Dan Maynard

Yeah that's a good point, you don't want it to become a planning condition to maintain it.

Agree. Only other thought is you could keep it while the extension is going up and new tree getting established, but it's already too close to the house anyway.

I would focus less on bar length and more on real world cutting performance. Husqvarna 562 is a massive step up from that little Echo, because it's a pro saw and then because it's 60cc it will cut 2 or 3 times as fast. Put an 18" bar on for everyday use, buy a 24 for occasional cuts where it's handy. You'll thank me every time you sharpen.

What do you want to do with the 24" bar? I think you'd be better off with a 60cc saw and 20" bar, much more usable and to be honest the lighter the saw the better. I just suspect as a non pro you won't use a 70cc saw all that much, it's pretty physical thing to use for long.

I wouldn't go above 24", it's a 70cc saw after all. You can cut 2 foot cubes of wood with that which are plenty big enough to handle, there's not really that much point putting a 3 foot bar on and cutting rings in one when you can't lift them anyway. I saw a test once using a Husqvarna 395 with 32" bar, cutting 15" rounds. Two side by side using almost the bar length took more than twice as long as the single round time, so the quicker way to remove wood is with a shorter bar. I believe it's because the saw rpm are higher, cutters engaged better, and chip flow easier.

I've seen beech do it, never seen it in ash.

I guess they don't bother with aerial rescue in the US?

That's a hell of a commute!

Zooming in it looks a bit like the pointing is different above the window, I wonder if there's a story to do with the window that has nothing to do with the tree. If you get a decent builder in to repoint they can have a look at the window and lintel.

I would get it sorted and not run it, problem is those loose screws wear the soft aluminium of the block. It might already need a helicoil in the ones which have been coming loose. Weld a nut to the top of you can. Other way which might work is remove material from the bolt with a series of increasing drills until the head comes away, and you can remove the exhaust. Then you have the stem of the bolt to get hold of.

Could you post the guide as it is now for us to see if we can make head or tail of it?

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Don't get a Stein Vega plus, I'm on my second as I find it really comfortable but I'm 38" waist and 6'6".

I guess if you're going to try to pull it back upright then they might have some use, but I doubt they will survive the summer sticking up in the air with sun on them. Maybe the ideal is to push them down and bury them, I think it won't matter too much if you trim the longer ones back though as the roots on the underside will be the ones keeping it alive.

Fair point, I see that.

I cut one up like that for a customer which had been covered in fruit, I was all for leaving it but looked too untidy for her. I think it'll carry on more or less indefinitely like that, just keep it propped and fill in the hole round the roots if you can.

You're right, EXL that's the stuff!

Oregon have EPX now which is supposed to be an upgrade to the old LPX which has been around years. I have some EPX on 28 and 36" and it seems decent chain. Sharp, cuts well, files well. Stihl say file to 30 degrees, I think this makes it cut slightly faster but a little bit less robust edge than Oregon default of 25 degrees. I just file the Oregon to 30 and it cuts nicely.

Real question is should @paddyvero join the Wee Chipper thread now? In Canada that's a tiny machine you can drive up to the tree.

I just did a scientific survey and you called me uninformed. Ivy surges and dies like other parts of the ecosystem, like the trees. You seem to have an idea the trees are fixed and the ivy will ruin them, this is false. The trees are also temporary and will all die too, to be replaced by other trees. Woodlands and hedges are dynamic. I remember some real ivy monsters when Dutch elm disease had its latest surge, but there aren't so many big dead elms now. Maybe there will be ash trees full of ivy, maybe they will fall over too soon. Ivy is not invasive by definition, it has been in our ecosystem most likely since soon after the last ice age. It can increase and decrease but it can't be invasive. We don't like it, it's a menace when climbing and hides defects in trees but it is not invading the countryside to the exclusion of native wildlife, in fact it's a really important food source for bees and other insects. When the host dies or the area becomes too hot or dry the ivy will die back. There are balances. Rhododendron on the other hand is properly invasive and causes a real problem across Wales, Scotland and parts of England. Nothing native eats it. I suggest Oliver Rackham's history of the countryside for perspective, and also of the way "conservation" tends to be fashion driven and short term. Bit like the idea of us rushing out to cut ivy because we suddenly decide we don't like it. So, to summarise - you initially asked for professional opinions about whether ivy was taking over the countryside, and from hedge layers to tree surgeon we gave considered opinion that it is not. Enough now, I'm going back to discussing chainsaws and climbing like I usually do.

You're not turning up the revs, just the limit on how much diesel it can pump in on each injection. Same revs, more torque so more power.

Look at this picture and count the trees with ivy. Then count the ones without ivy on the other side of the road, same side of road and across the field to the right. You asked for arborists opinion, there are a lot of trees with ivy, but there are a whole lot more without.

I've got eufy, it's ok but I find not 100% reliable. When people broke the gate on my yard it captured the pics and made an alert - but when I tried to dial in for live image it wouldn't work so I was driving there not knowing what I would find. I decided to upgrade but haven't done that yet. Ultimately you have to decide cost Vs value of what you're protecting. Not being forced to pay a monthly subscription per camera was a big plus point for eufy in my eyes.

Has it ever had the oil changed? Might be an idea to drain it out and see what colour it is, manual probably says it should have been changed by now anyway.

He wandering round the whole flippin hospital now!