Forum Groups

 

Forums / Talking Turf / ParAide HiO cup cutter

ParAide HiO cup cutter

15 posts
  1. Richard Wit
    Richard Wit avatar
    1 posts
    8/7/2017 6:08 AM
    Is anyone having issues with the ejection rod on the HiO cup cutter. Just bought mine not more than 5 months ago and have already gone thru 2 of them. Very poorly built compared to their other model of cut cutter.



  2. William Murphy
    William Murphy avatar
    8 posts
    8/8/2017 10:08 AM
    A couple things, if you get a lot of dings on the blade edge it will make it hard to eject the plug. You will also every month or so need to flush out the cylinder because material will get in between the blade and the plate and will build up. I turn the cup changer upside down and flush water out from the top and bottom because as the material builds up it will make it difficult to get depth right and also may make it harder to eject the plug. With traditional cup changers I would flip them upside down a few times when leaving a green, but with the weight of the HiO that is impossible. Also spray the moveable parts with WD or a safe type grease.

    We have push-up greens with really poor subsoil and up until the HiO used a 2 piece shell with mallets so I love the HiO. There are a few issues: It is heavy, when the soil is saturated it sometimes will not pull the plug out of the new hole, and a little hard on your hands but for us does a fantastic job. We are on our 3rd one in 4 seasons (just started using the newest one 2 weeks ago).

    Good luck,

    Billy



  3. Christopher Thuer
    Christopher Thuer avatar
    101 posts
    8/8/2017 3:08 PM
    The lever and tube on ours seems to be wearing out. I really liked this tool when we first got it in March but now not so sure. The rubber bumper rings wear out really quick as we are on the third already. We only cut new holes 3 to 4 days per week. It does save time over the old lever action Par Aide cuter we used for 25 years but with no issues.

    Chris Thuer, CGCS, Bear Slide Golf Club, Cicero, IN

  4. Matt Plosila
    Matt Plosila avatar
    0 posts
    8/9/2017 2:08 PM
    There is a wear/guide ring that needs replaced annually on the main shaft, maybe a $5 part. May help with some slide issues.



  5. Zachary Wike
    Zachary Wike avatar
    0 posts
    8/11/2017 9:08 AM
    We have had the same issues with the newer style HiO's. We also had an issue with replacement blades not fitting. Looks like the new blades have a welded flange on the top instead of being solid metal. This winter we will be in the market for a new cup cutter



  6. Kirby Keltner
    Kirby Keltner avatar
    0 posts
    8/14/2017 10:08 AM
    We had issues with the eject rod breaking where it joins up to the horseshoe around the center. I took it to a metal fabrication shop and asked the guys there what they thought. They ended up fabricating me a new rod that was stronger but didn't add much weight. Talk to the guys who know what they are doing. Not a bunch of engineers that don't use what they make.



  7. David Brandenburg
    David Brandenburg avatar
    3 posts
    8/14/2017 3:08 PM
    Does anyone else have to add more soil than they subtract with the HiO cutter? For my 30 years with other ejection type cutters I usually accumulate soil in my cup changing bucket that I discarded every week or so. With the HiO I have to add a little soil to some plugs to make them level. It is not a lot but it is enough I notice.



  8. Christopher Thuer
    Christopher Thuer avatar
    101 posts
    8/14/2017 5:08 PM
    One thing I really like is the depth consistency between operators. We rotate cup changing duties among 6 staffers. Compared to the old twist style scalps and sinks are dramatically fewer with little need to scrape sand from the plug or add sand to the hole. Even with a depth guide and a hole clean out auger tool, that not everyone would use no matter how much we threatened, plug replacement consistency in the past was really bad.

    Chris Thuer, CGCS, Bear Slide Golf Club, Cicero, IN

  9. Jeffrey Whitmire
    Jeffrey Whitmire avatar
    0 posts
    8/14/2017 6:08 PM
    I have used these cup cutters for the past 20 years. Usually buy a new one every 2 or 3 years. The one we purchased this year has this issue. We have replaced the ejection rod, but still wear out the rubber rings at an alarmingly high rate. We will also be looking at another type of cup cutter in the near future.



