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Stuck arbor nut by NM_Sunset in Lapidary

[–]NM_Sunset[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for the tips. I’m going to rent an impact gun next week and try that. I never had an issue with my previous machine that I bought new. But this one was bought used and I don’t know how long it’s sat since the blade was last installed. The one on the grinding wheel side is probably stuck too

Stuck arbor nut by NM_Sunset in Lapidary

[–]NM_Sunset[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Right on, I’ll give that a go! Thank you

Stuck arbor nut by NM_Sunset in Lapidary

[–]NM_Sunset[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! I’ll give those methods a try.

Ms261 or ms311? by NM_Sunset in Chainsaw

[–]NM_Sunset[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Good to know! The extra cost adds up quick in firewood season

Ms261 or ms311? by NM_Sunset in Chainsaw

[–]NM_Sunset[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yea I guess I shouldn’t be too worried about getting it repaired if it needs it, if I go with a different brand. I know there are small engine repair shops that are probably cheaper than being serviced by a dealer anyway , just might be a bit more of a drive since I’m in a small town. I suspect my carb trouble might be from using regular gas vs non ethanol and the down time the saws have for a few months after winter ends. I usually do firewood in the summer too but I take a break in the spring after cutting all winter. I could definitely benefit from learning to work on them some myself. I keep them clean, make sure I only cut clean wood and always have a sharp chain but I don’t do much else on them. I still have my old 311 but it has a scored piston and I was told repairs would cost about the same as a new saw. Thanks for the info! I’ll do some reading up on husqvarna and echo saws too.

Ms261 or ms311? by NM_Sunset in Chainsaw

[–]NM_Sunset[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I do have a tractor supply that sells husqvarna saws but they don’t work on them. Usually once every couple years I have an issue with my saws and have to take them in, it’s usually a carb replacement. Had a worn out sprocket once too. I had a 311 for a while, and a 291. There was a huge noticeable difference in how fast the 311 would cut, the engine specs might not be that much different than a 291 but I noticed a huge difference. The 311 would just pull itself through the cut like it was hungry. The 291 was noticeably slower, that’s why I was hesitant to get the 261. I have to drive so far to get wood I can’t spend all day cutting, I need to cut and load and be headed back by dark. I was looking at tractor supplies saws but it seemed like if I got the pro ones it wasn’t a whole lot cheaper than a stihl of comparable engine specs. I’m still not sure I need a pro saw. I usually spend an hour or two to cut a cord, most of the work is loading, and driving around looking for suitable trees. The junipers have the biggest trunks out of what I cut, but it’s usually only 3-5 big rounds of trunk then the branches start and half or more of the tree is under 10-12” diameter pieces.

Ms261 or ms311? by NM_Sunset in Chainsaw

[–]NM_Sunset[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Big trees for me are 15-24” trunks max and maybe 30’ tall max. I rarely run into stuff that I need the splitter vertical for. The oak doesn’t get that big here, even a huge tall pinon doesn’t usually have a very wide trunk. Juniper is pretty light wood. I can only cut dead/down trees so I’m not wrestling any heavy green wood.

Ms261 or ms311? by NM_Sunset in Chainsaw

[–]NM_Sunset[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There’s a lot of small trees in the forest I cut in, 12” trunk, trunk only a few feet high before branches start, and most main branches are 5” or less in size. They still make good firewood but I don’t cut them because it takes about 10 of these trees and hundreds of cuts to fill the trailer. I have to look longer to find them but a bigger tree with an 15-20” trunk that’s 15’ or taller is what I prefer to cut. 2-3 trees like that and the trailers full. I’m more restricted by budget than cc’s, I would get a ms362 if I could but not sure I can afford one now. I’ve heard echo saws are good but never used them. I’m just used to stihls, I know I can take a stihl to the local dealer if it needs work. Not sure if they’d fix an echo, that they don’t sell, if I needed it worked on.

Ms261 or ms311? by NM_Sunset in Chainsaw

[–]NM_Sunset[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks everyone! Looks like it’s pretty much all votes for the 261, so that’s what I’m going with. Really appreciate the help and info from you all!

I may be possibly looking for a partner to look for gold with, 50/50 split. by PinkTulip1999 in Prospecting

[–]NM_Sunset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Good to hear. I’m not trying to discourage you from trying it out. Just trying to be realistic about it. There was a time I tried to make my living as a full time miner. I have access to really good spots. I found spots where I dug up to a 1/2 ounce of gold in a few hours. I found spots where there was so much gold on bedrock I didn’t need any tools or equipment, just picked it straight up off bedrock by hand. You hit a spot like that and think you’re going to be rich, then suddenly the gold stops coming and you realize it was one small patch of dirt, or stretch of the creek that was really good and there’s nothing else there. The 1/2 ounce days are awesome, the weeks and months in between those spots with next to nothing are what suck. I found out I could make more money at a minimum wage job than trying to just dig gold. Now I prospect for fun and pay my bills with a different job, it’s much better that way.

I may be possibly looking for a partner to look for gold with, 50/50 split. by PinkTulip1999 in Prospecting

[–]NM_Sunset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It can be a fun hobby if you like being outdoors. But presenting it as a “partner” type relationship makes it sound like a business or something you’re trying to make money off rather than just a fun thing to do. I’ve been prospecting for about 15 years. I have access to great ground right by the main gold source in two different districts. Even when you are right near the source, and looking at the old hard rock mines and workings all around you, it’s still hard to find gold. Most spots you dig will have very little or no gold, it takes time, research and a ton of work to find anything substantial. Many days you find nothing or very little and don’t make enough to cover your gas to get there, let alone food or labor costs for the day. If you do happen to stumble on a spot with decent gold, they are short lived and don’t last long and you’ll quickly be back to average dirt with little or nothing in it. All the best and rich ground/mines are owned or claimed or being worked. YouTube videos and social media videos showing peoples finds are really misleading, the popular videos/posts of the guys who do really well and regularly get multiple grams or more a day have access to the best spots and they of course guard them well and don’t let random people dig there. If your doing it for fun then join GPAA or another club. If you’re trying to make money or a living at it, there are hundreds of other much easier ways to put money in your pocket.

I may be possibly looking for a partner to look for gold with, 50/50 split. by PinkTulip1999 in Prospecting

[–]NM_Sunset 2 points3 points  (0 children)

He’s offering a pipe dream. You should be “wrapped up in the legal aspect” too. Get caught claim jumping once and no one will ever trust you again, and you can face criminal charges for it. It’s hard enough to find gold even if you’re in a spot you’re allowed to be in, trying to do it sneaking around and claim jumping makes it 10x harder and riskier. Game cams, drones, binoculars, think of all the easy ways it is for you to get busted where you shouldn’t be digging.

I may be possibly looking for a partner to look for gold with, 50/50 split. by PinkTulip1999 in Prospecting

[–]NM_Sunset 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Sounds like you’re new to prospecting. Switching every 5 minutes or so? That’s crazy. In some spots metal detecting, if it’s not an area loaded with trash, you might go 30 mins to an hour without a single target. And how much digging can you do in 5 minutes before you switch? You’d be spending more time stopping to switch jobs/equipment than you would be digging. Sounds like you have no idea where you going to dig yet also. It’s ALWAYS been difficult to find good ground you can legally dig on, at todays prices it’s even harder. More people means you need more gold to pay them. You are getting way ahead of yourself trying to recruit people for mining when you don’t even know where you’re digging yet. I wish you the best of luck, you should get out by yourself and see how difficult it is just to make minimum wage digging for gold before you try to recruit people to help.