Gang Mowers - cutting playing field

[manfromdelmonte]

Hello all

our club is looking at buying a 3-unit gang mower for our field to cut the grass
it will basically be towed behind a small tractor or jeep, once the ground hardens in the summer
we have been using a normal tractor mower and it doesn't do a great job once there is good grass growth.

has anyone advice on the best option or where to source one?
thanks

[illdecide]

Hello all

our club is looking at buying a 3-unit gang mower for our field to cut the grass
it will basically be towed behind a small tractor or jeep, once the ground hardens in the summer
we have been using a normal tractor mower and it doesn't do a great job once there is good grass growth.

has anyone advice on the best option or where to source one?
thanks

Use a cylinder mower over a rotary mower as it cuts the grass much better, get someone in for your first cut of the year who will lift and dispose of the cut grass for you then you will have to cut your own grass at least 2 times a week sometimes more if you have her well fertilized so there will be no lying grass on the pitch after you cut it. What part of the country are u in as i know a good GAA man who deals in them? A nice we Hayter with 3 gang and a cab is the ticket...There is a thread somewhere here about maintenance and stuff if u dig it out

[blewuporstuffed]

Without doing all the sums, I would imagine you might be better off just giving someone the contract of cutting the pitch for the year, saves on the outlay on machinery, maintenance and getting someone to actually cut it every time.
I know that's what we do, and its more reasonable than you would think.

[manfromdelmonte]

We are a small rural club and I don't know if we can afford to invest large sums in a Hayter 3 gang mower
We're based in the midlands.

The field has really suffered in the past few years and there has been virtually no investment in it.
In fact the field reflects the ham fisted approach to everything in the club imho. Everyone talking about it, and they all know the problems but not prepared to deal with the issue and just get the thing sorted.

I always think the quality of a playing field reflects how well a club is run. its the first thing people notice

the first cut idea is a good idea.
I appreciate any advice

[magpie seanie]

We sourced a gang mower from a golf club that were upgrading theirs. It does a lovely cut but someone has to do the cutting, maintain the mower, store it etc. We eventually contracted it out and for our club it's the best job. Not as expensive as you'd think (shop around, there's always a hungry fella about who'll undercut to get the regular work) and it leaves your club volunteers with more time on their hands to do other things.

[Denn Forever]

Are ride  m0wers any good? 

[manfromdelmonte]

We have a family that cut the field with their own tractor and mower, and have done for years
they don't charge much, barely cover the diesel for the year but it doesn't do a good job, and they don't keep it cut enough.

we have another lad in the club who services mowers etc so that side shouldn't a huge issue as he won't kill us with the bills for ongoing maintenance

the trick is to present a solution to the 'cutting of the field' problem.
I would have though a gang mower pulled behind a jeep or small tractor in the summer (considering a lot of people have jeeps or small tractors) would be a sensible solution and we could do up a rota to keep the field cut 3 times a week.

[stew]

You can ask HQ for help with those expenses however I used a golf course mower as Seanie suggested and it works out great, it highlighted the fact that there were expenses outside of renting a field to train for me and  brought into play insurance, new equipment etc which opened people's eyes.

[illdecide]

First of all what can u afford and is the man power there to do the work, if u can cut 2-3 times a week then it will probably work out cheaper to buy your own mower as you're talking about 80 cuts per year (do the math). u will also need to ground break the pitch and verti drain it as well as sand to fill in any crevices and help with the drainage. u will need to fertilize the pitch 3-5 times per season depending on pitch and what u can afford.

It's a how long is a piece of string question? i dunno how much money your club have and don't know the standard of pitch you're looking to achieve and do u have a training pitch, these are all major factors on cost. You could get a smashing Hayter mower for about £4-5k but if it's to run around a cow field then i wouldn't bother...It's all down to what you want to achieve and how much the club can afford...if money is really tight you can obviously cut back on some of the above...

[johnneycool]

First of all what can u afford and is the man power there to do the work, if u can cut 2-3 times a week then it will probably work out cheaper to buy your own mower as you're talking about 80 cuts per year (do the math). u will also need to ground break the pitch and verti drain it as well as sand to fill in any crevices and help with the drainage. u will need to fertilize the pitch 3-5 times per season depending on pitch and what u can afford.

