Fed up of your chainsaw not starting?

[tarrel]

@ CharlieB:  I think the big change has been the introduction of 36v batteries.  Previous battery saws I have seen were 18V with a very short bar.  The Bosch (and Stihl) are 12 inch, which isn't great, but fine for small thinning and firewood (as other posters have said).

[charlieb]

Thanks Tarrel.  I will definitely look again.
Incidentally, have you found a market for the noble, or is it going for chip/firewood?   we've had a few down in the gales, including one or two nice big ones, but I'm sure I've heard in the past that the wood's not much good for anything..?

[tarrel]

Hi Charlieb,

The general view these days is that Noble is good for nothing  .  Traditionally, however, it's been used for ladder rails and aircraft superstructures, due to its high strength to weight ratio.  Ours is grown for the ornamental foliage.  It goes to make natural Christmas decorations, such as wreaths and garlands.  We produce about 30 tonnes a year.  Have a look at www.tarrelwoodland.com (not trying to sell, honest!)

We're thinning purely for the health of the plantation and quality of the foliage.  The trees are planted at 2m spacing, and we need to let in more light and air, and reduce the competition for nutrients.  I'm thinning around 10% over about 3-4 years, and will then start again with another 10%.  The original plan was to find a wholesale market for the thinnings as biomass.  We have Balcas just down the road from us in Invergordon, which is apparently one of the largest wood pellet manufacturers in Europe.  It certainly seems to have a voracious appetite for timber!  However, after further thought, I'd quite like to have a go at supplying firewood locally (plus creating our own supply of course).  I think this will maximise the profit achievable, and fits in better with the slow, DIY approach.

[Baz]

Hey, Ive got one of those by the looks of it. Always wondered what variety it was.

[tarrel]

They're often confused with Blue Spruce.  Difference is Blue Spruce is prickly, Noble Fir is soft to the touch.

[charlieb]

Fascinating to find christmas tree people on here. that's one of the many ideas for what to do with my Dad's farm when and if I take over.  It's currently growing arable for cows, with some grazing. I wanto move towards growing human food (vegetables, etc), with low-density livestock only on the non-arable bits, and various small income sources from diverse quarters.  Already making small amounts out of timber and now firewood (only 20 or so loads a year), small-scale christmas trees (perhaps 50 or so a year at first) could be a great addition. I'm going to do a test grow of Nordman Fir and Norway Spruce over the next five or so years (apparently the two classic trees) but I'm very tree-geeky, so love the idea of trying other things.  Noble has just gone on my list.

Go for it with firewood. Very satisfying, if you have the time or can employ a labourer to split, load and deliver.  You will NEED a splitter (various options); I get on fine with no other kit - although I have lots of plans for tipping trucks, forklifts, etc that could come into play as we gear up.   NB softwood logs generally sell a fair bit cheaper - make sure there's no-one like us locally selling hardwood logs who can undercut you.

[tarrel]

Thanks for the advice on the firewood.  Going way off topic here, but if you need advice on the trees let me know (although I'm still a newbie compared to many in the business!).  By the way, several tree growers I know are using, or looking at, targeted grazing techniques.  This basically involves introducing livestock into the tree plantation for weed control, rather than using chemical weed killers (weeds are the major enemy of christmas tree growers).  The favourite animal seems to be Shropshire Sheep.  They're hardy, will eat almost anything, but are unlikely to damage the trees (unlike goats, which will eat anything INCLUDING the trees!)

[charlieb]

I will certainly look into that Tarrel. I planted about 60 norway/nordmans two winters ago, but weeds clogged most of them, and then during the snow rabbits got over the rabbit fence (there was deer fencing above) and polished off the rest. I learnt that it does take a decent bit of effort to get them established (and also that if you're going to try something out it's worth putting in the effort).  Getting a few sheep into the christmas tree plantation for a month or so a year wouldn't be any hassle at all round here (in fact they get into every plantation I ever plant).  One of my various unlikely grandplans involves chickens scuffing about under christmas trees - and under ash/birch plantations for firewood - but I think sheep are a much more realistic option.

[Justme]

If you want to make more than just the money for the hours you put in then you need to have a firewood processor.

[charlieb]

Justme's got that completely right - it always amazes me how many times we have to handle a log before it gets to a customer.   In due course I want to try to make money out of logs, for now money for the hours is fine though (as well as satisfaction: after all, every load I sell is effectively displacing that many kWh of oil or coal).

Processor would work very well on thinned conifers too (I'm not sure it would save much time on the massively varied hardwoods - windblow and thinnings - we're chopping up).    The other big way to save time is in loading/unloading - start out selling in mesh bags or tatty boxes, and make sure you can dump at the buyer's end.

[Bodidly]

If you want to make more than just the money for the hours you put in then you need to have a firewood processor.

How straight does the wood have to be to go through a firewood processor?
All our trees are hedgerow hardwood which tends to be quite twisted.

[Justme]

How straight does the wood have to be to go through a firewood processor?
All our trees are hedgerow hardwood which tends to be quite twisted.

It depends on the machine. The ones that can do the twisty stuff tend to cost more. Or you can cut into smaller sections before you put them through the processor. If its far to bad you can cut into rings & then drop in to the splitter section for automated splitting & use of the loading ramp.

With the handling what we use in a full 1m3 vented bag. Like a builders bag but twice the size & with mesh panels so the wood can dry in the bag & not rot like builders bags. Yes they do cost about £5-7 but they can be reused a few times. Mine are just about to be filled for the third years stock. Most are still completely fine. None are showing signs of UV damage but a few have been damaged during (bad) handling & unloading.

[Bodidly]

Thanks Justme
I think I will stick with a chainsaw for this winter and do some research over the summer into processors.

[tarrel]

I have a logmaster sawbench (the type where the chainsaw bar clamps onto a guarded pivot arrangement) and a hydraulic splitter.  The logmaster is great.  Really speeds up the cross-cutting of logs.  I only got the splitter recently, but I love it!

[geordief]

is there truth to what I was told regarding chainsaws -that if you don't use them for a year or so they become unusable (seized up I imagine)?

I do have one lying around that I never use  .Do I just need to dump it ? (I know I could never get it going myself without a service but  would a service be pointless?)