Dennis G860 - King of the Kassam

The Dennis G860 has ‘everything you need’ in a cylinder mower according to Kieron Jennings - Head Groundsman at Oxford United FC.

Kieron, who is employed by Grasstek and oversees the maintenance of the pitches at Oxford United FC’s Bangkok Glass Training Centre and the Kassam Stadium, felt the time was right to purchase a new cylinder mower. Somewhat of a turf perfectionist and a huge fan of the beautiful game, he revealed exactly why.

“Ultimately we wanted a better quality of cut,” he said. “We needed a mower which was going to give us a lot more definition. The first team like to play real football; fast one-touch football, and therefore the objective was to get that leaf down and as tight to the plant as we possibly could. We felt we could achieve this best with the Dennis G860.”

Kieron came to this conclusion after various cylinder mowers were demonstrated at the Kassam Stadium. As someone who highly values the team around him, Kieron was also keen to gauge feedback during the demonstrations.

“We’ve got a trainee that has never used a cylinder mower, but with supervision he jumped straight on the G860’s with no problem at all - he enjoyed every minute of using it.”

Lightweight at just 166kg the Dennis G860 is indeed incredibly easy to manoeuvre and comfortable to operate. Furthermore, the handlebar console houses the controls for the throttle, parking brake, roller drive and cutting cylinder drive.

As one of the most renowned cylinder mowers in the grounds management industry, the Dennis G860 features a large diameter front roller with an adjustable scraper which has been designed for a precise height of cut control, giving an excellent finish on every occasion.

“The quality of cut is second to none and it gives us a precise cut each and every time,” added Kieron. “We didn’t quite get that with our last mowers so I’m glad we switched.
“The manager has never once complained about the pitch – in fact he is always complimenting it.”
Aside from providing a perfect finish, the G860 also features an interchangeable cassette system to assist with a wide range of tasks such as scarifying, verticutting, brushing, spiking, and slitting. Kieron revealed how some of the cassettes play a part in his maintenance programme.

“As you’d expect, we use the cutting cylinders a lot - perhaps once or twice a day throughout the week. The brush is used to clean the top surface out and we’ll use the verticutter cassette to cut into our laterals, to thin the grass out and to take any Poa out.

In the winter we’ll rely on this cassette maybe two or three times a month because it helps with how the ball moves across the pitch in terms of the speed and the bounce.”
Kieron purchased two Dennis G860’s and he would have no hesitation in recommending them.

“They are very good machines; they are built well, and the durability is fantastic,” he said. “The G860’s have helped us get to where we want to be, and they are above anything else on the market.

“I can confidently say that if you are thinking of changing your cylinder mower, then get a G860 because it has got absolutely everything you need.”