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.

Mid Kent GC Favours Wiedenmann Values Again

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Mid Kent GC Favours Wiedenmann Values Again. Mid Kent GC Course Manager, Lee Sayers has opted for his fourth Wiedenmann Terra Spike purchase in a row. The Master Greenkeeper at the Gravesend club already has an XP8, the deepest aerator in the Wiedenmann range, and previously two others.

Mid Kent GC Favours Wiedenmann Values Again

“At the demo the quality of the GXi8 HD’s finish was exceptional so it wasn’t a difficult decision. We know first-hand that Wiedenmann aerators are strong and reliable but we wanted this one for its versatility,” said Lee Sayers.

Every six weeks or so, the greenkeeping team of six at Mid Kent has a planned maintenance day. Until now their XP8 has been deployed everywhere, including tees and greens. At 2.1 m wide, weighing 1200 kgs and going down to 400 mm it has been hugely productive. However, the addition of the GXi8 HD means the heavier machine will be allowed to concentrate mostly on fairways while the new one does both fine turf and fairways.

“We’ve managed well with the 65 hp tractor but ultimately a smaller tractor (50 hp) and aerator (900 kg) will get in and around the tees and greens more easily,” he continued. “Now every 5-6 weeks definitely on our green we’ll be doing some kind of aeration. Three different sets of tines have been delivered so I will use all three regularly. It might be a 8 mm tine going 60-70 mm deep or 12 mm tine going 250 mm or on occasion a side eject hollow tine. I could have gone for something even smaller or lighter but 1.8m is a decent working width to cover ground fast and make the most of our window of opportunity so we get through all the greens in a day and a bit more elsewhere. When maintenance time is as precious, it suited me the best.”

John Bignell, Groundcare Area Manager from dealer, Ernest Doe & Sons, Dartford, who have supplied and serviced machines for Mid Kent GC for many decades, said:

“Lee and his team purchased a Wiedenmann Whisper Twister blower last autumn so they know build quality is a given with any type of Wiedenmann and not just Terra Spikes.  This was all about speed and coverage and an absolute requirement for the neatest of finishes so the GXi8 HD was the machines for purpose.”

New Agreement For Distribution Of Spider Mowers

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New Agreement For Distribution Of Spider Mowers 

New Agreement For Distribution Of Spider Mowers

As part of a continuing strategy to strengthen distribution across Europe, Dvorak, the Czech manufacturer of Spider mowers, has appointed Machines4Green of Hooghalen in the Netherlands as their distributor for the BeNeLux region. Machines4Green, which recently changed ownership and is now owned by Roy Gerrits, were previously Spider distributors for the Netherlands, but this new agreement has extended their territory to include Belgium and Luxembourg.

Machines4Green specializes in compact and highly maneuverable equipment for the sustainable green space and agricultural sectors and serves these professional markets with expert guidance and excellent after-sales support.

Commenting on the new agreement, Roy Gerrits said,

“I am an advocate of Spider remote-controlled mowers for two very good reasons; they are good for the operator from a health and safety aspect with less dust, noise and absolutely no vibration issues and they are better for the environment, being lighter than ride-on mowers, more fuel efficient and petrol is a cleaner fuel than diesel.

“We are delighted that Dvorak has faith in our business and has extended our distributorship to include Belgium and Luxembourg. Our business ethos is one of providing quality products and superior service; very similar to that of the Dvorak company. Communication with them is excellent, their marketing is very professional and they are very supportive of me as the new owner of Machines4Green.”

Lubor Hladik, international sales manager at Dvorak said,

“From my point of view, we want a reliable and pro-active distributor network across Europe, with open communication and close cooperation from our business partners. Roy and his team at Machines4Green are totally focused on remote controlled mowing and we both see this as the right approach for Spider.

“Our products have to be demonstrated in a professional and timely manner to potential prospects and with Machines4Green continuing their association with the Spider range, I know that this will definitely happen across their territory. They will also be supported by our customer care specialist, Duke Cermak, a Dutch national who works for us here in the Czech Republic, at shows and demonstrations across the three countries.”

 

Burden Bros Agri Ltd Take On Complete Charterhouse Range

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Burden Bros Agri Ltd Take On Complete Charterhouse Range For Sussex. Charterhouse Turf Machinery have announced the appointment of Burden Bros Agri Ltd as their dealer for Sussex. Operating from their Framfield depot, Burden Bros Agri Ltd will be stockists of the Redexim range of both natural and synthetic turf maintenance machinery, as well as the Graden range of products.  

Burden Bros Agri Ltd Take On Complete Charterhouse Range For Sussex

Celebrating their 10th anniversary this year, Burden Bros Agri Ltd is a family run organisation offering new and used machinery from a wide range of established names as well as parts, service and support to the agricultural and turf industries.

Group Turf Sales Manager for Burden Bros Agri Ltd, Alan Pierce said, “We are delighted to have added Charterhouse to our range of groundcare machinery suppliers; it’s a great fit with our existing portfolio. We have a vast customer base ranging from private estates, contractors and schools right through to professional sports facilities and believe the Redexim products will fulfil the range of requirements these users demand. As a previous Golf Course Manager, I also have first-hand experience with the Graden products and look forward to promoting these within our local area.”

Nick Darking, Sales Manager for Charterhouse added, “Burden Bros Agri Ltd have a proven track record for providing quality products, sales and customer service and we look forward to working together with them to offer a better, more localised service across this region.”