Hi,
My cricket club want to buy a rotary mower to use on our square during times when it is not possible to use the cylinder mower (e.g. start of season and during the winter). Todate I have been using my own Hayter 48 with a new blade which works well. I am tempted to get another Hayter. We are looking to spend up to £500.
Has anyone got any reccomendations?
Phil
http://www.honda.co.uk/garden/lawnmowers/HRG415PD/
Don't talk to me about Contractors Wonka, I am one myself......
Was it Northants using rotary rear roller mowers for their square? If anyone can link the article from last Autumn it may be worth reading Philip. It was really well written and explained a lot.
23 Mar 2011 by Pitchcare Peter Last edited 23 Mar 2011
Here's the article eddy refers to -
http://www.pitchcare.com/magazine/marshalling-his-troops.html
Cheers
Peter
23 Mar 2011 by Charles Johnson
In the wet months out-of-season you want a machine that is as light as possible, you will want a big blade and assisted drive for the large area, and one which picks up all the clippings and debris really well even in moist conditions.
I would say that the Hayter is too heavy, and the roller must get clagged ? Low cut is not the issue.
I used an old 4-wheel plastic-shell 20" rotary, Mountfield 510pd or similar, with a moulded plastic collector rather than a mesh fabric. It had a really easy clutch, and was light enough to lift the back to manoeuvre.
Kept the blade razor sharp. It was ideal in all conditions and collected like it was a vacuum cleaner. In the summer it doubled as a verge mower.
I have a hayter ranger and used it for the first on the square this winter . The reason being was that the square needed a trim but the worm casts made impossible to use my cylinder square mower. I was worried about using it cos I thought it would be a bit crude. It has no roller on it and worked better for that. It left some lines where the small tyres had been but these go after a while and it had the added bonus of sucking up the leaves and any other rubbish. I will use it again next year
What do I do? I just cut the grass.
Philip,
£500? Do you have money to burn? You're looking for a mower to use no more than half a dozen times a year and yet you'll spend as much as many clubs spend on annual renovations?
Good luck to you if you really are that well off, but I would spend £150 on the rotary and put the rest towards a decent service on the square or the square mowers.
No, I'll be completely honest. On our budget I wouldn't spend squit on the rotary if it was really only for winter cutting. Find someone in the club with an old one in the garage that they want rid of and just fit a new blade, then spend the £480 on the important kit - or on worm suppressant so that you can use the existing cylinder mower (if it's too wet for the cylinder, I guess it's too wet for a rotary with wheels)
The ciderman rolls
25 Mar 2011 by A J Last edited 25 Mar 2011
Jon
you may not see it as a important tool on your square. But to the guys who do this job for living it can be a very helpful bit of kit. I find it quite disrespectful when you suggest they spend the money on better things like worm control? The guy is asking for advise on a peace of equipment fit for purpose. And no doubt the club will find many uses for the rotary they go with. He's already using his own rotary that costs more than £500 new?
Philipfish, I would look at something with a smooth roller and fan assisted blade vacume type that will give you a better collection? We run jd rotary's which give good service for the money, the Honda clone - Kazz Danarm is a excellent mower but a lot more expensive but cheaper than it's original host.
Grow in grace...........
And there was me thinking £500 wasn't enough.........
http://www.honda.co.uk/garden/lawnmowers/HRG415PD/
I know where one is going at a good price, unused.............
Don't talk to me about Contractors Wonka, I am one myself......
Isn't the point that when it's too wet for cylinder, that's exactly when you can use a rotary? I used my hayter ranger on the square , the blade isnt new or sharp either, when it was too wet for the cylinder but I needed to cut. Also, it worked well on picking up leaves and anything else loose blown on by the wind.
A decent rotary can be used for many things and is a great tool to have.
Bloke is asking for advice on what rotary to buy, he wasn't asking for a lecture about being a spendthrift.
What do I do? I just cut the grass.
Andy, Philip
Not intended as disrespectful and I hoped it was clear that my reply was for my circumstances - I hadn't realised Philip was a professional groundsman. I'm not used to professionals, we only have less than a handful here in Lincolnshire as far as I am aware.
Perhaps I'm just too cynical but I'd come from a meeting where I'd heard a senior club planning to spend >£600 on an outdoor roll down net mat, but they spend next to nothing on improving their square.
I get frustrated when I see clubs with all of the training gear in the catalogue, but no fit surface for the players. Likewise, I see some clubs spend several thousands on ground equipment and overseas pros, yet do nothing to address poor pitches.
I do not understand the benefits that a rotary mower brings over a cylinder mower on a cricket square. I've not bought in to the argument about a cylinder mower pulling seedlings out of the ground - I've not seen any evidence of that myself. Poor grass cover leading to mud pick-up can be an issue with cylinder mowers in winter - but rotaries with wheels are even worse in my experience - so I no longer use a rotary at all on the square - just around the periphery of the ground. There, for me, the issues are very different and focus on strength of the mower to cope with hitting fallen wood or other litter and ground clearance - very different selection criteria than for the square.
The argument I can see for a rotary on the square is if you have lots of worm casts that you don't want to flatten with a mower roller.
The ciderman rolls
Jon
The wheels are not an issue,grass as you know is hardy. If you have trouble with casts on your square, the rotary can be useful. Spraying to elemi ate worms can be expensive and not always successful. My ground in winter is plagued by leaves and the rotary works well on that problem as well.
What do I do? I just cut the grass.
26 Mar 2011 by Zippy
Can recommend the Honda Izy.
I bought the 18" one 5-6 years ago and use it on the square during the autmumn and also to hover up debris after verticutting during the summer and it works really well.
You get a lot of mower for the money and they are easy to maintain.
28 Mar 2011 by A J
jon
Firstly,
no one is suggesting that the rotary has more of a impact on the square over the cylinder mower?(not for close mowing) No more than it does on a Football/Rugby pitch. Yet ground staff mow their pitches with them( most likely stadia pitches) because of their vacuum/suction capability's of removing surface rubbish? after match pitch repairs maintenance, so on etc.
Folks that have them might prefer to use on their squares as a aid for cleaning up after scarification, mowing of new seed, out of season mowing. etc etc.
We had this debate if you remember back in november message 24511. quite a lengthy one? Ok, your not convinced, not a problem, you can live without them. But they can be of a big benefit if you wish to use one. That's all.
Cheers
Andy.
Grow in grace...........
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