keptenjim

My MS661C-M makes me smile. I don't use it that often but when I do, it starts on second or third pull when cold and first pull warm.... and it eats big tree trunks!

i am starting to get lots of firewood which i am splitting and stacking on pallets in my yard. I want to waterproof this wood but am struggling to do more than putting a tarp over it which isn't much use longterm. Does anyone shrink wrap their firewood on pallets, can this be done?? Any other ideas, though i should say i am not able to put a barn/store in due to planning restrictions? Thanks.

Tarp works well. These are my temporary wood piles - well, they were going to be temporary when I stacked them a year ago.. The wood stays beautifully dry under the tarpaulin so I'll just leave it as is until I need it next winter

What is the best plant or combination of plants to use for a hedge? Ideally it will be a relatively fast growing plant kept at about 9' high eventually. Since its going to be a long hedge, cost is also a factor

Can anyone ID this tree? It self-seeded amongst our Rhododendrons

Where can one get creosote?

One news report says the pilot was pulled out of the wreckage alive - hard to believe

If there are no branches below 6 foot,I recommend you coppice next March /April and start again.It should grow 3-4 foot in the first year.

1' stump the lot and start over, the thing loves a beasting and always grows back

Thanks guys - that's it then - it gets stumped next April

Can someone advise please? We have a line of laurel that was originally planted as a hedge, way back. Problem is - it was never trimmed so now we have a line of laurel trees with trunks about 4 - 5 inches thick that grow to about 6 - 8 feet before branching out. I would like to try make a hedge out of them so plan to cut them all to about 6 feet high hoping that they will start sprouting branches lower down. Would they actually survive such a radical cutback? If so, what is the best time to do this? Would it be OK to do it now?

Far to valuable to use as a mulch. I compost in tonne bags and after 2 years becomes an excellent soil improver.

I was under the impression that the arborists with chippers ended up with tons of wood chip that they couldn't give away!

What's wood chip like as a mulch? I've always used bark chip to put down around my shrubs and fruit trees but my supplier is no longer trading. Bark chip from other suppliers is horrendously expensive

Had a series 2 with a 2.2 lt diesel engine when I was living in Zimbabwe. It had a retro-fitted Kenlowe fan, an oil cooler - which it needed in the hot temperatures of the Zambezi Valley - and a timing gear conversion, replacing the chain. Fantastic in the bush where it would take on any terrain, but soul destroying getting to where you wanted to get on open roads where it would rarely do more than 40 - 50mph laden down

What exactly defines a 'homeowner's' saw, a 'semi-pro' saw and a 'pro saw?

I found the bigger leylandii a bugger to get out ,Took a row out a few years ago using a manitou telehandler and it took a fair bit of rocking back and forth before it was fit to lift them out. I had left the stump/cut about 6ft high to get decent leverage.

Is it possible to get a machine/tractor/digger to them?

I can probably get a digger to them. I'm away from home at the moment but I think some of the trees are bigger than I originally thought - up to 18" in diameter. Might have to grind the bigger ones and lever out the smaller ones

I have about 20 Leylandii trees to remove in my garden - average about 12" diameter trunks.

Is there an optimum length to leave the stumps? That is, do you cut the trees down as close to the ground as possible or leave an optimum amount of stump above ground? I will want to remove the stumps eventually but don't know if it's best to let the roots rot in the ground before removing them or to grind them out

Looks good Stan - just a bit out of my price range though. I'm looking for something in the region of £1000 - £1200

HI JIM thats cheap ive just had price on a new HILUX £1600/1700 for a toyota one thanks jon

Hi Jon - I think that's for the one with the sliding windows. The Toyota one with opening doors on the sides goes for £2500

I've just bought a Hilux Invincible and now looking for a suitable hardtop for it. Avoiding the Toyota supplied hardtops which are ridiculously priced, I came across this which is more or less what I was looking for:

HardtopsUK :: Toyota Hilux SJS Side Opening Hard top Double Cab

Anyone tried their products? Or any suggestions for other companies??

Thanks for the Aviva suggestion - they've offered me a good deal

Is there anyone on this forum who owns a pick-up truck and insures it - fully comp - on a private policy? I'm looking into buying a new Hilux but can't seem to find an insurer. Tried numerous companies that either said they don't insure that type of vehicle or just didn't bother to get back to me. It seems the hang up is insuring a commercial vehicle when it's not going to be used for commercial work

Being M-Tronic it should retune itself shouldn't it ? The system is supposed to take octane, altitude and temperature etc. and adjust accordingly. When you empty and run on Aspen to store them does it run or struggle ?

I haven't actually used it for work - just ran it on Aspen for a while to replace the petrol in the carb in preparation for standing on the shelf. I did get the impression that it wasn't idling as well. Also, I thought M-tronic just took care of density and altitude - didn't know it took care of fuel as well. I'll give it a good workout on Aspen when I get home and report back

Presently I use petrol/oil mix for my 2-stroke machines and if I plan not to use the machines for a while, I empty them of petrol, half fill the tanks with Aspen and run them for a while on Aspen. Question is, if I want to change to Aspen full time, my MS661C-M will probably need to have it's tuning tweaked. Being m-tronic, is there any way of retuning it other than taking it into the dealers? (And also other than buying expensive computer equipment to retune it)

When I first started using a chainsaw - in 2000 - I used to cut up fallen trees wearing T-shirt, shorts and flip-flops. I never did cut myself nevertheless, I shudder at the thought.

When is the Windows Phone app coming out?

We had to contract someone to carry out a major grey squirrel cull at our place a couple of years ago. They stripped 3 of our beautiful oaks of bark in the upper strata. Couldn't believe the damage these little mites can cause.

Thanks for the feedback - it's now habitat!!!