Dan Maynard

Take a battery drill and pop the hinges off? Might get you to 720?

I use a wheelie bin for chip, also carry a length of 2x1 timber which I shove in to keep the lid vertical when chipping. This works well at the chipping and moving stages but not brilliantly easy to upend it to tip out. I also carry a barrow for timber/kit. I've dreamed about bigger horse/stable type barrows but they tend to be plastic which would be useless for timber, and also if wider than the chipper wouldn't go through a doorway thus defeating the object. When I was a teenager mowing grass one of the places had a set of greedy boards on the barrow to get more grass in, so the idea I've been mulling is a twin wheeled steel barrow with wooden box on top. It's enough cheaper than the arb trolley that I will probably give it a go, only one way to really find out. The arb trolley is a good bit of kit, the thing with that would again be the emptying.

If you have a good relationship with the customer maybe also suggest planting something nearby which will give succession in a few years if/when the HC has to be removed. Small trees are cheap.

M500 is 720mm maybe 725 across the widest part which is the wheels. Doorways on my house are 740, I'm curious as I thought all doors would be the same.

Those blisters sound nasty. I have Stein X2 which I know some hate, but I'm 6' 6" and find them more comfy than any I tried before so I think they are good for long legs. Not that you'll be wanting to rush out and buy yet more spikes of course...

I agree it burns fine but the thing is dry poplar logs are noticeably light weight compared to dry ash or oak, so if you work on the premise that the amount of heat is proportional to weight then you aren't getting as much heat for your money in a cube of pop. It's not a premium product. I sell very small quantities of firewood, I call it second grade and mix in everything elm, lime, horse chestnut etc etc. I tell people if they want premium product then go to a firewood merchant where it will be better wood and more expensive. Informed choice is ok imo, I don't think you could mix it in if you're charging top whack.

I've been through a garage and out the door at the back with my M500, I thought it was 725mm but I'd have to measure up later.

Having taken a tree round corners and through a doorway today, I would also say don't forget to describe access route to get everything out.

No, not me. Fence just about survived having sawdust blown off and then we made a quick exit.

That's great - Coletti's video is one of the major reasons I decided to get my M500 as you can see the branches are pulled in pretty quickly and at some points there are two people feeding. There is no nursing of sticks which you have to do with smaller machines. After a year I still say it's a great machine for a startup or small crew. I've subbed for a firm with bigger chippers and given the right circumstances it is true a 6" road tow can process timber roughly twice as fast, but I think it depends on the job how much of an advantage this is. Trying to attach photo of a birch I took down today, everything had to go out round the conservatory and through the garage so it all had to be cut into pieces anyway, and it took about 40 minutes to chip everything once it was all in big pile out the front, so on this job a bigger chipper would have saved about 20 minutes. I've also removed trees where the owner wanted to keep the chip so I drove to the tree and threw everything in, no dragging saves a lot of time. On big trees or site clearance an M500 isn't the right tool, but I'm still building up experience so don't have trucks or manpower for those jobs either.

I've got a 2010 and it's never had a tendency to eat bearings, I was told on my CS31 to put a spur sprocket instead of the rim sprocket it came with (which I did) but obviously as I only have one I don't have any comparison.

I'm reading a book Hidden Life of Trees and the author describes remnants of a beech stump being kept alive for hundreds of years, fed via the root connections - there are no leaves on the stump so it must be fed by the other trees. Interesting to see a similar situation here.

That is brilliant - saved me having to ever watch an episode of Poldark as I already know the plot. Proper funny.

I asked on the forum about these chains a little while ago, people using them are enthusiastic about the cut speed. The Sugi bar was recommended over the Oregon narrow gauge because it's less fragile. I'm not sure about pinching but do believe the thinner bars are easier to bend.

Looking back at the thread still all seems a bit odd. The only risk I can see is that the one you have is stolen, that way it wouldn't be legally yours but I'm not sure how you can check.

Hmm I've read the book but didn't pick up that detail - will have to reread. I found it a good read, obviously it's quite old so some of the stuff like pruning cuts would be considered out of date but there is also a lot of good material based on his years of experience. I'm intrigued by how much oil the petrol takes out of the chain and does this have a big negative effect - or do you dip it after anyway. I think I read in an Oregon instruction once you should soak a chain in oil before use but never actually done it.

I hired a plant type trailer like the pictured one, pain to shovel chip out as either over the side or have to throw it past the ramp. I got a 12x6 Bryan James trailer, seems cavernous empty but soon fills up and gets up to the 2.7t allowed, I would go for something 3.5t if you can. That is also about as wide as I can see round in Defender mirrors, would have to check 6 foot 5 won't lead to needing caravan mirror stalks, that really would be annoying.

And probably leave off the grippy gloves too. Save those for climbing, they really help. I'd still be stood on the ground in front of my first tree if it wasn't for the gloves.

Years ago we ebayed a stove which was too big for our living room, lot of bids and good price in the end. Bloke was going to take it to his house in France, had been looking for a big stove for ages but struggled to find one so my impression is that it should definitely sell. I put collection only too, he drove 150 miles to pick it up.

You'd get stuck in the assessment when they ask you to rewind the starter cord.

At first I thought it was eating branches so fast it needed two blokes to feed, then realised not two, not three but four people were there. Plus the guy videoing normally helps too I guess.

At our local transfer station they will take brash, timber up to 6" or woodchip all as green waste, stumps or big lumps have to go trade waste. Not much chip goes there though, I think tree firms are either stockpiling to sell for biomass (need that yard) or tipping at farms, stables, golf courses etc. Certain fraction of customers keep the chip, running narrow access chipper up to the tree I always ask.

.. having said I was taught to put fig 8 we did also just put the drt climbing line round stem on my 39 course like Steve said so this was under instructor supervision. I just don't do it like that now (mostly) because I like the quick exit option - Hitchclimber and multisaver I can descend with one hand.

Interesting post, I have a 25" on my 461 and was thinking about getting a 20" but not sure I would actually stop and take time to change it over. Thought it might be another reason to buy that 365 I don't really need, could keep 20" on it.

I was taught running bowline and prussic is secure but you should have a fig 8 to take the friction if you descend on single line as otherwise the prussic binds up. I like that for simplicity but now also have a multisaver so if been climbing on that during dismantle just snug it up round the stem and carry on.