Dan Maynard

Seems to me one problem with the mover is steering it, another is holding the weight back. I haven't tried this but I was thinking maybe get a scaffold pole along the top of the slope, then have one rope with a prussic to take the weight. Stand a little bit to the side with a second rope to the mower and you can pull it in an arc, then lower prussic 2 foot, cut another arc etc. You could cut a swathe on the way down, then pull it back up and slide along the scaffold pole to next swathe. Maybe a hassle but you wouldn't be holding the weight of the mower all the time, and you can't drop the running mower down the slope which would seem to be a safety improvement.

I think it's worth saying that printing money is widely accepted as an inflationary pressure, but if it were that simple there would be no professors of economics left as they'd have all got bored by Monday lunchtime and gone down the pub. Different economists focus on different things, the idea that government spending causes inflation and therefore erodes wealth was pretty much a mantra in the 80s and drove politics in the UK and US. Nowadays there are some counter examples too, say after the 2008 crash an awful lot of money was printed in many countries and fears of inflation did not materialise. There are other economists who challenge the 'rational' behaviour assumption that says you can look at what is happening and predict what people will do, rather you have to take into account what people believe and accept. These would say a major cause of inflation is the expectation of inflation, because people put prices up in anticipation. It's the same school of thought that a recession is a combination of many decisions not to spend, so what people believe in aggregate, and that it is possible to talk the country in to recession.

Definitely petrol, or have you tried battery? I have a Makita trimmer, they bought out Robin years ago. It's lighter than the HS82 but much smoother vibes than the cheap Stihl HS45, but not sure if you'd get one as Makita have discontinued petrol tools.

... or gone down because of transport cost? I still get £0 and happy with that.

Selling to a mill would depend on you being close, transport cost is usually the killer on that idea. Is there anyone in the sawmillers directory with a chainsaw mill nearby? They might be interested and give you some cash.

Nightmare. Just have to wait for the hedge to grow up to match, I guess.

I think milling is about the worst possible activity for exhaust fumes, you take the biggest saw and run it flat out pointing down at the ground right by where you are kneeling. I have always set my mill so that fuel fillers are up, was just pondering a new product of "milling exhaust" where the outlet is left of centre rather than off to right like normal. Then the exhaust would all blow out over the log. Surely someone has thought of that before?

Are they "ton bags" which can be 90cm x 90cm x 90cm. This is only 0.73m3 so then your £70 per bag is right back on the money at £96 per cube.

He's in Portugal. Maybe someone who used to work there might have it? Long shot though.

The other two problems with storing the logs to dry are having two or three years cashflow tied up in stock isn't good for any business if you can help it, and without a kiln you have no way to respond to a good year of sales as you just have to guess how well logs are going to sell two years in advance rather than 6 weeks. If it stays cold through March and April you might make an extra 2 months of sales. Like you I solve both of these problems by not paying for the raw material so no cash tied up, and keeping a massive excess stock. I'm not a commercial producer either. Edit gdh already said about adapting to demand, sorry.

If you're asking for a mate, the answer is no the whole tree is dangerous and you'd best take the logs off his hands for safety, and for his own good.

I would do the chainsaw tickets (felling and crosscutting) and spend the money on good chainsaw boots and trousers. To manage your own woodland you probably won't need to climb. Doing the medium tree felling course would also be more worthwhile than climbing. Climbing is really expensive, you're some thousands in for the courses and gear. Rather than set off to France and and climb stuff on your own with no experience, hire somebody on the very rare occasions it really is necessary. Otherwise fell, winch, bring stuff down to the ground. Safer, quicker, easier. Get a small tractor, see what you need when you get there.

Looks a bit like another bush removed from that side maybe?

Got any pics?

Sweet chestnut I've seen in numbers was down in the South downs, in coppice woodland. Only seen one or two round here in gardens so not sure quite how far the natural range extends north.

I think somewhere around £10k +VAT, but that was few years ago so maybe with current weak pound could be more. Saw one on eBay not too long ago that went for about 6.5k, was in good condition too. Really tempted to buy because mine is very old, but thought I can buy some paint and a new engine if needed for a lot less. I think some of the new Haeksler are getting closer as have 18hp and self drive, otherwise don't think there are any others which are 24hp and have self propulsion. Also it has 50cm wide opening to put branches in so you can squeeze a fork and shove it in, a lot of the others are 30 or 40cm.

I've run 36" lo-pro on my 372, it cuts ok but is just faster with a bigger saw. 42 you will need to be careful when cutting the full width boards, it will be slow but you'll make progress. It sounds to me like you have a fair bit of timber around, you should get the 42 as you'll end up getting a bigger saw later. Otherwise if you can live without the waney edge look (you probably take the sapwood off oak before using it anyway) then stick on 36". Freehand the sides off the log when you need to, it's not too difficult with a long bar. The Stihl GB bars on chainsawbars can be adapted to either Husqvarna or Stihl with a little aluminium spacer, so that if you find a secondhand 660 or 395 you'll be ok, or indeed 880. One last tip is the lo-pro 3/8 is a different height to standard 3/8 chain and requires a different drive sprocket.

The only snag with this line of thinking is that you are not counting the houses they built badly in 1730 which have fallen down in the meantime.

I agree not so black and white. My ropes 3 or 4 years old I would shrug and say nearly due for replacement anyway, if it's brand new then it's a different conversation.

We were in Northumberland on holiday a couple of months ago, what I saw is it's patchy. Some blocks are ok, some the trees were blown over with rootplate all in swathes, some blocks looked like the trees snapped off half way up the stem and just trees everywhere - more like a picture from WW1 than anything I've seen. There are also loads of individual trees down in fields and roads, these have just been cut and cleared for access so presumably people will eventually tidy these up. I imagine there's a shortage of labour for all the individual trees too, but also maybe a shortage of money to pay for the huge amount of work.

We're in a CA, it's not bad. We had to get approval on the garage when we wouldn't if not, and submit tile sample but they let us have concrete tiles even though house is old pantile. They aren't too bothered what happens inside, porch would need approval as it changes appearance but provided it's in keeping I would have thought it would be ok. It's nowhere near as bad as being listed.

Exactly why I like my VT. I also reckon I've got faster at doing the job in the last 5 years by moving less not by moving faster.

Whenever I see yes minister I think that is still exactly how the government is run.

That looks like it could just have a bit of 3mm plate across? Make a template with cardboard.

Quite possible to make one, it's only a frame to hold the bar steady.