Alt. pin placement maintenance

[U_NICED_ME]

Glad to hear you got them cleaned out. Can you post a pic of the soil auger you used? Did you need to use the pressure washer afterwards?

 

[skippy0420]

WD40 is a temporary solution as it breaks down grease. If you already have locks that are covered with plastic like that about the only thing you might want to use to lube the locks are lithium grease or graphite.

These seem to last the longest in wet and dirty conditions as long as you lubricate them prior to installation, WD 40 them at least once a year and make sure the key cap stays on.

 

[U_NICED_ME]

We are still trying to locate the friggin keys for the baskets. How do you even get Master Locks keyed alike?

 

[johnnyfoodstamp]

We are still trying to locate the friggin keys for the baskets. How do you even get Master Locks keyed alike?

We got a box of master locks with all the same key from Home Depot. I recommend getting the locks with the little trap door over the keyhole. And the soil auger fell through so I used a 32 inch crowbar like the one in the pic (Thanks Timber!) with the slight curve on the end. Hammered it down in the hole to break up all the debris, then I used a piece of 1 1/2 pvc to stick down in there, twist, and bring all kinds of nasty goop. It worked wonders. Then, I took a 30 inch piece of the 1 1/2 pvc with a bright red cap to plug the hole to stop the problem. Plus, now you can stand back and see where all the pin placements are at.

Heres a pic of the auger. It is 100 bucks. I got the pvc and crowbar for 15 bucks.

 

[johnnyfoodstamp]

WD40 is a temporary solution as it breaks down grease. If you already have locks that are covered with plastic like that about the only thing you might want to use to lube the locks are lithium grease or graphite.

Yeah, first thing your going to need sure you have some spare keys because some will break. A can of WD and elbow grease will eventually open the lock. I still have 2 more out of 18 to go after much struggling but it does work.

 

[johnnyfoodstamp]

And these are the locks we used. They are nice because they have access holes for the little WD sprayer in case of clogging.

 

[skippy0420]

Yea, sorry. I was talking about maintaining the locks once they are purchased.

Yeah, first thing your going to need sure you have some spare keys because some will break. A can of WD and elbow grease will eventually open the lock. I still have 2 more out of 18 to go after much struggling but it does work.

 

[Timber]

WD40 is a temporary solution as it breaks down grease. If you already have locks that are covered with plastic like that about the only thing you might want to use to lube the locks are lithium grease or graphite.

I use the WD40 (Water Displacement-formula #40) as a cleaner in the key and shackle mechanisms. Some of the locks on the anchors in the flat areas of the course sit in water or snow melt for days or weeks at a time.

Thanks for the recommendation; I'll try some graphite or lithium grease next summer when I do my annual maintenance. The 3 in 1 oil I used probably only attracts dirt and gunks up the mechanism.

 

[U_NICED_ME]

Thanks for the info!

Also, did you have any sleeves that had been clipped by mowers? Did you need to bend any back into shape? Does anyone know how best to do that? (None of our sleeves were capped or marked)

 

[Timber]

The mowers at Bluemont have made sleeve chopping into an olympic sport. I managed to fix about five with a hammer and crowbar. Another 10 or 15 had to be replaced until I started using these. (Thanks Innova)

Now they drive their vehicles back and forth over the irrigation boxes to test them.

 

[superberry]

I'm slowly but surely retrofitting old anchors (and all new installations) with these.

How much do these cost??

 

[superberry]

And these are the locks we used. They are nice because they have access holes for the little WD sprayer in case of clogging.

Just slob on some silicone caulk over the key hole. This will keep all junk out of the key hole and the silicone will leech a little into the hole for extra lube (dang that sounds nasty!). You can easily rip off the dab of gunk when you need to access the hole - actually the key would slice right through if need be, and it could be re-useable. You can carry small tubes of caulk around with to to reapply after ripping off the old stuff and moving the pin.

 

[U_NICED_ME]

Ugh! I was hoping we could salvage some of the sleeves! I like that metal cap, but if it's Innova I wonder if it will work on the Mach 3 sleeves. I guess I should ask DGA or Innova.

 

[U_NICED_ME]

That's a good thought Superberry with the caulk.

 

[Timber]

How much do these cost??

Around $13 to $20 each.
Googled this http://www.rrproducts.com/p-696019-valve-box-10-round-wgreen-cover.aspx but I think there are better prices out there.

Just remember that you need one less cover (where the basket is) for multiple pin placements on a single hole.

 

[Timber]

Installation diagram is on the Innova site about halfway down the page at:
http://www.innovadiscs.com/targets/discatcher-pro.html

NOTE: It is very important that the top of the sleeve is as close to the bottom of the cover as possible.

If the sleeve is too high, the cover won't close.

If it is too low, the baskets will be too low. I've considered going back and drilling new holes in the pole for the lower basket hasp to raise some baskets where the sleeves were installed too low.

 

[superberry]

And these are the locks we used. They are nice because they have access holes for the little WD sprayer in case of clogging.

These locks are actually pretty good. Almost all other locks can be simply cut off with bolt cuuters, sawed with a hacksaw, or smashed off by unscrupulous douches with a decent sized hammer or even a rock. I've found that a 5/8" bolt and nylon nut works just about as good. No one can loosen them by hand, and no bolt cutter, hammer, rock can smash it off. It deters opportunistic thieves who would have to be walking around with a couple wrenches and/or vice grips.

Problem is nothing about a basket will stop a determined thief (simply hacksaw through any pole to bypass all locks, etc). Go with the lowest cost of nut and bolt per basket ($0.75), rather than $10 each for keyed alike locks or heavy duty locks for $15+++. But I digress, this post is about alternate sleeve maintenance, not securing baskets.

Be careful with the PVC pipe inserted into the sleeve with a cap on top. If it's a tight fit, I've seen them broken off inside and difficult to remove.

 

[LeewayeDiscGolf]

Our course just replaced one that had been mowed over. Ever try replacing one on a very busy course? Set up a wall or wear a helmet! We still have a few that need replaced.

As for keys. Make sure at least 2 different people have a set just in case. One guy with one set doesn't usually work out well.