TTS North

I have a 5 cubic metre area in the workshop which lends itself very well to being insulated and sealed off. Assuming I can get the temperature right up - what would be the quickest way to dry logs in there - condensing dehumidifier or venting? I have access to both. Reading older threads on the topic I know there are some pretty knowledgeable people on here, so hoping someone can point me in the right direction. Thanks, TTS.

If you're small scale it has occurred to me you could use something like this on a raised platform affair to have the cut logs roll down onto the splitter? it would need to be properly made - wouldn't like have a go at safely combining them myself.

20 a pair? That's good. Ill take a couple if you have any left. PM me

I'll just wait a few years and buy you instead! You sound like you're nearly there ! All you need is a grapple!

48. Once I had the body and physical prowess of an 18 year old - now two years and multiple ligament, nerve etc etc etc things later it's more like an 80 year old. I spend my life eyeing up kit that does the lifting pulling and moving for me requiring nothing more than pushing a button. If I win the lottery tonight - sod the round the world cruise - I'm buying a 40 ton feller-buncher and I'm going to use it on every tiny domestic job I can. If I can drive up your street it's going to get used - "Yes madam, I've just the thing to get that 6 foot conifer out!"

At my age, Stubby - the idea has never sounded more appealing! One with a winch to help drag brash out would be good.

Has anyone bought any gear off these guys? Jansen Note it's Jansen, not Jensen! Opinions on reliability? Quality? Spares? Aftersales? They do seem a bit more engineering than Chinese import and distribution oriented. Looking at their tracked barrows.

Good ideas - got the grey matter working. Thanks.

So you're in a forest. You've an unlimited supply of cut wood which you need to dry out for firewood. You've also got an unlimited supply of dried out brash and other waste wood fuel lying around. What would you build to use the heat from the burnt waste stuff to dry the good stuff? You can only use what equipment and materials you can find lying around (rocks are the only thing I suppose you'd already find there) or can scavenge for free elsewhere and can carry into the forest by hand.

These seem to be more or less the same size? Chainsaw Accessories

Picked one up today - nice and smooth - that disc looks awfully small compared to the teeth on one of our 3/8 chains, and the 325 as well for that matter. It looks like it would do the 3/8 picco and 1/4 okay though.

£169 for hydraulic log splitter. Worth buying one as a spare at that price. There goes the mobile log splitting service!

Never used a ZZ but love the lockjack. It's real boon being able to change it mid rope rather than having to thread a rope all the way through. Easy to take off for cleaning and storage. In practice - when it's bearing your weight it takes a hell of a lot of pressure to move that lever - what you are doing in effect is levering up your whole weight to straighten the cam so it doesn't bite into the rope. Even if it did get knocked and slip suddenly, it locks up again the instant your weight is back on it. For that to happen you'd have to be actively pushing the lever hard upwards against something in which case your weight would be off it anyway. 'Lock' jack is probably a misleading title because it doesn't permanently 'lock' so there's nothing to suddenly come permanently 'unlocked'. In use it's constantly automatically changing from biting to non-biting and you're not even aware of it. I've talked to one chap who was under the impression it could be inadvertently 'knocked' into a permanently non-biting freefall state. Can't see how that could happen - just make sure you use the proper carabiner with it. I've knocked it or had it jam against branches loads and it's never slipped. You can also rig it a foot or so up the line away from you at the end of a prussic and pull hand over hand beneath it to ascend (hard to describe) so it self tends as soon as you start climbing. With a bit of practice you can get very fine and smooth control.

I use a converted twin motor bike trailer - no grab, and you need a trailer to get it there, but only cost me £60. Can get half a dozen logs on it depending on the size and it can fit into places you wouldn't believe with an ATV.

Can't check mine as it's not here but on another chipper I had you could knock two inches off the width by turning the wheels around?

Back to bare metal, clean with acetone, etch primer then coach enamel. Always worked on my MGBs.

Too bad it doesn't like the naturally seeded sitka - I'm sick of weeding the little buggers out.

There was a thread a few weeks ago - someone noticed a lot of the spruce in Northumberland/Borders are developing a browny tinge and dropping needles. A few people suggested it was the bark beetle - but this is a region wide phenomenon and is in places where the bark beetle has not been found. A few of the more mature trees have been hit quite hard - most just look a bit sickly. The younger ones are fine. Even the mature ones do recover as new spring growth is unaffected. That's monoculture for you. This is the consensus about what is more likely behind it. Teagasc - Forestry - Green Spruce Aphid On the plus side, fewer old needles to make you to bleed when felling. We've had a few very mild winters - need a proper freeze up this year.

Thanks for the offer, Tom. We arrived at the 150 after some consideration. These are overdue first thinnings on selected trees in a 5Ha stand - 1.6m wide access to 500m in is the best we've got and some of it pretty steep. The ATV is the biggest bit of kit we can get in and even that's a squeeze. No access rides at all and none likely to be cut either. Small is the key requirement here, and some long winching. The trees are so dense we've had to spike the first few just to make some initial space. The volume of brash coming down off each one is huge and it has to be chipped the second it comes down otherwise there's no room to move at all. A 150 fits the bill perfectly. Crazy place. See you're not too far. Bear you in mind should any of it be cleared on larger scale or the decision made to cut access roads and we need to move a lot of product out quickly. Cheers, TTS.

Thanks, AKRO looks the closest.

Looking to hire a tracked chipper for a weekend to use in the forest. TW 150 or similar. Have our chipper tickets and don't need an operator. Has to be tracked - towable is no good. Any suggestions as to a supplier in that area? Thanks.

Very good - you carving guys impress the hell out of me.

Should make this thread a sticky. It's a struggle to juggle -so this summer I'm not even bothering. Childcare is an issue for us, there are a lot of days over the six weeks when I can't work unless I want to work weekends, which I don't. Frustrating, but on the plus side I get to spend more time with the kids and potter about at home or up at the unit with them doing odd jobs. Try to get a list of jobs ready that kids don't cause problems with - like wood splitting or decorating. BTW like your work on your face book site - perhaps I should resurrect my woodworking skills from school - that's something I could do at home. Unfortunately, I have precious little talent to start from.

It been around 30 years see Dendroctonus micans service (Forest Research) or do a search on line. They've released a crafty beetle to keep on top of it which now has its own breeding population.

You want to try dealing with sepa.