STM-SCAG V-Ride Earns Its Stripes

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STM-SCAG V-Ride earns its stripes. The “V-Ride” stand-on mower is in the range of SCAG mowers supplied by STM Co Ltd in the UK and parts of Europe. It finds a lot of popularity for its being a small and nimble machine, ideal for intricate work.

STM-SCAG V-Ride Earns Its Stripes

Now Jamie Jones of Jamie’s Garden Services, working on domestic and commercial contracts in Llandrindod Wells, Powys, has added to its virtuosity by having a striper unit added. This was specially developed for him by STM, using a standard SCAG Turf Tiger striper unit converted to fit the machine.

He came to choose a V-Ride after much research, a lot of which was with American Lawn Care professionals, and SCAG was among the names that soon came up for serious consideration.

He likes the stand-on principle and has since found it has been a wise choice for the work he does.

Jamie Jones:    If I have a nice open piece of lawned area then I use the striping kit. I feel that it is important to stand out from other grass cutting providers and the finished product is what matters to customers. If they are paying for a service then it is important that you stand out from the rest and quality stripes on the lawn is what customers like.

Although he could have gone as wide as 61” with his deck choice, he opted for 48” for ease of access. He has found this, and the compact size of the V-Ride, has an additional benefit in fitting compactly on his trailer.

A further point is the facility for using the machine as a walk-behind as opposed to riding on it.

Again – Jamie Jones: The Scag V-Ride was also more flexible in that you have all the benefits of a Sit-On machine,  but the ability to use it as a Walk-Behind  has been beneficial on banks, and where there are low tree branches. It makes it easy to jump off and duck below them while still operating the machine.

He continued: In my opinion the Scag machine was the best unit from out of the three short listed as well as being a personal preference.  

As for choosing STM, he was complimentary about each of the three possible suppliers he finally selected, but the outcome was: In my opinion the SCAG machine from STM was the best of the three – and STM went the extra mile by fabricating the bespoke roller system for me.

The machine has earned its stripes – as, indeed, have SCAG and the team at STM.

New Ranger On Sculthorpe Moor

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New Ranger on Sculthorpe Moor. A Polaris Ranger 6×6 off-road utility vehicle has proved the ideal solution for Sculthorpe Moor Community Nature Reserve in Fakenham, Norfolk.

New Ranger on Sculthorpe Moor

Created and managed by the Hawk and Owl Trust, there is no more peaceful place to observe the rich variety of wildlife in the woodland, fen and reed bed habitats across the beautiful Wensum Valley. Here you can look out for tawny and barn owls, marsh harriers, kingfishers, buzzards, bullfinches and marsh tits as well as voles, stoats, weasels and many more species.

Much of the area is marshy ground, with scrub and a high water table so it takes a special vehicle to carry out the wide variety of tasks demanded by the need to access an area with no roads. The Trust first saw a Polaris 6×6 model at Lamma, the agricultural show, and local Polaris dealers, Linstead Farm and Garden Machinery, provided a Polaris Ranger 6×6 for testing. The Ranger went up against several other machines on test.

“We needed a machine that could cope with our particular terrain, with no roads and a lot of marsh areas,” says Adrian Blumfield, Executive Director, “We have a huge number of volunteers, some more senior in years, who need to get around the site for planting, building hides, coppicing and generally looking after the habitat. In the test the other vehicles very quickly got stuck. The Polaris was the only one which did not.”

The Ranger 6×6 has six-wheel Independent Suspension with up to 9.6” of travel and 12” of ground clearance, which, coupled with its powerful 800cc engine, enables it to deliver exceptional off-road traction and a smooth, comfortable ride. Another consideration is the large amount of tools and equipment the Trust volunteers have to carry and the Ranger offers a roomy 39 gallon capacity with huge rear storage boxes. The rear dump box has a 1,250 lb capacity for larger loads and, most importantly, the 1 tonne towing strength is more than enough to manage the draw bar weight of the Trust’s large trailer.

The Hawk and Owl Trust is a registered charity and the Polaris Ranger 6×6 has been kindly anonymously donated. The Trust’s work began conserving owls and other birds of prey and now does much more, increasing knowledge and appreciation of them while creating, managing and conserving habitats that support associated species. The Ranger will have a strong role in Sculthorpe Moor’s research, conservation of the wildlife reserves, running of education centres and ongoing projects.