Gardening

[Jo]

Thanks Dave,

By special request a pic of how it is now looking. I now need the next delivery of rings so it must be time for a relax and some

Jo

[Jo]

Yesterday morning saw the last of the branches come off. Leaving a Tall stump, which fell over this morning    I had been told that the stump weighed about 3 tons  In the end the little lifter (weight lift limit = 3 1/2 tons) needed it cut into three bits to get rid of it. Leaving a stump for grinding next week.

In the meantime I have finished splitting the rings with an axe/log splitter. The Log splitter is now sporting a new set of pneumatic rear tyres and has had its electrics upgraded as the cable where it came out of the gland already had a bend in it so was looking like it was suffering from stress It now has a nice new cable grommet fitted 

That bit of gardening done it must be workshop time  I think someone mentioned there being a new set of Robinson castings to look at

Jo

[Kim]

Wow! That was quite a tree, Jo.  No wonder it has kept you busy for a few days!
You ought to have fire wood for a few weeks now
Kim

[Flyboy Jim]

Yes............you're definitely going to be fondling castings in comfort this winter! Well.......as long as you have plenty of  to go with all that firewood. 

Jim

[crueby]

That tree was big enough to hollow out and make a shop inside!

[Steamer5]

Looks like the Hampshire chainsaw massacre is going to keep you warm for a day or six!

Can I make one suggestion, I happened to work with a guy who had in a previous job done research into the best way to stack, store & dry firewood, go figure that! ( Note that dry in this sense is to remove the internal moisture, NOT to get the water off the outside) so the best way they found was in a stack no more than 6 feet wide by 6 feet high, as long as you like but NO cover on it, this allows wind etc to pass thru & remove the moisture in the stack.
A previous neighbor wrapped her wood pile to keep the rain off, when unwrapped it had some interesting looking fungus growing on it!

Enjoy your workshop time, well deserved.......... besides we are all suffering update deprivation!

Cheers Kerrin

[Jo]

Thanks Guys, I am pleased that is over and I can get back in the workshop. It will take at least a year for that stuff to dry out in the meantime I already have about 3 years worth of logs already stock piled 

Hi Kerrin you are right - I had put a water proof cover on it the night before last and when I folded it back to add the next lot of logs there was more condensation under the cover than on top of it so I have left it open for now.  I might find some more old fence panels and make a breathable roof for it 

Sorry but there will be no playing in the workshop this morning Minx is taking me out we are going to my Tai Chi class. Hopefully I can get back in there this afternoon as long as I don't find any more logs lying around

Jo

[Bluechip]

Ah, poor thing    All that effort growing for donkeys years all gone .... 

How did the geezer get up the last branch? Pole climbing irons ?  Looks a bit precarious.

Sooner him than me although I quite liked it the few times i did it at work all those decades ago when I was young and frisky ... 

Dave

[10KPete]

From a guy who's cured a lot of fire wood in a wet environment: put a water tight roof over the wood but keep the sides open enough to breathe. Here in the PNW (Pacific North West) our wood sheds have slatted walls....

And stack the wood sorta loose...

Poor tree...

Pete

[Jo]

My log stores are all well ventilated Pete, this is a temporary storage until it can move into the main store in the spring

Poor tree...

It was over the top of the house, one lightening strike and the house would have been flattened It nearly flattened a BMW a couple of years ago  This last year it has tried dropping branches on a few dog walkers  If it had been looked after over the years it probably could have stayed but it was left to go too long in the bough 

We reckon that one was over 200 years old and the boys were off to do another tree over twice the diameter next so that probably is nearer 500 years 

Jo

[10KPete]

"...too long in the bough"   

That sounds like me some days!

 

Pete

[Zephyrin]

And what about removing the stump ? something planed ?

[Jo]

Next week the is going to be ground out 

I have been told the grinder makes an extremely loud noise and throws stuff over 25m  I may not be photographing it in use 

Jo

[steam guy willy]

just got some giant Maize seeds from an African allotmenteer so will see what happens next year... a pic of last years plants , about 12 feet high !!! Also what is it about the number 18 when you use it to divide numbers ?? My next engine is 1/18th scale and when i started to calculate the scale numbers i kept getting these recurring numbers ??!!!!!!!!!!!

[steve-de24]

Ahh, the magic of the number nine!

If you want to impress kids with your magic skills try this 'trick' based on the arithmetic of the number nine.

Secret set-up.
On the reverse of a pad of paper write " 1089   -   You are so predictable!"

Now get the kid to think of three numbers between 1 and 9. 

Write them down highest to lowest to form a number, let's call them   a b c
Subtract from this the number formed by writing the three chosen numbers lowest to highest  c b a

abc - cba = efg

reverse the order of this result and add it to efg

efg + gfe = 1089   always, regardless of which three numbers were chosen.

Which I think is a surprising result and looks like magic when you turn the pad of paper over.

Steve