
TestingtheGroomer
Performance
Important:Improperorover-aggressiveuseof
thegroomingreel(i.e.,toodeeportoofrequent
grooming)maycauseunnecessarystressonthe
turf,leadingtoseveregreensdamage.Usethe
groomercautiously.
DANGER
Contactwiththereelsorothermovingparts
canresultinpersonalinjury.
•Beforemakinganyadjustmentstothe
cuttingunits,disengagethereels,setthe
parkingbrake,shutofftheengine,and
removethekey.
•Keepyourhandsandclothingawayfrom
thereelsorothermovingparts.
Todeterminetheproperheight/depthsetting,dothe
following:
1.Setthecuttingreeltotheheightofcutthatwould
normallybeusedwithoutagroomingreel.
2.Setthegroomerreeltotheheight-of-cutsetting
abovetherollerlevel.
3.Setthegroomingbrushequaltotheheight-of-cut
settingabovetheroller.
Note:Adjustthegroomingbrush(upordown)
in0.25mm(0.01inch)incrementstoavoid
unintendedturfdamage.
4.Makeapassoverthetestgreen,thenlower
thegroomingreel1/2therollerlevelandmake
anotherpassoverthetestgreen.
Note:Forexample,toseta3.2mm(1/8inch)
height-of-cut,setthegroomingreelat1.6mm
(1/16inch)abovetheroller.
5.Comparetheresults.
Note:Therstsetting(whenthegroomer
settingwasadjustedtotheheight-of-cutsetting
abovetherollerlevel)shouldhaveremoved
signicantlylessgrassandthatchthanthe
secondsetting.
6.Checkthetestgreen2or3daysaftertherst
groomingforgeneralconditionordamage.Ifthe
groomedareasareturningyelloworbrown,and
thenon-groomedareasaregreen,thegrooming
wastooaggressive.
Note:Thecolorofthegrasschangeswhen
youusethegroomingreel.Anexperienced
greenssuperintendentcanjudgebythecolor
oftheturf(alongwithcloseexamination)ifthe
currentgroomingpracticeisappropriateforthe
particulargreen.Becausethegroomreelstands
upmoregrassandremovesthatch,thequality
ofcutisnotthesameaswithoutthegroomer.
Thiseffectismostnoticeabletherstfewtimes
thatyouuseagroomeronagreen.
Note:Onmultiplepasses(i.e.,doubleand
triplecutting),thegroomerpenetratesdeeper
oneachsuccessivepass.Multiplepassesare
notrecommended.
Aftertestingtheperformanceofthegroomeron
atestgreenandyouobtainsatisfactoryresults,
youcanbegingroomingontheplayinggreens.
However,eachgreenmayresponddifferently
togrooming.Inaddition,growingconditions
constantlychange.Inspectthegroomed
greensfrequentlyandmakeadjustmentstothe
groomingprocedureasoftenasnecessary.
SettingtheHeight/Depthof
theGroomer
Setthegroomerbladeheight/depthusingthefollowing
procedure:
1.Makesurethattherollersarecleanandthe
mainreelissettothedesiredheightofcut.Park
themachineonaat,levelworksurface.
2.Usethequick-uplevers(bothsides)tolowerthe
groomingreelintothegroomingposition(Figure
25).
g017189
Figure25
1.Quick-uplever2.Microadjustmentknob
3.Ononeendofthegroomershaft,measurethe
distancefromthelowesttipofagroomerblade
totheworksurface(Figure26).
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