SIMON CRAGG Posted December 27, 2021 Share Posted December 27, 2021 In the spring, we are thinking about purchasing a "Whacker Plate" to help flattening some areas of our flying patch. We had a big problem with moles, and although they have now gone (and with lots of raking and seeding), we are still left with a rather bumpy / uneven area (15m x 15m). We have hired a sit on roller in the past, but its awkward judging the weather etc. etc. and expensive. Has any other club gone down this road in the past?. Any views appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J D 8 Posted December 27, 2021 Share Posted December 27, 2021 Last winter Mr Brock turfed over a section of our strip looking for grubs and worms I recon. It was not in the main flight strip so left it until spring when things dried up some. After replacing most of the turf/divots where they came from I just drove my car [ ford focus ] back and fore over the area until it was well flat. Thought you were contemplating a serious version of that old game " Whack a Mole."? Cheers John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EarlyBird Posted December 27, 2021 Share Posted December 27, 2021 Whacker Plates are more readily available and can be collected at short notice. I would hire one and give it a go just on a trial basis. Check out you local hire shops for availability and costs, some have a deal where you can collect on a Friday afternoon and return before Monday 09:00 for a single days charge. Mind you it was a long time ago when I was involved in this kind of work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cuban8 Posted December 27, 2021 Share Posted December 27, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, SIMON CRAGG said: In the spring, we are thinking about purchasing a "Whacker Plate" to help flattening some areas of our flying patch. We had a big problem with moles, and although they have now gone (and with lots of raking and seeding), we are still left with a rather bumpy / uneven area (15m x 15m). We have hired a sit on roller in the past, but its awkward judging the weather etc. etc. and expensive. Has any other club gone down this road in the past?. Any views appreciated. The club field is the centre of club activities so sometimes does have to be invested in rather than done improperly on the cheap. Charge the members an appropriate amount to keep your patch how you'd like it without hard graft by the few and breaking your backs. Club fees are tiny compared to most modelling expenditure. Both of my clubs each with around 90 members have proper rollers bought for the job and the fields are always prepared to a very high standard. Both fields do get a bit soggy in the winter but with the correct equipment and the experience gained over the years we have near bowling green conditions in the summer. Edited December 27, 2021 by Cuban8 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Philbrick Posted December 27, 2021 Share Posted December 27, 2021 We hired a very large diesel powered vibrating roller to do our patch in the spring and will do the same this year. I think the cost delivered was about £120 for the day. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john stones 1 - Moderator Posted December 27, 2021 Share Posted December 27, 2021 1 hour ago, Glenn Philbrick said: We hired a very large diesel powered vibrating roller to do our patch in the spring and will do the same this year. I think the cost delivered was about £120 for the day. Yep and you can get smaller walk behind ones if more suitable, easy to use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cuban8 Posted December 27, 2021 Share Posted December 27, 2021 Not a vast expense to hire the right gear even for a small club with a handful of members. A bigger problem is usually getting the bodies willing and able to take on manual work given the aging population of our clubs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Philbrick Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 That was one of the reasons we hired a sit on roller, we had a list of volunteers all wanting to have a go. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SIMON CRAGG Posted December 28, 2021 Author Share Posted December 28, 2021 One of our members has a decent wacker plate which we are going to borrow, and do a trial patch. I would echo the other comments. 25 members and despite reminders, 3 members (all Committee), did the bulk of the work. Say no more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Collinson Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 We use a hired Bomag roller with considerable success on our strip which is marginal, wet land shared with Flossie. I suspect timing is all, moist enough to flatten out the bumps but not too soft. I think we’ve done it twice in the last four years and whilst the same Gang of Four seem to have their hands up first, not including me because I still have a day job, recent work and improvements (verge trimming, tree reduction, pv panel and lights, flued heater) have been shared out reasonably democratically. The hard core of a dozen or so shoulder most of the burden. Nobody whinges. I sense that this issue varies enormously between clubs. BTC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BackinBlack Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 Wacker plates are compaction, not levelling devices. Compacted soil will not drain properly causing problems later. If the subsoil and topsoil are not level, compacting with a roller, plate etc will only create hard poorly draining patches. Liberal, regular use of a larger light roller stands a better chance of achieving a "smooth" surface. Have you ever seen a Bomag type roller used on a Football, Rugby or playing field? There's a good reason. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EarlyBird Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 1 hour ago, BackinBlack said: Bomag type roller used on a Football, Rugby or playing field? Yes we hired two Bomag 120s and they did a good job. Plenty of help to have a go on the big boys toys ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Engine Doctor Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 It's amazing how many more helpers turn up when there is some machinery to ride on ?. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BackinBlack Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 17 hours ago, EarlyBird said: Yes we hired two Bomag 120s and they did a good job. Plenty of help to have a go on the big boys toys ? Ok, so we're not trying to create a super flat sports field, but I would still be wary of (over) using vibrating rollers etc. Over compacted areas may not drain properly and cause more problems. Just meant as a word of caution. