Blairgowrie

I went to see my new toy today. Holy jeez it is massive! The bucket is 60" wide. The boom is 23', the stick is 12'. Add another 4' for the bucket and the reach is therefore 39'. My partner is busy checking it out. It has a bad leak in the hydraulic pump but the new parts will be in this week and he hopes to be able to deliver it by the end of the week. He wants to repaint it but will wait for the winter when things are quiet. The meter shows only 9,000 hours which is not much on these big machines.

I went to see my new toy today. Holy jeez it is massive! The bucket is 60" wide. The boom is 23', the stick is 12'. Add another 4' for the bucket and the reach is therefore 39'. My partner is busy checking it out. It has a bad leak in the hydraulic pump but the new parts will be in this week and he hopes to be able to deliver it by the end of the week. He wants to repaint it but will wait for the winter when things are quiet. The meter shows only 9,000 hours which is not much on these big machines. [attachment=1]

I think we should declare a dividend.

I think we should declare a dividend.

I'll lock it Sweper. If anyone wants it repoened, just let me know.

I'll lock it Sweper. If anyone wants it repoened, just let me know.

All the best guys. Have a good one.

All the best guys. Have a good one.

That is so gross!

That is so gross!

It is a humungeous machine at 91,000 lbs. We really wanted something around the 50,000 lb mark but they were all selling for twice as much. On the plus side it will be able to dig fast with a huge bucket and has a long reach. Because I will be digging it myself, I will make sure the pond is nice and deep. I am so looking forward to it showing up.

That's the plan John. It might take me a while to get the hang of operating it properly but by the end of the first day I should be able to move some dirt. It didn't take me long to learn how to operate a backhoe. I'll need some instruction at first and have to be careful not to get into trouble. This is one very powerful excavator and I could do some real damage if I am not careful.

I am now the part owner of a 1994 Hitachi EX400. My logging buddy bought it at a Ritchie Auction yesterday. He has a float and a shop with a full time mechanic so it will go there first to be fully checked out then it will be delivered here. I will use it for some serious pond digging and peat moss removal. I have always wanted an excavator but have been afraid of big repair bills. This arrangement is perfect for me. The price was $20,000 so with taxes my share is $10,500. This is not the actual machine but is a pic of a 1989 EX400.

Impossible to insult JP, Sulky. He has no intel.

Hi Sid, I am running Crossfire with two X1950 XTX's. Only benefit I see is you can crank the eye candy up to maximum. Everything is nice and sharp. If you have an extra card I would recommend SLI.

Also a direct service from Stansted to Whittlesford Sged if that is your plan.

Whittlesford Station is almost across the street from the Red Lion so is perfect for you Sged.

This was originally posted at UBI Zoo. Fortunately, nobody was hurt in the incident.

I didn't realise that Maxtor I linked to, was a terabyte (1,000 gb). Anyway the Monster arrived yesterday and is now all set up. It is cool to the touch unlike the one a I had before, which was a Vantec. I think it must have a fan inside the case. This one works like a charm so I think it is safe to say the old one had packed it in. Ran Acronis last night and it backed everything up. This new hard drive came with it's own software for backing up so I didn't really need to use Acronis. But Acronis is so easy to use I am going to stick with it. Thanks all for your input.

All very nice Sven. Great pics.

Number 3 would be my political pick.

They are used for pumping water. It pumps from the pond you see to the gardens and also up to a second pond as well as another garden up the hill.

A couple of new developments. The guy who is digging the pond has offered me a 50 - 50 partnership in a High Ho. He is taking his excavator operator to a Ritchie Auction next Monday and they will look for a good in the region of $30,000. He has a full time mechanic on staff and a good shop. I have always been worried about a big repair bill on a excavator and this seems to mitigate this issue. He also has a float to move it around which is another concern I had. I don't have any spare cash right now but the wife has. She is on side. He is also logging some of my trees right now and I will contra the trees against landscaping services when he builds the pond. That will save me paying tax on the proceeds of his logging. The following are some photos taken today of one of his loggers skiddingout a couple of trees cut very close to the house. He cut them as I pushed them over with the backhoe. They were both leaning towards the house.