Retired Climber

9 hours ago, john87 said:

Hi Mark, Yes, doing it alone.. I always make sure that i have someone with me though. Not sure what they could do if i fell out of a tree though!

 

The tree i am working on now, not sure anyone could do much if i igot stuck up there either, due to location..

 

Funnily enough, i was selling something on facebook a few weeks ago. Was talking to the bloke that came to collect it and i asked "what you do then??" Tree surgeon he says!! Step this way sir!! I learnt a hell of a lot in ten minutes, never mind a morning..

 

There is a place near me that do climbing courses and stuff, but i would not be able to do that anyway, for reasons i shall keep to myself, nothing exciting though.. Be a bit much for me at my age anyway i expect. Climbing 40 odd foot once is bad enough, never mind doing it repeatedly!! Mind you i have been told that climbing on a Blakes is probably not helping, but it suits me..

 

Very good idea of yours to pay an individual person though. I might chase up the tree surgeon fellow and see what they say..

 

Thanks for helping..

 

john...

 

Don't worry about what knot you are climbing on, or what kit you have, that's just a distraction. I could bring round a length of old Yale XTC, a couple of prusik loops and a Komet Evolution and have that tree reduced to a stump in half an hour. Technique trumps kit (or what knots you use), in the vast majority of cases. 

6 hours ago, Mark Bolam said:

Cut and chuck with a pole saw is a rare skill.

Not for Mr Tickle. 

4 minutes ago, john87 said:

 

Yes, 11.3.2 They seem to like having a bit of a test??

 

I know you could say that it could weaken what was previously ok, but you could say the same about the MOT tester deliberately applying your car brakes as hard as he can for the same reason??? I saw a brake pipe burst once like this, [was not my car!!]

 

john..

 

john..

That's not the same thing at all. If you don't understand why, you don't understand trees, and probably shouldn't be climbing them. I don't mean this in a confrontational way, more of a saving you from yourself kind of vibe. Sorry, that just reads as patronising; I'm going to give up whilst I'm (slightly) ahead. 

5 minutes ago, john87 said:

Thanks Mark, that makes me feel a lot better.Yes a Stein one with the steel rings. [Very nice it is too!]

 

As you said, it is dead vertical so all weight will be straight down. I know you will laugh yourself silly at this, but once i have the rope installed, i am going to put a sling round the tree base and load the rope up with a pulley block and leave if for a few minutes. I will KNOW it is safe then..

 

john..

You could look at that test the other way. You may be weakening, what was, a suitable anchor point. 

33 minutes ago, john87 said:

Yes, i understand what you mean. Difficulty for me is getting the rope where i want it. Anchoring lower down and then advancing the rope is a bit advanced for me!!

 

john..

In which case, how do you plan to get it up there? Is it Silver Birch? I wouldn't be lobbing a throw line into that if I were you. Especially if you can't climb up and get it when it gets stuck. 

15 minutes ago, john87 said:

Anchor i am thinking of is shown as best i can in the photo below.

The main stem is about 10 inch diameter then a vertical spar about 5 inch diameter goes up matby ten feet then splits into two, one about 4 inch diameter and the other about 2 and a half or a bit more. Whole lot is about 50 feet up, which is a lot for me!!

 

Photo is a bit crap but you will get the idea!!

 

john..

 

With that kind of stuff I'd anchor around the vertical stem, with the branches essentially stopping the anchor slipping down. I probably wouldn't simply anchor over the branches, if that makes sense? 

8 hours ago, Mesterh said:

If you think that you need to test it then you need to choose a different anchor point imo.

 

I've never tested an anchor and I don't how you would test it to meet some kind of standard tbh. 

 

Srt chaps may have a different point of view so maybe they can advise.

 

 

 

 

Agree completely. Experience will tell you which anchor point to choose but if you are looking at a potential point and having doubts, change it, or double up. 

Species is very important, don't choose the same size anchor on willow, as you do on oak. 

13 minutes ago, Steve Bullman said:

When it comes to rigging trees there isn’t much that isn’t covered by common sense. Even the best maths brain would be lost in the trees without it 

That's my point. Maths can only get you so far in this industry, so they teach very simple calculations and leave it at that. I think, actually, even the concept of load on an anchor being twice the weight of the piece of tree could be a little confusing for some. Common sense and experience is always going to trump academic study with stuff like this. 