  10. Kirby Keltner
    Kirby Keltner avatar
    0 posts
    8/16/2017 5:08 AM
    David Brandenburg, CGCS said: Does anyone else have to add more soil than they subtract with the HiO cutter? For my 30 years with other ejection type cutters I usually accumulate soil in my cup changing bucket that I discarded every week or so. With the HiO I have to add a little soil to some plugs to make them level. It is not a lot but it is enough I notice.

    When this happens I can usually just take a screw driver and break up the bottom of the hole. The disturbance is usually enough to level it out.



  11. Mark Newton
    Mark Newton avatar
    1 posts
    1/15/2018 12:01 PM
    We have had the same issues with our HiO cup cutter this past year. We have replaced the ejection rod on our 2 cutters 3 times in 2017, never had an issue prior to this year and have been using them at courses for the past 7 years. For the price of the HiO, its quality is not worth it in my opinion anymore and hope to find some other options at GIS.

    Has anyone tried, have experience or know where to purchase either of these? First ive seen them but never have seen them here in the states?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QNIqm8gMy8

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PK5wevuHxSM



  12. Dan Magrin
    Dan Magrin avatar
    0 posts
    1/19/2018 4:01 AM
    Mark Newton said: We have had the same issues with our HiO cup cutter this past year. We have replaced the ejection rod on our 2 cutters 3 times in 2017, never had an issue prior to this year and have been using them at courses for the past 7 years. For the price of the HiO, its quality is not worth it in my opinion anymore and hope to find some other options at GIS.

    Has anyone tried, have experience or know where to purchase either of these? First ive seen them but never have seen them here in the states?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QNIqm8gMy8

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PK5wevuHxSM


    Precision Hole Cutter sold by Wittek Golf.

    http://www.wittekgolf.com/Precision-Hol ... and-Greens



  13. Clay Putnam
    Clay Putnam avatar
    33 posts
    1/19/2018 5:01 AM
    William Murphy said:

    We are on our 3rd one in 4 seasons (just started using the newest one 2 weeks ago).

    Good luck,

    Billy


    Did I read this correctly? You're going through, almost, 1 per season?



  14. William Murphy
    William Murphy avatar
    8 posts
    1/19/2018 6:01 AM
    I hope the one I am using now will make it through 2018. I also have a back-up now from parts from the first two. Until we find another option, we will stick with the HiO. Our sub-soil is that bad. Our only other option is going back to the 2 piece shell with mallet (which cuts a rather ugly hole, and wears our quicker). I know the price doesn't work well for budgets, but given the quality of the cut from the HiO vs. the 2pc shell this is where we are at.

    If our soil was better I would just use a regular cup cutter. I think I mentioned it in a previous post, but in my 28 years of cutting cups at 6 courses, the sub-soil here is as bad as I have seen. One year I saved the bottom half of the soil from a cup and set it out by our wash pad. It went through a year of rain, heat, ice, snow, freezing, thawing and basically looked the same. I also think the poor soil contributed to the breaking parts of the first two HiO's. It is a fairly violent process, and to drive the cup cutter through the last 3 inches of soil takes some work.

    We continue to drill and fill as much as we can, and are changing the profile but for now we will continue to use the HiO.

    Billy



  15. Michael Wagner
    Michael Wagner avatar
    0 posts
    1/19/2018 8:01 AM
    Mark Newton said: We have had the same issues with our HiO cup cutter this past year. We have replaced the ejection rod on our 2 cutters 3 times in 2017, never had an issue prior to this year and have been using them at courses for the past 7 years. For the price of the HiO, its quality is not worth it in my opinion anymore and hope to find some other options at GIS.

    Has anyone tried, have experience or know where to purchase either of these? First ive seen them but never have seen them here in the states?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QNIqm8gMy8

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PK5wevuHxSM


    https://www.bmsproducts.com/collections ... ducts/ipro



View or change your forums profile here.