J&M

Apologies for massive delay, based in north wales near Bala.

Thanks to all for continuing with contributions of thoughts and good advice. I believe the folk I have available to me are just what people are looking for (the fact that they are mostly slightly older responsible people capable of lasting an hour or two between glances at their phones is definitely looking like a plus point. . .) I'm going to try for making my people and gear available as an 'arborist support team' - watch this space

https://www.kellfri.co.uk/forestry-trailer-2-7-tonnes-with-crane-and-pump

Thank you all for helpful contributions so far. Happily, it sounds like the people I have who want the work, and can be flexible and deploy at short notice, are just the right sort of people . Most of the folk I work with are responsible professionals in other industries anyway who do this as a top up (weekdays or weekends make no odds). So now I seek input on financial viability. If I sent one person with a couple of saws (standard is an 18" and a 24" bar), all of the appropriate PPE, fuel, manual handling aids etc and qualified for saws, chipper and first aid only (no rescue) I would need to charge about £120 for the day. Some variability there for length of working day and proximity to home. Thoughts?

That is particularly useful, thank you. Two of the people I work with share my interest in climbing/winter mountaineering as a hobby. Is there any real relationship between the equipment and techniques that we are familiar with and those used by arborists? I would not be surprised to find that it would be more a case of unlearning bad habits rather than being in any way helpful. . .

I know little of the working methods of Arborists and am seeking some insight into the skills, equipment and qualifications an arborist looks for in their ground workers? I ask because I often see adverts looking for short term groundies for certain jobs and I am wondering whether I can diversify my small-scale forestry business into meeting this need. I have a few part timers who would be glad of the extra work; guys who are skilled with a saw and have first aid, saw and sometimes chipper qualifications - but like me no experience with tree-surgery or that type of work. Are aerial rescue skills and qualifications necessary? I have even gone as far as wondering if there would be interest from smaller arborist concerns in a sort of sub-contract 'arborist support package'. Something like a couple of guys with the equipment to handle and process timber quickly and efficiently, either as it comes down or coming in to clear up afterwards. Small tractor, timber trailer, bulk trailers for chip etc. I think that's something that could be offered quite cheaply. Any contributions are gratefully received!

Quite possibly so, if I catch your meaning correctly. But my thinking was that, as I have never seen a reversible articulated tractor in the smaller size ranges then going articulated means cutting with the mower behind you. The effect of this (which can obviously be allowed for - so its not that big of a deal) is that when turning the mower initialy swings to the inside of the turn, causing it to describe an s-shape rather than a smooth arc as with conventional front steering. Still, probably a lot of words for something that just won't matter that much in reality

No worries. The trailer works well with those tyres, its much easier to get the larger diameter tyres over obstacles than little quad tyres and the contact patch is about the same size. This job required a fair bit of winch work as that particular site was a struggle for this little machine. I was just doing some clearing up before planting, the site had been clear felled using heavy machinery about 18months beforehand. The massive wheel tracks represented a rollover risk if approached carelessly but the main issue was the brash mat. A 16ton forwarder's 'brash mat' is an obstacle on these little wheels, as you are perpetually trying to climb 2-4" wet logs and if you happen to hit a couple at wheelbase spacing with the trailer loaded you've had it. On the other hand, the benefit of small equipment is that even the most serious failure to proceed can be resolved with the winch on the land rover or even by hand, rather than being a significant issue. This trailer has its own powerpack (small petrol engine). I went this way because I can use it behind any machine. If I'm doing a couple of windblown trees in an open field or something like that I can just put it directly behind the land rover and I think it could probably be handled by a larger quad (or even a smallish one on easy ground). If you where wondering, I'm confident the tractor hydraulics would drive a crane at good speed if required.

The articulated version does turn a little tighter and the nature of the rear wheels following the front makes manoeuvring through tight standing timber impressively easy. I don't know of any reversible articulated tractors? AGT certainly don't offer one in this size range. I suspect that if you are doing grass-cutting were finish matters an articulated tractor could become quite vexing, the rear swing on turning can easily result in little missed bits which need to be gone back over. (The mower swings to the 'wrong' side in the first part of the turn)

Articulated. I would actually have preferred the front steer version of the same tractor but this one came up second hand, low hours at a price I was willing to pay. (They are a fair bit cheaper than front steer new as well) Makes a good job of handling that trailer even well laden with high density timbers and it is undeniably agile but compared to the front steer equivalent the effect of steering on stability must be allowed for and reversing the trailer can be a slightly odd experience. Problems specific to AGT are that the articulated tractor only has a difflock on the front axle, I have already found myself wishing for a rear axle locker a couple of times, and has a much lower top speed. Happy with it though.

Finally got mine and put it to use

I run a Kellfri SV27 forwarding trailer (their smallest). I bought it because it was the only thing out there that fit the bill that I could afford. Objectivly, the build quality is not great. I was particularly unimpressed with all of the hydraulic fittings having PTFE tape on them and the whole chassis flexes badly with even moderate loads on the crane - it will crack one day. However - it was, relatively speaking, cheap. As far as value for money goes I certainly do not feel cheated. It works well and hasn't let me down yet. If it was any better made I wouldn't have been able to have it at all.

If it helps as a starting point for finding a figure, I felt like I got a good deal paying £13500 (+VAT) for an AGT 835 Forestry with uniforest 35M and Zanon 1.2m flail. just under 70 hours on the clock.