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J D 8 Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 As Simon only needs to repair a small area the hire of a roller would be ott, the whacker would be fine and its vibrations would likely persuade Mr Mole to depart if still around below. When it comes to the use of rollers a lot depends on the type of ground you are on, a heavy vibrating type on a clay base would not be good for example. Even on my small farm I have 3 different rollers for varying conditions/needs. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SIMON CRAGG Posted December 29, 2021 Author Share Posted December 29, 2021 3 hours ago, J D 8 said: As Simon only needs to repair a small area the hire of a roller would be ott, the whacker would be fine and its vibrations would likely persuade Mr Mole to depart if still around below. When it comes to the use of rollers a lot depends on the type of ground you are on, a heavy vibrating type on a clay base would not be good for example. Even on my small farm I have 3 different rollers for varying conditions/needs. Exactly right. We are going to give the wacker a trial first, no point in spending club members money unless we really have to. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 When the ground conditions are right (not wet, just firm enough to deform), we drive up and down our patch with our cars. 3 seems optimum, else you get in each others' way. Takes about 20 minutes to work from the centreline out. We save it for the end of the day when a low sun helps you see where you've been ?. As with most other Club activities, the same few mugs end up burning their petrol... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyGnome Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 16 hours ago, Mike T said: When the ground conditions are right (not wet, just firm enough to deform), we drive up and down our patch with our cars. 3 seems optimum, else you get in each others' way. Takes about 20 minutes to work from the centreline out. We save it for the end of the day when a low sun helps you see where you've been ?. As with most other Club activities, the same few mugs end up burning their petrol... Interesting, I guess you need to be really careful not to leave tyre tracks / furrows....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted December 31, 2021 Share Posted December 31, 2021 15 hours ago, GrumpyGnome said: Interesting, I guess you need to be really careful not to leave tyre tracks / furrows....... Indeed - but its easy to tell from driving on other parts of the field when the ground is at the right degree of plastic deformity for our specialist treatment! ? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SIMON CRAGG Posted December 31, 2021 Author Share Posted December 31, 2021 3 hours ago, Mike T said: Indeed - but its easy to tell from driving on other parts of the field when the ground is at the right degree of plastic deformity for our specialist treatment! ? We tried this as well, along with driving our ride on mower up and down the damaged area. Limited success!. We are getting excited about trying the wacker plate idea, if it works, it could be the answer to repairing small bumpy areas. Sounds like we are not alone in having only a handful of members who are keen to get the site up to speed. Rest of them not remotely interested really!. I could rant on about the topic, but its not worth the effort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Collinson Posted December 31, 2021 Share Posted December 31, 2021 Do you not find that recently trained and soloed members tend to repay their debt to the club and the trainer(s) by mucking in? BTC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted December 31, 2021 Share Posted December 31, 2021 In general, yes. To be fair, the majority who disappear mysteriously aren’t the regular flyers who benefit the most. There are exceptions of course but they miss out on the glow of satisfaction, a tasty lunch - and an aching back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SIMON CRAGG Posted January 1, 2022 Author Share Posted January 1, 2022 (edited) On 31/12/2021 at 19:49, Bruce Collinson said: Do you not find that recently trained and soloed members tend to repay their debt to the club and the trainer(s) by mucking in? BTC Yes, they do Bruce. But when the initial enthusiasm wains its back to the usual few to do virtually everything. However, its not all doom and gloom as a few years ago we instigated specific jobs for each committee member: Grounds / mowing, caravan maint, club shop, BMFA, Club comps, club web site, as well as the club sec. etc. So far the division of responsibility has worked really well. I just get a bit miffed with it when, we organise a works party which will benefit all members, and just the above bods turn up. We have even had the odd member turn up whilst we are beavering away and heard comments like "I joined the club to fly.....not to work". At that point I have to really bite my tongue!. Edited January 1, 2022 by Martin Harris - Moderator xxxs replaced by a suitable word - please remember the forum rules! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SIMON CRAGG Posted January 2, 2022 Author Share Posted January 2, 2022 OOps, my bad. Apologies!. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Collinson Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 Think we’re very lucky as I remain convinced that it is quite club-specific. In my short returned modelling career I have belonged to three clubs and the esprit de corps has varied enormously between the three. The first one, as a relative novice, I never flew a plane in several months. The second one taught me to fly but then lost its strip. The third, current one, had a slightly odd clique-ish character on joining but we soon improved that to the point where I would say the standard of craik and leg-pulling is close to what I relished in Round Table 25 years ago. Consequently there are usually enough volunteers but I would concede that the usual two to four suspects are always the catalyst, but they attract helpers and maybe not coincidentally do much of the training too. here’s a thing, too, I am a long way away from training anyone else but my occupation takes me close to the LMS fairly frequently and we have a custom that anyone calling in messages the others to see if they need anything. Kills several birds with one stone, not the least of which is supporting the LMS, another of which is that if someone has done a favour, found a widget in 3.75mm reverse thread, donated a tankful of fuel, converted an Osama bin Liner of matchsticks into an F3A etc, there are boundless opportunities to balance the books. Even the catering becomes collaborative, one member having a particularly fine pie shop on his doorstep and another with access to Fat Rascals for pudding (southerners, look it up) and it all builds towards a very happy flight line. Just saying. Happy New Year. BTC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.