cornish wood burner

I would have thought stick welding would have suited you especially for repairs. However the 1 to 2 mm is as Alec says pushing the boundaries for stick. It would be a while before you could reliably weld that sort of thickness. Do you need to weld 1 mm or can you rivet/ bolt it to a heavier frame if not go with what Alec says. Welding 2 mm is a piece of cake so if that is you limit then stick. Wellington welding Plymouth do a reasonable ESAB 180 inverter which is good value. They would also sort you out with some MIG gear but it will be more expensive and bulkier.

Hourly rates with unpaid lunch seems to me to be the fairest. Almost all the trades we employ work that way. Their rate is expected to be several times higher to cover overheads such as equipment and holidays etc. Harsh words would be said if they finished at 2 o'clock and charged for a full day, but it also gives them the option of working that extra hour to finish the job. We have just put some engineering jobs out for quotes and it's basically few companies charging OTT with the rest in a race to the bottom. Going what I have read on here in the past that seem to be the case in tree surgery. Possibly a rethink on pricing is needed?

In an ideal world you need airflow and temperature. As Beau says Polytunnels work very well in summer and reasonable in winter. We have a few logs stored in a Polytunnel and they soon went from saturated to very dry. We find that without ventilation our glasshouses and tunnels would heat up unbearably in summer and comfortably warm in winter. To maintain some of this free solar energy the ventilation is lower in winter than summer. We still need to vent some moisture laden air in winter, but limit it otherwise the temperature would drop too low in unheated tunnels, or we would need to pump in a huge amount of heat where we have that facility to maintain temperatures.

Best to check blower belt tension and wear. Blowers take more power than you would think. Is the chipper running at the correct rpm?

Hi Northernarb No it didn't sound too condescending. I studied engineering, and earn my living as an engineer, so I have a little knowledge of metallurgy and chemistry. I standby my original statement that bluing offers minimal corrosion resistance, only a couple of micron thick so hardly a game changer. It does as you say slightly protect against scratching. Its a relatively cheap, easy process and adds a pleasing finish to the chain. No one wants to shell out their hard earned money on a tatty product and bluing does take your chain into the Stihl and Oregon category on looks. I guess we just have to differ on its other benefits. Far more important would be the composition of the steel, heat treatment and chrome plating. I'm sure you will agree a good quality chain will be more reliable and stay sharp for longer than one made from inferior materials. Rather than a dubious race perhaps a measure of longevity might be interesting.

Exactly. Chain oil seems to stop mine rusting. Even though my use is intermittent never had any problems. Also bluing is not really very good at corrosion prevention. It's more a cosmetic thing.

Prestreched I can understand but is the blued steel any real advantage? I thought it just gave a minimal protection against rust as in gun barrel bluing. Or is it some other process by the same name?

Looks very much like wood wasp grubs

Very likely I would say. My Chinese multi tool came via Germany. However just because it's Chinese doesn't necessarily mean it's going to fall apart after a day's work.

You obviously didn't put it on something to over bend it as Stubby says. If you have the luxury of a press you can regulate the " over bend" by increasing the spacer thickness. Spacers and hammer over a protective piece of hardwood. Shot filled or rubber hammer might also work if they are heavy enough.

Remember a small stove has a small firebox so will need small logs.

Handy straps Plymouth will take some beating for price.

Normally just reversing two links and possibly a supply connection. What needs to happen is to reverse the supply to either the start or run winding, not both. Considering the motors history, I would take it to the guy who wired it for you.

Sounds like the connections were reversed on one of the windings.

Yes that's right. The start capacitor is in series with the start winding and it gives it a direction. When the motor reaches a certain speed say 70% of full rom normally a centrifugal switch cuts it out of the circuit. I have seen this done with a timer but either way it helps the starting torque while its in the circuit but if it is not switched out then it will fail. Run capacitors if you have one are different animals.

If you lose a bit of flux from the arc end of the rod it can stick. If this happens scratch it on a waste piece of earthed steel to start the arc and restore the shape. Can't quite see what welder you have but a good quality unit often runs at a slightly higher voltage which helps starting.

Could be air entering the fuel system. I would do a filter change, clean any gauze strainers and check the tank pickup if possible. Run a spanner over all pipe connections in case one is loose. Had a similar problem on a customers lorry once. Turned out to be a cracked olive. Sorry thought it was diesel. Disregard

We have had a mk1 for a couple of years. It's not had the use that most have but its still in perfect condition.

The cells certainly won't like the elevated temperature of a van in hot sun. It does seem a very quick discharge though. I would try keeping the meter at 20 deg to prove the point.

After you have checked the solenoid and starter individually as SMGs info, assuming they both appear to work, then clip the positive jump lead on the solenoid main input terminal and then run a feed to the its small activating terminal. Test this a few times to ensure it does not reweld the contacts if it works. Also it should throw the pinion hard against its stop at a fair speed. After that wire in a test bulb to the small solenoid wire on the tractor to prove the ignition switch/ wiring (and relay contacts if there is one) are not short circuited. I would suggest checking the wiring even if you find the solenoid faulty as one could cook the other.

Do this, then this. Only try a starter for 10 to 20 seconds absolute MAXIMUM then let the system cool. The system is not designed for prolonged use and if this is disregarded you risk damage.

Fairly sure D009 fits our 365 - large mount. K095 bar fits both my Chinese saw and my 450 husky. Worth comparing before you buy though

My money would be on a husky small mount fitting.

If it makes you feel any better it's good engineering practice to replace gears that run together rather than individually. Crown wheel and pinion in a diff would come as a set for example. Presumably Stihl are only following this good practice.

Totally agree