adamelder

I've got a Dewalt electric one. Used that plus 54volt 9Ah battery to cut down and log up for the stove a 35-40ish foot sycamore. It took about 45ish mins from start to finish. It ran out of charge with about 5 foot of the butt left.

I just took down this sycamore - about 16 inches at the base, 35-40ish foot tall with the Dewalt battery saw. Got almost all the brash off it and logged about half the thicker branches into 12 inch lengths. I stopped when the battery (54 volt, 9ah) died. I didn't time anything but probably about an hour, with a couple of fags breaks.

I got a Dewalt 16 inch battery saw. I had plenty Dewalt 54 volt batteries anyway and the bare saw unit was only £250. It's fantastic. I normally use Stihl 261, 461, 661. For anything up to about 10-12 inches the Dewalt is the one I pick up first now. I'll get about 45 mins from one 54v 9amp hour battery cutting time.

I had a 2014 Hilux 2.4 until recently. When I got it it had one battery. I installed a winch. I also installed an extra battery and a T-Max charge box to look after the batteries. I just replaced that Hilux (because I wrote off the old one - don't ask) with a 2014 3.0 which has two batteries installed already. Do I connect the winch to the battery at the front or the battery at the rear of the engine bay?

Can anyone advise me on what will tolerate growing in a glade that's surrounded by mature sycamore. The sycamore is TPO and the tree officer isn't keen on me removing any more. Please don't say "more sycamore"! The glade is about 30m circular. Soil is good, free draining, deep. I'd like to plant (reasonably) native hardwoods if possible.

I'll second Ratman. I've had the Granberg for a few years and it keeps chain in very precise nick. All cutters the same length etc. The diamond stones are well worth the extra cost too.

Been using a 661 for milling for about 18 months. No problems at all.

I'm sort of glad to hear that some others are having the same issue. I need to make an adjustment on the backstop when I swing the grinder round to do the other side. If I don't the tooth length would be about 2-3mm longer or shorter. Other than that it's a great bit of kit.

Curses!

Does anyone know if the Stihl spouts fit onto the Husky combi can? I've got the Huski can but as everyone (and now me too) knows the spouts are hopeless.

I appealed the Tree Officer's decision. A few days later I got a call from the Tree Officer (this is the first time I've ever spoken with him. He hadn't returned any of my calls) asking to meet to see if we could find common ground. So we met up, had a chat and I agreed to reduce the number of trees to come out in the first phase of removal from 14 to 9. His feeling is that little and often is the route of least resistance. Everybody's happy. It's just a shame I had to instigate an appeal to get communication going.

drinksloe, Tree Officer wants no thinning or tree removal whatsoever. My woodland has residential neighbours, most of whom are fine but as ever there are one or two. I've got one who is insistent that four of my trees are going to fall on his house and has written to the council demanding their removal - despite two arborist reports stating that they are in no danger of toppling anytime soon. But of course, the same guy complained to the council when I asked for removal of the invasive sycamore. So discreetly removing a couple of trees at a time would be a non-starter and obviously with sizeable fines for breaching a TPO I'm reluctant to take the risk. The rest of the wood is fantastically beautiful and I want to keep it that way hence the desire to contain the sycamore population.

My plan is to wait until the arboriculturist is back from his holiday and see if he can contact the tree officer to find a middle ground between felling the lot and felling nothing. As I mentioned earlier I've got 28 days to lodge an appeal - my guy is back from holiday in 10 days so we've got a bit of time to work out what to do. I've got nothing against sycamores but I do know that planting underneath them is a pretty futile exercise.

My feeling exactly. Unfortunately the Council tree officer isn't in agreement.