[fp_911]

I've been having an issue when I mow my lawn since I started using my greens mower.

The problem is that when I mow I have lines showing where the mower passed through. I just recently verified that the HOC is even across both rollers so I don't think it's that but who knows?

Is this problem caused by the fact that my yard is not exactly flat? I sanded a few areas earlier in the season but not a huge project some of you have done leveling the entire yard.

After a couple of days the grass usually evens out so it looks fine but right after a mow (these photos are just now and I mowed last night) you can really see this.

Can this be solved with adjustments to my GM1000 or is leveling the yard the only solution? My HOC is 0.5" right now. (Excuse the appearance of the lawn as it's still recovering from my ordeal where I had to use my rotary and it scalped everything!)

 

[Ware]

If the HOC is the same on both ends, I would say it is a result of variation in terrain or turf density, or maybe inconsistent weight distribution of the mower (inadvertently lifting the front roller or bouncing from mowing too fast). These are all just guesses - it could be a number of things. I would read through these pages about mismatch issues and see if something stands out to you.

 

[ajmikola]

I was having the same issues, but not as pronounced as yours. Mine is due to unlevel lawn and the fact that I have slopes everywhere on my property. When I raised the HOC to .75" (I was a 0.5" in this thread) it helped ALOT.
But make sure and read ware's link, its really good.
http://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=579#p10668

 

[dfw_pilot]

Yep, I get those. I'm convinced its from having an unleveled lawn. When using a reel at low HOC, it really hugs the terrain. Any imperfections will be displayed because the top of the grass will mirror the undulations of the soil. Cutting in multiple directions can help mask it, but leveling is probably the best solution.

 

[CMOG Dibbler]

I would agree its most likely from the slope, i get those in my yard as well. But checking the mower setup and ensuring it is sharp across the whole reel is a good idea as well.

Maybe some options you can try short of a full topdressing/leveling project

• Have a few bags of sand on hand and spot level in those spots gradually to help smooth out the damaged areas

• Try cutting at 45 deg or even 90deg of your current pattern to see if the problem is eliminated

• Try cutting for more overlap (up to 50%) to minimize the appearance of the banding

 

[fp_911]

I checked my HOC last night as I was finally able to adjust the front roller. I used my hand-made gauge and also a level to make sure it was aligned properly. So tomorrow when I mow again it'll be the true test.

But I am going to try and mow in a perpendicular pattern to what I did before to see if that helps. The overlap idea also seems like a good thing to do as well. I'll let you all know how it turns out!

 

[95mmrenegade]

You have a fairly big difference, if the HOC is dead nuts, its sanding. Cut it down to .300" and sand again.