Daydream fund challenge part 4

Davesnave

I have someone coming 25 miles to look at my doors.....he's already pressed "Buy it now" !! :j

I know what you folks mean about selling stuff. We had a 30's house with dado rails etc before, so we could get away with all sorts of furniture in there, but here it won't do at all.

I'm not sentimental about most of it. It'll all go into a local auction and we'll accept whatever it makes.

Maybe DW still believes we'll keep some items, like our art deco lights, which had a retail price of £600, although we picked them up at a fraction of that in the dying moments of a fire sale. I think she'll consider them pig-ugly when they go up, if they even get that far! :rotfl:

Speaking of pigs, I've been sawing-up the last remains of the plywood pig arks today, as there's enough decent bits in them to make flooring and shelving foir the loft, At £24 a sheet in the farmers' store, I can't just burn them! :eek:

choille

We recycle everything we can too Dave - The price of materials is high & going up daily as OH is always around the B&Q type places & knows their prices better than the staff I reckon.

Hope the doors go okay & whatever else you decide to sell. I've advertised a sideboard localish & not had a peep of enquiry - same with a couple of still in the packaging radiators. Mind you there aint much population here and abouts.

Just been out picking up all the rocks the digger driver seems to have rolled about where I peg my washing out - it was a break your ankle area. All tidied up now.

Davesnave

The doors went, but he wanted them for something he was making, not as doors, so he took all the handles off and left them! :rotfl:

I finished sawing-up the old joists from the garage, ripped out in 2014, which are wormy and only good for firewood, somehow missing all the nails and nasties in them. :cool: Last time, I boogered a brand new chain, so I sent off for one of those chain grinding machines......It's very good, now I understand how it works, but the instructions with it were useless. I got the same model as our builder has, so he showed me how to set it up.

My favourite device is the Logmaster, which makes the whole sawing business quick and somewhat safer, though still not idiot-proof :

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Portek-LogMaster-Saw-Horse-Unversal-Fitting-4-all-Chainsaws-Stihl-husqvarna-MM-/181890820294?_trksid=p2141725.m3641.l6368

With that, I just use a cheap leccy saw from Screwfix, which still goes through logs up to 200mm quickly and without drama, except when I fall over the lead.

lucielle

Yes we've stock those and the Draper log horse which is also good.


Need to get a new window for the house in Skye, it's ordered just waiting for it to be delivered and installed. The chaps also going to look at the other windows and grease them because he thinks the sea air isn't helping.
L

choille

Hi Dave - Try selling the handles - You may be surprised.

Our cheap leccy chainsaw from LIDLs needs a new chain as it's stretched & dangerous - priced a new one & it's about £25 plus they will take up to a month to deliver so OH went & got another out of Screwfix for £49! Terrible when they are becoming disposable - almost.

How much was your chain grinding machine Dave & where did you get it?

Lucielle - will the windows be put in before Winter? You would get the last of the good spell of weather up there - It seems to have turned.
The field fares appeared briefly to strip of the Rowan berries. The sky was filled with them.

Davesnave

choille wrote: »

Hi Dave - Try selling the handles - You may be surprised.

Our cheap leccy chainsaw from LIDLs needs a new chain as it's stretched & dangerous - priced a new one & it's about £25 plus they will take up to a month to deliver so OH went & got another out of Screwfix for £49! Terrible when they are becoming disposable - almost.

How much was your chain grinding machine Dave & where did you get it?

I get my saw chains from this place which specialises:
http://www.newsawchains.co.uk/epages/es108227.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/es108227_shop/Categories
They do Lidl and Screwfix chains.

As for the grinder, I bought this, which is one of the cheapest:
http://www.coopersofstortford.co.uk/coopers-of-stortford-chainsaw-sharpener-prodst09477i/

It will do for the cheap saw, but I think I want to get a proper set of files for the more expensive one I'm planning to buy, and the Husky too. There would be something satisfying about hand filing, if I could get the hang of it. Pete does his in the field while he works.:A

PS Buying anything from Coopers means months of catalogues featuring all those things you never knew you wanted, mainly because you didn't.

choille

That's excellent Dave - many thanks. I've made a note of the websites as they sound great & much cheaper than what we were quoted.

Loads of wood needing sawn in to logs, so if it's dry tomorrow maybe make a start on it with the new leccy cheapy from Screw Fix - Titan - which is anything but it's namesake. I think.

DaftyDuck

Plenty of cheap chains on ebay and Amazon, once you've figured out what the chainsize is. I assume you've adjusted the bar to take up slack, choille? Normally a hidden screw on the bar/motor housing. There's normally enough adjustment for the chain to wear out, not stretch. I got two (perfectly OK) ones for my electric chainsaw, £6:99 delivered (but they were on (genuine) offer). I buy good ones for my petrol chainsaws, but they work harder. Cheaper for the 'leccy (but it does have an Oregon on at the moment).

I use the old, generic electric for cutting up the smaller logs when they are back in the yard, and it's much nicer to handle than the heavier petrol ones - and easier to start! . It's got a fast chain speed (20m/s) which is unusual for electric, and I love it. Does eat oil, though.

I bought one of the Lidl electric chainsaw sharpeners recently, but have yet to use it. I have got some manual files, and they are obviously the only choice out in the field. It's much easier if you are a wimp, and get one with a filing guide attached. All the more important as, when I've been a lumberjacking, I'm pretty clumsy at dainty jobs. Decent files are under a tenner. Well, passably decent... I'm sure a pro one is pricey!

Mind you, my ancient wooden sawhorse is more repair than original by now. It has worked pretty hard this year, as there's about 28 cubic metres of wood cut. I've struggled to lift some of the largest logs onto it, so I'm not surprised it's weak at the knees (and ankles, arms and shoulder).

Now, if I'd managed to get my clever eco-heating system in, I'd be happy - and warm. However, that's waiting for next year, and we are still using the clunky old system this winter. Last two houses I've done up got their new heating systems installed over Christmas and New Year, with snow blowing (literally) through the house. Still, with the oil CH and open fires, we shouldn't freeze.

I do like Coopers' catalogues... remind me of the old Innovations ones, in the days when gadgets pre-dated the internet. We have a local set of hardware stores called Coopers, sell similar (but limited) stuff, but seem unrelated. Nice places, though and good for a browse. There are cooked breakfast places nearby, so ideal for a fake "early start".

choille

Thanks Dafty for that. I'll need to check it out tomorrow. It's that time of year when wood should all be sorted, but it ain't. Did get a cheap 2nd hand plastic! coal bunker for £30 so can't complain. We go to the yard - miles away & buy it wholesale at a much cheaper rate than from the coal man, so need to start filling it up.
We too have a hand made wooden saw horse that's still really good. It's heavy to shift, so sits where it's handiest.

Got a load of sheep going off next week, so have mixed feelings about that, so am being all busy so I can't think.

lucielle

Good luck with the sheep Choille. Hopefully the window will be here before Christmas. Got guests in at the end of the month.


Tried to mow the lawn but lawnmower needs a new blade boss on. Luckily know a man what can. Thought I'd finish cutting the hedge but the hedgecutter is at the workshop. So ended up sorting out the raspberry canes.
L