Eric Salop
Elite Member
Good morning, the rain looks set in for the day.
Finally got to try out the Stihl FS90R. After 5 minutes with the supplied nylon line I swapped over to the 10", 3 blade knife and walked over to the wetland for the last hour of daylight. This area used to be very popular with small wading birds, but is now too overgrown for them. It is always far too wet to get a tractor in, even in the driest of summers. A hand held brush cutter seemed the only viable option, although at 1.5 acres, I knew it would take some time to do.
The Stihl was fabulous, as many of you told me it would be. I hardly noticed the weight and the knife blades didn't hesitate to chop down anything that got in their way. Much better than the 4 stroke Honda I used to have, with the FS90 having far less vibrations.
I initially intended venturing no further than a few yards from the fence, as beyond that the ground floats and I only had knee length waterproof boots on (which we call "Wellingtons" or "Wellies". ) I got a bit carried away with how easy it was to cut and kept moving towards the centre, even though I could feel the ground starting to bob up and down each time I took a step forward. The cut vegetation was forming a mat for me to walk on and stop me sinking. A weird sensation, but quite fascinating. How far could I get like this ? Only one way for an idiot like me to find out, so I kept cutting, making it right out to the open water in the middle. As I turned to come back I must have twisted the supporting mat away and my left boot immediately broke through the surface, dropping me down up to my thighs. Within a second the cold water had rushed in to say hello to my toes. At least it was only water, I have sunk before in this bog and in most places it is a muddy ooze that is reluctant to let go.
Finally got to try out the Stihl FS90R. After 5 minutes with the supplied nylon line I swapped over to the 10", 3 blade knife and walked over to the wetland for the last hour of daylight. This area used to be very popular with small wading birds, but is now too overgrown for them. It is always far too wet to get a tractor in, even in the driest of summers. A hand held brush cutter seemed the only viable option, although at 1.5 acres, I knew it would take some time to do.
The Stihl was fabulous, as many of you told me it would be. I hardly noticed the weight and the knife blades didn't hesitate to chop down anything that got in their way. Much better than the 4 stroke Honda I used to have, with the FS90 having far less vibrations.
I initially intended venturing no further than a few yards from the fence, as beyond that the ground floats and I only had knee length waterproof boots on (which we call "Wellingtons" or "Wellies". ) I got a bit carried away with how easy it was to cut and kept moving towards the centre, even though I could feel the ground starting to bob up and down each time I took a step forward. The cut vegetation was forming a mat for me to walk on and stop me sinking. A weird sensation, but quite fascinating. How far could I get like this ? Only one way for an idiot like me to find out, so I kept cutting, making it right out to the open water in the middle. As I turned to come back I must have twisted the supporting mat away and my left boot immediately broke through the surface, dropping me down up to my thighs. Within a second the cold water had rushed in to say hello to my toes. At least it was only water, I have sunk before in this bog and in most places it is a muddy ooze that is reluctant to let go.
