Selfsufficientish.com

British Red wrote:Would love to see some photographs of your charcoal operation Bp - do you use charcoal kilns or something home made?

Its a skill I have always wanted to develop but never have

Unfortunately our mobile internet connection is not good enough to post images today. It goes up and down quite a lot depending on weather/ it's mood/something else, (I'm not really sure). There are some photos of our courses on www.devoncharcoal.co.uk which is a new site to promote Devon made charcoal.

When we have a better connection I'll post some on Selfsufficientish.

[quote="Bulworthyproject"]Great thread.


All the farmers round us laugh at our level of safety gear and then in the same breath tell us about the horrific accidents that they and their friends have had.


But they're just farmers......so too thick for irony huh??..

makes me feel embarrassed using a chainsaw with T-shirt, shorts and sandals !

those wedges look neat though... had a few problems with Y-shaped bits

oldjerry wrote:

Bulworthyproject wrote:Great thread.


All the farmers round us laugh at our level of safety gear and then in the same breath tell us about the horrific accidents that they and their friends have had.


But they're just farmers......so too thick for irony huh??..

I feel that it is interesting that you assume it to be a comment on the level of inteligence of farmers. You should not underestimate the inteligence that it takes to run a multifaceted business such as a farm. My comment is merely about my experience of wearing PPE in the countryside. Most farmers have been using chainsaws since before modern protective equipment was invented. They therefore do not tend to use it. The irony does not escape them and I did not imply that it does.

I'd agree with you 100% Bulworthyproject, most of the farmers I know are highly scientific thinkers, very good engineers, highly versed in biology and have a whole parcel of other skills to boot.

Such discourtesy is wholly uncalled for in my view

Bulworthyproject wrote:My comment is merely about my experience of wearing PPE in the countryside. Most farmers have been using chainsaws since before modern protective equipment was invented.

Ah, that would be me then.
I have to admit that the only PPE that I wear is eye protection and that's only because I wear glasses. I can totally see the benefits of wearing it all, but I just can't stand being restricted in such a manner, it's a personal thing.
I don't even like wearing a boiler suit.

To be fair, if you've got away with it for a long time you'll probably continue to do so. For the beginer, PPE is a lot cheeper than a replacement leg.

Bulworthyproject wrote:.


The irony does not escape them and I did not imply that it does.

I wasn't implying that they were the ones missing the irony ,but there you go.Actually, as one who farmed for over 40 years (and my father before me),I can tell you that largely they're like most people,some are very capable,some are hopeless,some are scientific,others really aren't,some get irony,some don't,and some are just rude.

It's maybe because I got pissed as a rat last night - so I'm ultra-sensitive. Or it may be that I over-react to stupid posts from self-appointed experts (and no, I'm not pointing any fingers here).

Humans have been cutting down trees for a fair old time now. Humans have not had PPE for the same amount of time. PPE is, inarguably, a good idea. PPE is not, demonstrably, a prerequisite of chopping up a piece of wood.

If we, as a species, had refused to cut down a tree until someone had developed a super-safe way to do it, we'd still be running away from any animal with a deep growl.

There are ways and means of doing most things. Some are safer, some are more efficient, some are cheaper. Some are, given a lack of resources or time, simply a way to get a job done.

Story of my life, really - get the job done.

Mike

Absolutely right MKG - nothing is a prerequisite - Indeed chainsaw suits were not around when chainsaws were invented. Personally, I would rather demonstrate the safe way of doing it, and let others make the decision not to use it for themselves.

Personally I find any legislation (e.g. crash helmets on motorcycles, seatbelts in cars) that enforce the use of PPE and safety equipment are Nanny Statism at its worst and should be repealed - the same as the majority of firearms laws that are just knee jerk legislation - but that's just me

Red