397, where they are restricted to an area at the crown of the head." Just remember that vented helmets are probably not rated for overhead molten metal or electrical hazards.

I've got a Husqvarna but if you already use cordless tools getting one that will run on the same batteries is the most economical way to go. No smelly petrol, lightweight, low noise & vibration, no pull start, just squeeze the trigger. What's not to like?

Not much has changed, Husqvarna sponsor the NPTC workbooks & their Working with Chainsaws series provides a good guide as to what is required.

Arbortec Lightning, wife has a pair of size 3, smallest c/saw boot I've seen; good price for size 4 at Abbey Garden at the moment. https://www.abbeypro.co.uk/chainsaw-boots/arbortec-chainsaw-boots/showitem-FT-28500NEW.aspx

b) The MS 661 C-M Good luck everyone.

Same on my relatively new ZZ, seen it on plenty of others too. Happens where first link touches if completely compressed such as threading onto rope or pulling through slack. Not seen it progress beyond surface marks, usually get more side plate wear below the pulley where the rope feeds in.

PM sent.

Company fined after eighty-foot tree falls onto cars

Simple answer - AFAIA there isn't one.

Ditto Since problems with rising oil levels part of the manufacturer 'solution' was to provide modified dipsticks. There is now a X (not visible in the photo) at the two indentations, this identifies the highest level, at which point oil should be changed. Wouldn't recommend running it for too long after part draining as oil will become progressively more diluted. I get oil change kit delivered for £50, correct spec with filter & drain plug. Easy job to change & significant saving over dealer rates. Ours required three oil changes in the last 12 months.