[Mark Cowdrey]

Joshua,
I’m not much of a welder, I tack together the arches I make & have a “real” welder do the structural stuff. BTW, in reference to the welding thread that is going, I use a Hobart 110 rig with flux core wire and have been very happy with it. I learned to gas weld years ago but have never used a “stick” machine. What is the role of the charcoal? Make a fire to heat the whole piece before working on it? And nickel is the rod choice for cast?

Jac,
Having a piece fabbed out of 2″ steel is a fascinating alternative though I expect it would be pricey. Then again, we’ll see what Norm at MacNair’s (Thanks, Marshall) will want for an OEM piece.

Joel,
Townline is over in Plainfield, NH. I was over there the other day for rake bearings. Are you thinking they might have the part new?

Thanks all,

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

Here are a couple photos showing the spreader & trying to show the piece that I need.
Thanks.

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

Carl,

Does your grinder charge by the hour or the job? Can you give us some idea of the expense? Seems like a good compromise “jump start” solution.

Thanks,

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

The mags have a new home.

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

Larry,

I haven’t tried the Canterbury outfit but Green Mountain’s (of Windsor, VT) Maple Sugar cure is the best I have found. Ultimate combo of sweet & salt.

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

Jen,

My understanding of the applicable regulations is that uninspected meat cannot be legally sold in the State. However, in actual common practice, regardless of its “true” legality, I can “sell” you a portion of a live animal & then arrange to have it slaughtered, butchered & wrapped for you. This is sometimes referred to as “custom” slaughtering. In order to maintain the plausibility of such an arrangement, the portion of the animal has to be something reasonable size-wise, for example, a quarter. Eighths, sixteenths start to get kind of weird in a couple dimensions, believability being one.

If you have your work done by a federally inspected (USDA) facility, any cuts in any amounts can be sold. They will come to you labeled as inspected.

I found the link below which is interesting. Apparently we have an RSA in place for state inspection for intrastate sales of meat. I am virtually certain that this is not active & not currently available. So much for no broad base tax….

http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/RSA/html/XL/427/427-mrg.htm

I choose not to use the only federal slaughterhouse in NH. I have been trucking to Randolph Vt to The Royal Butcher for the last few years. I just picked up 2 pigs worth of pork there Tuesday. I had a large amount put into sausage as that is my market. Most of it was done in the wrong flavor. I am contemplating getting out of raising for others or going to pirate status. We will see.

Later:

I have not thoroughly read the RSA. I would be interested in others opinion. It seems to me that although it is not as ideal as a hands off approach by the authorities, it would allow more facilities to provide “legal” INTRAstate meat.

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

Here’s a thought regarding using a single on a machine modeled on the riding cultivators such as McD & JD:

I have a smallish 2-bob sleigh with both shaves & a pole. The shaves are offset so that the horse walks in one (I believe the near) runner track. Assuming an appropriate draft load, could the same thing be done with a riding cultivator?

Just a thought,

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

Erika,
That looks like it might be a 2×6 in that as yet drafty sugar house?

Mitch,
That stump you are watching, did you cut that tree when the moon was waxing or waning?

Ed,
I put out about 100 here, 2/3 on 2 different lines and 1/3 buckets. I partner up with 2 other guys, one who has a sugar house. Last year we did 450 taps total, this year it will be close to 1000. This on a 2.5×8. The guy with the sugar house has “iron disease” (never saw a piece of equipment he didn’t want to buy) and has gotten an RO despite my protestations that that is “Republican sugarmaking”. I figure it is bound to break down at the least convenient time.

Maybe some day I’ll have a nice 2×6 here at my place.

Good luck all.

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

Hung a test bucket yesterday. Got maybe a pint for the day. Probably do some prep work Saturday & tap late next week.

Mark

PS you may want to check out http://www.mapletrader.com for news

[Mark Cowdrey]

Ed,

I didn’t end up using it a whole lot. As a matter of fact I just dragged it out of the barn & disassembled it yesterday. It’s been sitting there for 3 years at least. The bob came from my sleigh & I needed it for that.

I guess you could put half a cord on it. If the going is side hill at all & the wood frozen you would want to chain it down. I have gone to hauling my stuff long lengths with the arch to the wood yard near the house and bucking & stacking it there. Saves handling it once and works very well in a winter like this when we have no mud. The dray is good for keeping wood clean in muddy conditions.

I can see how a dray would work well in a bucket sap operation. I know at one time anyway John Rhicard used one with a bob to start the season & had one with wheels for when the snow was gone. He called them both “drays”.

Are we going to see you at Sanborn Mills on the 27th?

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

Here’s one I set up a few years ago.

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

Tim, From the looks of the thought that went into that arch I would guess that Donn generates the heat from inside the dome! I use one of those thin little beanies under my helmet to keep my “chrome” warm.

Donn, nice job. I like the low draft point. I must admit though I can’t quite figure out how it works. I’ll have to take another look at those pictures. I wonder if a gentler sweep on the front of the runners might serve you well in deeper snow and getting over obstacles. I used spray paint on the first few arches I made but it is rough on the fingers. Now I take them to a body shop to have them done. The current price to paint is $45 plus paint doing 4-6 at a time. Brush would be OK if it is just for you but if you intend to shop it pray would look better. (In my opinion.)

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

Also:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/agriculture/farming/6828878/Britain-facing-food-crisis-as-worlds-soil-vanishes-in-60-years.html

[Mark Cowdrey]

Hoping to see some of you folks Saturday.

Mark

[Mark Cowdrey]

I have mats in my box stall for the express purpose of conserving urine. I have dirt under them. I use shavings on them the same as I would if they were not there to soak up the urine & to provide what seems to me to be a more comfortable (warmer? softer?) lying surface. As an alternative to mats, you might try a sacrificial wood layer on top of your structural layer. I do that in my tie stalls. This would still require bedding however.

What kind of caulks do you have? I would think sharp ones would tear them up but borium might not be too bad.

If the mats don’t fit tight wall to wall they will move around.

I expect that the mats would tend to rot your floor faster by holding the moisture that comes off the ground below. I don’t recall how much air circulation you have under the floor. That could be the saving grace rot-wise.

Its always something, isn’t it?

Good luck, See you in a week.

Mark

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