3 minutes ago, Mark Bolam said:

I don’t like to overthink it really mate.

Big piece = chunky anchor point and big rope.

Yep, definitely the way to do it. you could easily spend half the day calculating stuff otherwise. Equally, exact calc's are imposiisible in our industry due to the variables in just about everything we work with ( hence the simplification) .

55 minutes ago, Mark Bolam said:

Because there is twice the force on the pulley, the weight of the branch and the equal force on the rope required to hold it.

It's just the easiest way to think of it isn't it. Trainers aren't mathematicians, so it's an easy way to teach it. It's not exactly x2 though is it. 

Kind of. It is a pre-planned method of achieving certain outcomes. 

2 hours ago, Mesterh said:

So do you think he made a u-turn based on public opinion? I thought it was more likely to be the mp's, investors and economists who voiced their opinion against the tax cut that made him back track. I don't know though so I'm willing to be educated. 

You write as if those reasons are mutually exclusive. There are plenty of grey areas between the two seemingly opposite reasons. 

Yes. I think he knows it was a good move for the economy (long term), but can't work out a way to sell it to the electorate 'en masse'. 

1 minute ago, eggsarascal said:

Never a truer word spoken.

I knew we'd agree on something, sooner or later. 

10 minutes ago, eggsarascal said:

Get off with ya!

I don't think you are really my type. 

2 minutes ago, eggsarascal said:

Who’s arguing? It’s a question that apart from a week link hasn’t been answered.

The link wasn't in answer to that question; keep up. 

12 minutes ago, eggsarascal said:

You’d think the economic experts of this parish would have the answers.

www.thelondoneconomic.com/business-economics/who-owns-our-national-debt-its-a-secret-287907/amp/

10 minutes ago, coppice cutter said:

Are people just becoming so lazy, feckless, spoilt, and self-centred in general that they are becoming ungovernable?

Bloody hell mate, that's some question for a Monday morning. 

Technically I think it's a nice job. Practically, it will make sod all difference to the amount of mess. They'd have been better off not bothering and using the money to buy a blower. 

4 minutes ago, Stere said:

 

Good idea in your opinion if you believe in trickle down & its is  not a view that is shared by all economists.

 

 

Trickle down has been disproved in numerous studies. That's not the only reason to encourage high earners to want to be UK tax payers though. 

16 minutes ago, Mesterh said:

Not a bad start to the week.

Chancellor U-turns on plans to scrap 45p tax rate - BBC News

WWW.BBC.CO.UK

---

Kwasi Kwarteng says the proposals, announced just 10 days ago, had become "a...

 

Good or bad depends on your perspective. It was actually a good idea for the economy, but he's had to realise the plebs won't have it due to their blinkered, lack of understanding of economics. Unfortunately, in politics, making the right decision isn't as important as making the popular decision. He had two choices, educate a massive chunk of the population, or give in and think of something less difficult for the masses to understand.

1 hour ago, Sutton said:

As our resident rationalist, and given your well known views on our housing stock, how would you advise someone caught in Eggsie's dilemma?

And remembering, bricks and mortar in the UK are "safe as houses" in times of trouble, lets try and be practicial? 🤣

He has to watch inflation, interest rates, the media mood for Liz Truss, the local economy and lord knopws what else.

What does he do?

(Only an irredeemable cynic would say he has to wait for the repossessions to start and scoup up something nice at a bargain price at auction)

A lot of auctioned properties are cash only. You can't get a look in if you are skint. 

Serious question; are you quite new to business / self employment?

13 hours ago, Mick Dempsey said:

I'm pretty sure no feud is occuring. As soon as I made a genuine offer to meet up, the insults and digs were re-categorised to 'banter' anyway. Apparently he was joking. 😁

20 minutes ago, Johnsond said:

Well first off yeah I live up here and I’m actually planning on doing some milling down at another guy on here’s place when us working class types can align our schedules. I’m sure if you ask Trigger Andy he’d be ok with you popping by on the way past to Stonehaven. Mind you it would be tea out of a dirty mug and very uncouth conversation normally of a  right of centre nature, but an hour or so with the underlings im sure will be tolerable to your lordship. 

It was a genuine offer. Never mind. 

1 hour ago, john87 said:

Which bit do you mean??

 

john..

The bit that's wrong.