It's a how long is a piece of string question? i dunno how much money your club have and don't know the standard of pitch you're looking to achieve and do u have a training pitch, these are all major factors on cost. You could get a smashing Hayter mower for about £4-5k but if it's to run around a cow field then i wouldn't bother...It's all down to what you want to achieve and how much the club can afford...if money is really tight you can obviously cut back on some of the above...

Our first cut of the year is now always our four legged friends who do a great job in weeding and fertilising all in the one go. TBH, we only started this the last few years and it was recommended by a lad who lays pitches for a living, and provided you get a good few cuts in before the first game the shite will be turned into powder.

We've three lads of retirement age who look after our pitch and its never been better, one cuts the pitch once, maybe twice a week and the other two upkeep the rest with lawn mowers and strimmers, plus the odd bit of roundup

[manfromdelmonte]

Would your four legged friends not pock mark the field and damage it? Just wondering.

The playing field has no drainage and is a natural clay surface with no sports grass on it.
Great because we never have serious injuries in the club.
Not great when a team comes to visit and the pitch looks in shiite.

We've a lot of improvements that I'd love to make, but getting past the 'sure it's worked ok for the last 15 years' attitude is the problem.

[illdecide]

Would your four legged friends not pock mark the field and damage it? Just wondering.

The playing field has no drainage and is a natural clay surface with no sports grass on it.
Great because we never have serious injuries in the club.
Not great when a team comes to visit and the pitch looks in shiite.

We've a lot of improvements that I'd love to make, but getting past the 'sure it's worked ok for the last 15 years' attitude is the problem.

TBH i'm not sure how to answer this...i'm trying to help u out but with no drainage and a pretty rough surface it'll be hard, i could tell you to put 40-50 tonne of sand (not just ordinary sand) spread over the pitch which would improve it slightly but i don't know the properties of the clay underneath the topsoil (could be a bog). Is there a drain running either side of your pitch? You could improve the pitch 10 fold and wouldn't cost you a fortune but it still wouldn't be no Croke Park. The biggest help u can give a pitch is regular fertilizing and verti drain it twice a year but in your case you've no drainage to verti drain down too will still provide better irrigation and let the soil breathe but fertilize it and cut 2-3 times a week will strengthen the grass and improve it greatly...

1) Ground break or Verti drain the pitch
2) Throw over a 4-5mm spreading of Lough Neagh sand (if pitch is 130m x 80m then you'll need roughly 40-45 tonne)
3) Give it a generous spread of quick release fertilizer in late March and get your first cut done with someone that will lift it and dispose of it for you.
4) Regular cutting (2-3 times per week with cylinder mower)
5) In mid to late may hit it with a 28-3-10 fertilizer...great stuff but expensive but it's like viagra to grass

If it's really warm and getting plenty of moisture by the end of May or early June for about 4 weeks you might have to cut the grass every 2 days...

Good Luck.

[johnneycool]

Would your four legged friends not pock mark the field and damage it? Just wondering.

The playing field has no drainage and is a natural clay surface with no sports grass on it.
Great because we never have serious injuries in the club.
Not great when a team comes to visit and the pitch looks in shiite.

We've a lot of improvements that I'd love to make, but getting past the 'sure it's worked ok for the last 15 years' attitude is the problem.

Granted its a bit wet at the minute, but as long as there's a bit of firmness in the ground, the four legged friends won't leave any divots or pock marks

[illdecide]

Would your four legged friends not pock mark the field and damage it? Just wondering.

The playing field has no drainage and is a natural clay surface with no sports grass on it.
Great because we never have serious injuries in the club.
Not great when a team comes to visit and the pitch looks in shiite.

We've a lot of improvements that I'd love to make, but getting past the 'sure it's worked ok for the last 15 years' attitude is the problem.

Granted its a bit wet at the minute, but as long as there's a bit of firmness in the ground, the four legged friends won't leave any divots or pock marks

Lol...Seriously man.

[johnneycool]

Would your four legged friends not pock mark the field and damage it? Just wondering.

The playing field has no drainage and is a natural clay surface with no sports grass on it.
Great because we never have serious injuries in the club.
Not great when a team comes to visit and the pitch looks in shiite.

We've a lot of improvements that I'd love to make, but getting past the 'sure it's worked ok for the last 15 years' attitude is the problem.

Granted its a bit wet at the minute, but as long as there's a bit of firmness in the ground, the four legged friends won't leave any divots or pock marks

Lol...Seriously man.

Yip, seriously.

We were advised to do it by a contractor who regularly does pitches and various sports surfaces and our pitch has never been better.