flatyre

A customer of mine asked me to have a look at some conifers at the back of her house. some cowboy charged her £800 to lop the top two metres off a row of eight small trees that were only about five metres high to start with. He left the last three as they were behind the shed. I'm happy to finish the job but the shed has an asbestos roof. I wouldn't be standing on it anyway but was wondering if any precautions are needed?

looking for a cheap concrete saw and was considering a parts or repair job from ebay, does anyone have one or have experience of working on them? I've rebuilt a number of chainsaws so have enough mechanical experience but is it easy to get parts for them? thanks

I welded up shelving and lockable doors to keep my saws etc in which i'll do with the new van, its not fool proof but gives another layer of defence.

was at my local timber yard the other day as much for a chin wag as the timber for shuttering founds I needed. Its a small yard but has been growing steadily over the years I've been supporting it. Anyway Craig the owner had a few big chunks of ash on an Alaskan mill which caught my attention as he didn't do any milling last time I was in, so we got talking and he asked me to help run it for a day now and again, he currently has an 880 single power head but is buying a second 880 and a double bar for us to use, I've never used a mill before and was just wondering if there are any trade secrets to help do a better job, or do you just keep your finger on the trigger and push?

very true, I've learned to be a more considerate driver now my attitude towards fellow motorists may damage my wallet! Good practice for when I get graphics, I would certainly get annoyed if someone phoned me to say my staff were napping up some back road as I don't like being woken:laugh1: But yes there are negative points to having your name and number on the van but hopefully the good points will out weigh the bad.

thanks for the advice guys, been studying other van graphics and see a lot of vans out there with big logo and minimal information which looks clean but vague. On the other hand I personal think listing your skills does help spell it out for would be customers, but can make the van look cluttered. We work in the industry so when we see van graphics, business cards, flyers etc, saying "tree services" or "landscaping" we know what that covers, but is it too vague for joe public? I'm thinking of keeping it to a logo, business name, and "landscaping & tree services", then mobile and land line, web address and facebook logo. That gives younger IT literate customers what they need to find out more about the business, phone numbers (mobile and landline) for neighbours, passing traffic etc, and an advert in the local papers for the older generation? bluebedouin, thanks for the work on the logo, i'll get onto inkscape later and see how it looks on the van.

Basically I'm tired of seeing landscapers and tree surgeons working in my own village doing jobs that i'm capable off. I've no problem with people working in my area, but most people in the village don't even know that's what I do. I just finished my first big landscaping job working for myself, and am going to use the profits to buy a newer van. I currently have a 2002 mwb transit 2.4 with 226,000 on the clock. Had her for almost two years and has she's helped get my business off the ground. She's still in good shape for her age, with no major problems but all the little issues are starting to add up, time to let her go. I don't need that much space but I do like the bigger engine for towing (but not the mpg). Does anyone run a smaller van like a 1.9 traffic or swb 2.0 transit and are they adequate for towing a 8x4 tipping trailer and micro digger? also I will be putting graphics on it so people actually know what I do, but should I have the logo and "landscaping & tree services" or just "landscaping" I offer both as I've been in the landscaping business as an employee for many years so that my bread and butter work as its where most of my skill are, but enjoy doing tree work and have access to highly qualified experienced tree surgeons who I can sub in on bigger jobs. Does putting "landscaping & tree services" together sound a bit too jack of all trades? thanks

bought this old girl for £5, no plug and corrosion on the top of the seized piston. Don't expect it to ever run again just bought it for a nosey. I had to thump the piston with a hammer and wooden peg for ten minutes to get it free of the barrel. The bore looks great and so did the piston but the skirt got damaged in the process. it looks complete and the chain though rusty on a few links is like new. Is it difficult to get parts for such an old saw and if so should I just chuck it now that I've had a nosey or put it in the shed and hope the parts turn up? might just paint it up and mount it on the fire mantle, that'll piss the missus off:thumbup:

not sure about wooden gates but old gates made from metal were in style at least unique to the blacksmith in the area. if you wanted to be really fussy you could look at old photos from your area and see if there was a specific design used in that area?

thanks folks i'll drop it round to him and see if he can make use of it

back when I was studying graphics design dreamweaver was the industry standard, is it out of date now and if not anyone know where I can get a free download?

fairly good with computer design software, did a Btec and Foundation degree in multimedia design but that was many years ago. Don't need anything fancy just smart enough?

I have just told yell where to stick the website and listing they provided so am looking into creating a simple site for my business, can't afford to have one created so am looking at Wix etc. Can anyone recommend a free website provider?

Don't do any carving myself but a mate has just taken it up and asked me to keep an eye out for any decent chunks for carving. I have some interesting weeping ash unions that I was going to give him, would they be of any use? thanks

Reason is i'm an amateur not a professional. I have recently started up my own landscaping business as that is what I've done for almost twenty years. Started cutting hedges for customers and before I knew it people were asking me to trim and top conifer hedges, next thing i'm being asked to fell trees. Now I know the limits of my current skills so stick to small work, for bigger jobs I sub in fully qualified tree surgeons, some are on the forum. It does eat into the profits but some day when I have a few spare ££££ I will get the relevant certificates. In the meanwhile I try to learn as much through working with pros as possible. But given the confusion amongst fellow members who are trained and certified, you'll have to forgive an amateur like me. Anyone know any good up to date books on basic tree work?

Thanks guys, wasn't taught it, what threw me was the guy who did it didn't need to as there was very little lean on the tree he was felling, and he didn't do a very good job of explaining when and why to use it. My work involves mainly topping or felling conifers which are maybe fifteen to twenty years old at most, so not big enough for bore cuts etc. But its good to know the reasons behind it. thanks again.

double sided hedge cutters allow you to cut twice as much as your cutting on the up and down stroke, there isn't much difference in the price of new blades either.

can't comment on the hs45 but be aware a Stihl badge (or any other big name brand) does not guarantee quality.

Rover are all alloy bodies, easy to get spares and work on, echo do some good hedge cutters too!

its amazing how we create all sorts of products that kill off nature by accident but cant find something to kill of invasive fungus and beetles!

can't beat Rover lawnmowers in my opinion and plenty of second hand ones about, I have a tanaka tbc 230 long reach hedge cutter and a tanaka tbc230 multi tool, both great machines and the heavy duty heads outlast most of the competition. Personally I wouldn't bother buying a short reach hedge cutter as I find it easier to get an even finish with the longer arc of a long reach cutter, plus a long reach will do everything a short reach can but not vice versa.

So its good practice from a safety point of view to use a back strap cut even if the tree is destined for fire wood. lesson learned. thanks folks

glad to hear that, one less risk, don't understand the physics though. Do the fibres have time to stretch in a standard cut creating more risk of a linear split whereas a back strap cut shock loads the fibres causing them to split across the grain rather than with them?

excuse the title, i'm not rubbishing the cut, I have never used it but recently watched a guy use it and was left wondering why. I'm thinking of giving it a go on the next job which has a selection of straight fells and leaners. But I've just sat through a number of youtube videos of the back strap cut and couldn't see any reason to use it over a standard back cut. If you have cleared you work area and taken up a safe cutting position you should be just as safe? If a tree is going to barbour chair what benefit does the back strap cut offer?

you've been more than fair buddy, I take the side casing off every couple of jobs to give it a clean, no sign of brake band problems. If it lets go i'll get a new one, small price for a great saw!