Pitchcare Classifieds
forbid, if you slow down to a virtual stop to remove the flag (I know none of you do this), then you are almost scorching that area of grass! This doesn’t happen with the Eclipse because, as you slow down, the reels slow down, so if you stop to remove the flag, the reels actually stop rotating. And, once you have entered your preferred FOC, it is protected by a pass code that only you are privy to, so it can’t be changed by the other members of the team.
Using the pass code and the screen, you can adjust the FOC to say 350 cuts per metre and you will remove more grass WITHOUT lowering the height of cut. We’ve actually done this. What an innovation!
After a few weeks of basic cutting at ‘normal’ settings, we got down to seeing exactly what this new hybrid triplex was all about. We were familiar with FOC from our Eclipse pedestrian mowers as we use them through the autumn and winter months, but to have the same technology on a triple, this was something else.
First, we sat down and decided that any testing would take place on the same green and we made the easy choice using the 4th, the flattest green we have.
Then we had to decide how to conduct a test. I had read that in the USA to test the Eclipse they cut a single strip, stimped it, changed the FOC, cut another strip, stimp and so on; so that was it, we pinched the idea and off we went.
The machine was set with a FOC of 2.5 and away we went; the first thing I noticed was the ‘tightness’, a good clean cut moving across the green fairly rapidly and, at the end of the run, the grass boxes emptied and this first strip was stimped and recorded.
The whole exercise was repeated a further five times, looking at the cut, grass collected and the stimp reading. Ranging from 2.5 (400 cuts per metre) down to 1.2 (833 cuts per metre), the changes in FOC can be seen visually, the same tight, smooth finish but, more importantly, more clippings! Increasing clip rate by lowering the frequency of cut gives a tighter sward, smoother surface and more cuts per metre equates to more clippings removed and an increase in green speed - all achieved without reducing height of cut! That’s got to be a win-win situation for the greenkeeper and raises the question ‘will this new
type of greens mower eventually kill off the need for low heights of cut?’ In the time we have been using the Eclipse and continuing our good practices such as topdressing, verti-cutting, aerating and brushing, our green speeds have increased, proving that the Eclipse has done the job we were hoping for. Using the Eclipse, we have easy, reliable greens mowing with the option of changing frequency of cut when you need to: Captains day, club competitions, big visiting parties - the Eclipse covers them all. Running costs for any machine are a big issue; the cost of fuel and servicing has to be taken into consideration. Jacobsen made a bold statement about the fuel savings when they launched the Eclipse, so again we put it to the test. After filling the 21 litre fuel tank, we were off; 18 greens plus putting green with perimeter cut (8,600 sq./metres), plus travelling used a miserly 3.4 litres! To say we were amazed is an understatement. The small 2 cylinder Kubota engine to power the generator is superb, bullet proof reliability with the same Kubota ease of access for servicing. With only three filters to change - fuel, oil and air - plus 2.5 litres of old oil to dispose of, the servicing of the unit is very simple. The main thing for me though as head greenkeeper is that I have no fear of the dreaded hydraulic leak! Possibly the worst thing that could ever happen, those yellow lines burnt into your precious putting surface, those same lines that are still visible weeks after your repair work, the same lines you want to magically disappear!
I must say that fear has now gone and it’s a massive relief; all electric lift, electric reel motors, fly-by-wire steering, no hydraulic rams, no hydraulic pipes, no hydraulic oil! And I love it! So, what conclusions have we come up with over the last two years? Well, to say it’s the biggest breakthrough in greens cutting technology since the introduction of triple mowing back in 1970s is a bold statement but, in my opinion, it is.
The ease of use, combined with the peace of mind factor of no oil spills, puts the operator’s mind firmly at ease. The quality of cut from the Classic XP units, again combined with the flexibility of the FOC, is something ground breaking in the industry. Increase in putting speeds without tampering with the height of cut; what a tool to have in your armoury!
My advice to every greenkeeper is that this technology is here now and here to stay, so embrace it. Don’t ignore it as a gimmick that will vanish in a few years, like a lot of the ‘new’ products that will make the greenkeepers life easier. Having purchased both the Eclipse 122 pedestrians and the Eclipse 322 triple, I wait in anticipation on how they can improve these models, if possible, and also how they can produce new machines? So, come on Jake, get your finger out; give us a fairway mower!!
PC AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2014 I 151 DRAINAGE IRRIGATION
For all your golf, sportsturf and landscape irrigation needs.
Buy online at
www.lws.uk.com
Telephone 0345 230 9697
www.lws.uk.com
Miles Drainage Limited
Quality Land Drainage Systems for Sports Pitches, Golf Courses and other Amenity Areas
•Advice, design and installation •Piped systems •Sand Slitting •Gravel Banding
Tel: 01359 259424 Fax: 01359 258073 Web:
www.milesdrainage.co.uk
Email:
trenchers@milesdrainage.co.uk DRAIN TODAY - PLAY TOMORROW Phone: 01507 578288
Fax: 01507 578790
info@sheltonsdrainage.com www.sheltonsdrainage.com
Hire and contracting services Machine sales
Why not visit our online Buyers Guide for direct links to suppliers websites and email addresses
www.pitchcare.com
SPORTS TURF DRAINAGE AND CONSTRUCTION
NATIONWIDE SERVICE
www.turfdry.com
Contact: Melvyn Taylor
Office: 01283 551417 Mobile: 07836 259133 Email:
melvyn@turfdry.com
IRRIGATION
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156 |
Page 157 |
Page 158 |
Page 159 |
Page 160 |
Page 161 |
Page 162 |
Page 163 |
Page 164