Had a nearly new L200 double cab as a rental a few months ago. It had a lot more go and was much more economical than my beloved 110 (Td5) on the road. It is also much bigger, more up here with a 130. It seemed like a reasonable option for on road towing etc. Forced every log I could fit into the back and I didn't really notice it was there. However, if you ever venture into the rough stuff, probably not for you. The lowest point at the front of the car was an oil cooler (engine or transmission, didn't bother checking) protected only by a ridiculously flimsy bit of tin. One rock or stump and that's game over. Angles and ground clearance fairly poor and low range not all that low. Selectable 2X4 also creates problems when you want low speed control on good surfaces, normally if you want low range you have to be in 4x4 and where grip is good it then winds up the transmission and manoeuvres like a pig.

Stihl here. Depends what flavour of forestry. I am often just making safe windblow or dropping a few 'scarier' trees for a small woods owner. Whenever I can I'll just use my 261C-M, 18" sugi bar for added lightness and with standard .325 chain - but no, its not fast. If speed counts I'll use the 441.

I've just got myself one of those! All brought and paid for but no pictures 'cos I haven't actually got it yet Pretty much exactly the same setup but various aspects of my work make a cab necessary so I went for the forestry version, complete with uniforest 35 winch. I was shopping for the front steered TS, mainly for the more viable road speeds, but the one I ended up getting came up second hand at a decent price, can't wait to see how she performs.

28 raw throbbing horsepower from the 1500cc, 4pot diesel Top speed of about 14mph. The AGT 835 that is replacing it gets 37hp from a slightly bigger engine and doesn't go any faster. Bit better on a side slope though. Guess it depends what you expect from a small tractor. Suited my purposes admirably, with plenty of gears to choose from and a proper difflock, hauling capacity was generally limited only by traction and they are very manoeuvrable even without resorting to the brakes - good ground clearance and lift capacity for a small machine too. Excellent in the woods but no, they are definitely not a road haulage machine. Mind you, if it isn't capable of surprising you every now and again you are probably used to bigger machinery or have a genuine problem on your hands?

I admire the big'un, that is very smart but sometimes it seems everybody wishes they had a 35. I do have a 65 which is, er, better than it looks. Don't have all that much of a use for it to be honest but its my biggest tractor and only loader so when I do need it, nothing else will do. . . Not my mini, by the way

Other end of the size spectrum The Leyland 154 has worked hard for us, it could and did tow that trailer fully laden on some heavy ground. Now put to one side awaiting a much deserved overhaul but it still gets wheeled out as a supporting machine on jobs that warrant a second tractor, or small jobs that I might be doing whilst my brother has the main equipment committed elsewhere. Its never going, I love this little machine

For safety in a forestry setting, I think easy visibility is vitally important to maintain easy contact between workers. Take two cutters working as a mutually supporting pair, when each is keeping tabs on the other what they are looking for when they glance up is that easily spotted orange dot at head height. If they don't see it where they expect they keep looking. Even for people not needing to wear chainsaw PPE such as tractor drivers, I insist on a bright orange helmet ( ), on the other hand I am not keen on baggy high visibility jackets etc, seeing them as a potential danger in their own right. Our company T-shirts and jumpers are dark blue because I think it looks smart but I occasionally wonder if I shouldn't change that. Additionally, helmets, saws and fuel cans are all tagged with reflective tape. Its a bonus that if something is misplaced it is easily found by just shining a torch around but the reason is, heaven forbid, that this would also apply to helping find a prone casualty.

I imagine there are a lot of us trying to maintain older vehicles which have to work hard for a living. Cleaning the intercooler and de-coking the intake manifolds is a great way of recovering lost performance, oil is a thermal insulator and drastically reduces the effect of the intercooler. However, after going to all of this effort I would always suggest giving a thought to the source of the oil that has caused these problems. Oil in the intercooler can only have come from one place - the turbo. If there is more than just a light film of oil in the hose between the turbo and the intercooler, the oil seals in the turbo have failed. Minor oil leaks from the turbo bearing seals won't greatly affect performance in the short term, result in turbo damage or any visible smoke but the fouling of the rest of the system is detrimental. The economy solution is a new turbo cartridge. This is the central bearing and vanes only, for fitment into your existing turbo casing. If the casings are in good nick this will be very nearly as good as a new turbo at a fraction of the cost. It's a technically simple job; just keep everything spotlessly clean, handle the cartridge carefully so you don't damage the vanes and don't forget to pre lubricate the bearing with engine oil before re-fitting. (Expect to pay about £110-120 for a common fixed vane turbo like the one on the ford 2.4). For many trucks I see, clearing all the mud and dust out of the outside of the intercooler also helps.

Exhaust gas recirculation exists to reduce the NOx emissions from the engine by controlling the combustion temperatures under certain high load conditions. The inert nature of the exhaust gas has a cooling effect on the combustion process. I think. Even in normal operation, its presence can result in increased fouling of the intake manifold, eventually leading to loss of power. If the valves sticks open this process will happen much faster. In any case, it can result in poor starting and reduced performance from the moment it sticks open. If fitting a blanking plate results in an observable increase in performance, this is a good indicator that the EGR valve had failed.

Gwynedd council are looking for an Arboricultural Officer. Nothing to do with me, just spotted the ad and thought I'd share. https://diogel.gwynedd.llyw.cymru/ADNSwyddi/swydd.asp?iaith=en&rhif_sesiwn=&rhif_swydd=5670&rhan=swydd_ddisgrifiad

Thanks! Agri-engineering used to be the main side-line but with no breaks it was in danger of stopping being fun. This way, each job helps to keep the other interesting, change being as good as a rest and all that.