Reel mower and the mission for KBG under 1"

[Pete1313]

GeorgeH and Kmartel aside why should the warm-season guys have all the fun? You know the forum that has a topic 27 pages long filled mostly with professional quality, close mowed, sports turf? Picked up a new toy last night, it's a JD 220sl pecision cut. Plan on going low this fall. JD specs show HOC from 1/8"-7/8", but Max actual HOC appears to be around 1 3/8" with it when i tested it today. I plan on getting the bewitched to around 7/8"-1" this fall, so it can look similar to the infield my Chicago Cubbies play on. I currently have been mowing short all summer at around 2" +or- with a hrx217hza.

Current pic at 2"


The toy



The Max HOC


The stripes it's capable of

[Southernguy311]

Congrats and I wish you great success ahead

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[HoosierLawnGnome]

Man this is going to be awesome. I wish I could do this. I love low cut KBG.

1 1/2" is about as low as I can go since my soil is a bit uneven.

[ Post made via Android ]

[Green]

Interesting!

Looks like a professional baseball field.

How well does it survive the winter at an inch or less?

[Pete1313]

Man this is going to be awesome. I wish I could do this. I love low cut KBG.

1 1/2" is about as low as I can go since my soil is a bit uneven.

[ Post made via Android ]

HLG you should. Topdressing will help level it out. That aside, a reel mower will allow you to go lower without scalping do to the front and rear rollers being much closer than the wheels on your typical rotory. You could start on the high end of the HOC and work your way down as you smooth out the turf. Some tee and apron mowers have a max HOC that is a 1/4 to 3/8 higher than this model.

[ Post made via Android ]

[Pete1313]

How well does it survive the winter at an inch or less?

I can't answer if it is the same or not, however there are golf courses that have it at fairway height and sports fields that have it at 1 or lower. Last year I put my lawn to sleep at 1.2" and looked really good when it woke up.

[ Post made via Android ]

[Kmartel]

Looks awesome. Congrats on the new mower. I think a reel mower is one of the best improvements you can do to your lawn.


Sent from my iOS device using the Yard Help App

[schreibdave]

I was intrigued until a quick google search revealed a $9,000 price tag! My family's Director of Finance is not going to approve that purchase request.

[Pete1313]

I was intrigued until a quick google search revealed a $9,000 price tag! My family's Director of Finance is not going to approve that purchase request.

For a brand new one. I didn't pay anything near that price.
http://aroundtheyard.com/equipment/golf ... 13-80.html

[ Post made via Android ]

[Pete1313]

I know I need to backlap and fine tune the HOC but I couldn't wait to let her get her 1st cut. I set the bedknife to where it was almost cutting paper and let her go. Couple things I noticed. In the backyard I felt uncomfortable going below 2" with the hrx217hza due to leveling issues, well the reel mower cut it better at 1 1/4" then the hrx did at 2". I also noticed that the reel mower chopped up the grass clippings better than any mulching mower ever could. You can barely notice any clippings. I also noticed that the neighbors stare at you even more now.. one guy walking his dog on the other side of the street even stopped and took a picture of me mowing. Lastly the stripes at 1 1/4" are phenomenal.




Baseball height right now, maybe golf ball by end of fall..

[johnnyg08]

It does look awesome. Nice job.

[McLovin]

Wow looks great!

[HoosierLawnGnome]

Mrs. HoosierLawnGnome is hating you right now for this......

[ Post made via Android ]

[Pete1313]

Mrs. HoosierLawnGnome is hating you right now for this......

[ Post made via Android ]

From experience I will tell you that she will get over it..
Then afterwards she will look at the turf and really like it.

[ Post made via Android ]

[GaryCinChicago]

Roger Bossurd would approve

[ericgautier]

wow that is awesome!

[Pete1313]

Roger Bossurd would approve

It's nowhere near his standards. Have some work to do before I can get it lower, but it's a start.

[ Post made via Android ]

[McLovin]

Roger Bossurd would approve

The Sodfather!

(T&P GCinC)

[Nixnix42]

Lol your neighbor taking pics of you with your new beastie love it.


Sent from my iOS device using the Yard Help App

[Pete1313]

To celebrate another win by my favorite team, I decided to stripe the lawn like they have been doing it at Wrigley lately.




I've spent a good amount of time learning and fine tuning the machine the best I can. Backlapped a few times, getting the bedknife adjusted just right, and I put the front roller in the closest position to avoid scalping. The distance between the front roller and rear drum is currently 11.5". With the roller in this position it raises the potential HOC, it could now mow as high as 1.5"



I'm surprised at how well the backyard is taking the low cut. I'm currently down to 7/8". I would describe the front yard as having alittle unevenness but the backyard has some good humps and bumps.




A few things I've noticed. In the few spots the grass is too dense, it seems to be struggling. Which I'm ok with at this point, it will fill back in this fall. Also what the primo bottle says is correct, it does regulate shorter grass better. I think I'm going longer between cuts than I did at 2".

I'm slowly dropping the HOC in preparation for an aeration and then topdressing/leveling which is set for labor day weekend. Currently at 7/8" and would like to get as close to 1/2" as possible by labor day and then I'll let it recover back alittle bit. I applied primo at half rate (.3 oz/k) this past Saturday and I'm trying to plan the rebound for right after I topdress to help it recover faster. Plan is to put down .5 lbs/k of N from milo this weekend and .5 lbs/k of N from ammonium sulfate to start ramping the grass up for the topdress. I'll then go to my weekly plan of .5 lbs/k of N thru fall.