Dan Maynard

Best one I've got is Edward Gilman An Illustrated Guide to Pruning The Educated Climber has put a lot of his stuff online, which is a good companion but I like a book to look at as well https://www.educatedclimber.com/dr-ed-gilman-teaching-series/

If I had to do a pole rescue tomorrow I'd use a Multisaver. Can't remember exactly what we did on the course to be honest.

Or go with single ladder, with a plank tied across the top. Rest it on the hedge.

Get one with 3 adjustable legs, probably be fine with that.

I think yes the core is reduced, the Teufelberger spLIFE is thinner for the same reason.

My aux lever latches up or down, so far flipping it one way or the other for each hose has worked.

Do you have a piston stop for spark plug hole? If you approach from both sides and make a mark then you can find the middle.

Husqvarna are calling it a blade.... Worlds gone mad, maybe they got AI to write the page?

DCS9010 always came with 28" solid nose bar, although I bought secondhand and it was knackered already so never used it. In my mind solid nose used to be more common, maybe sprocket noses weren't as reliable on higher power saws?

I don't know the machine, but a general risk from rebuilding is a slight error eg intake boot not assembled as airtight, then everything is new but as soon as it starts and you get it off choke it's running lean with insufficient lubricant.

Is 30 seconds too quick for an air leak from the rebuild to kill it? Wondering if it was pressure tested before starting, maybe it's scored up?

I was more lucky, when in the market for a 50cc ish saw 15 years ago the chap persuaded me to spend the bit extra and get the 261. Still got it.

Have to think about tracks vs wheels, I think the wheels make less mess of grass but the chinese ones I've seen have been tracked.

It's really hard to predict, for sure. Technology goes in arcs and leaps, we're currently seeing the arc of development of these AI models but I've read a couple of articles about how just doing more of the same is already running out of steam - they've hoovered the pure human internet already and now there's so much AI generated content they risk making a snake eating it's own tail. The big bet is always what the next enabling technology will be, will it catch on or be another dot-com bubble?

It's asked another question, no question mark again, and no awareness that were having a conversation about it being artificial.

Tree surgery? All that cutting and chipping? Hardest game in the world that. Done it meself you see, 30 years man and boy.

Something is fishy about the picture though, fungus stem doesn't appear from the edge of the cut like that. Doesn't exist anywhere else maybe because AI generated for the post.

I don't know a huge amount about all this AI stuff though, except that the big cost is providing training. I guess that asking questions and getting answers gives them more conversations to feed the beast, essentially for free - rather than paying people in India. So I guess the title comes from a ChatGPT type "generate a question for arborists" type prompt and it doesn't really understand grammar as such.

Philosophical question - can robots worry?

I am still scratching my head a bit about climbing on a steelie. Can't see that it's not strong enough, just that I've always used ally for climbing, steel for rigging, and never use rigging gear for climbing.

We used to use more hooks though, rope back and forth, and then sometimes pull the legs sideways. That gives more mechanical advantage than a truckers hitch. Rope being a bit more stretchy is better for security too, as soon as something on a strap moves a tiny bit all the tension goes. Ratchet straps are quicker and easier, agreed, and I use them nowadays.

I was called young man the other day, doesn't happen so often now I'm over 50. I do remember weekend tree working as a teenager, everything was shifted by flatbed trailer back to the nursery bonfire so the game was stack 8-10 foot high and then rope it down to half the size.

If you've been out 3.5 years does that mean you are beyond the ELCAS scope? Shame if so, if not then seek out a trainer who understands the system, there are a few around. The one near me does, but it's too far for you probably. It would help you if you could do basic CS30/31 chainsaw yourself, which is one week. It makes you much more useful on site and more likely someone to take you on, I think. This is the basic ticket, you then need time being shown how to work efficiently in a job, which is the real training. Otherwise, there's the route of larger companies - utility sector seems to be constantly short of staff and they have training budgets. I wouldn't want to stay there myself, but at least you get a wage and get some experience while you work out what you do want to do. On the other hand tramping across fields in the rain might really suit you and remind you of good times in the army. It takes all sorts.

I think that's the thing, no one setup is ideal for every job. I have a 12 foot trailer and mini chipper, I can take chipper and either muck truck or mini loader in a bit less than half the space. Perfect for 1-2 man jobs, can do reductions or take down small-medium tree and fit everything on, or run off and tip chip before taking logs home. Take the chipper to the tree saves a lot of dragging if there's any distance involved. Bigger trees with 3 or 4 people, having only one muck truck starts to be the bottleneck, but at that point I'm getting mates in - they bring a tipper and chipper and we now have a 12 foot trailer as well as the tipper, which can shift 2.5 tons of wood per load legally. But - I'm mostly around the villages nearby. Landrover and trailer is a bit of a nightmare when heading in to the city. Then you want a nice Nissan with 2p turning circle. One more thing - trailer is the ideal setup if you live anywhere near a vosa weighbridge, transit has almost no legal payload.

Absolutely, for reductions. Repollarding lime, or reducing conifer hedge though - just lots and lots of cuts under 1.5". No need for power but light saw that doesn't have a pull cord.