| season. See Storage Instructions for additional information. | • When mowing large areas, start by turning to the right so |
| Never use engine or carburetor cleaner products in the fuel | | | that clippings will discharge away from shrubs, fences, |
| tank or permanent damage may occur. | | | driveways, etc. After one or two rounds, mow in the |
| | | | | opposite direction making left hand turns until finished |
| CAUTION: Fill to bottom of gas tank | | | |
| | | | (See Fig. 8). |
| filler neck. Do not overfill. Wipe off any | | | |
| | • If grass is extremely tall, it should be mowed twice to |
| spilled oil or fuel. Do not store, spill or | |
| | | | reduce load and possible fire hazard from dried clip- |
| use gasoline near an open flame. | | | |
| | | | pings. Make first cut relatively high; the second to the |
| | | | |
| TO START ENGINE (See Fig. 6) | | | desired height. |
| When starting the engine for the first time or if the engine has | • Do not mow grass when it is wet. Wet grass will plug |
| | | mower and leave undesirable clumps. Allow grass to dry |
| run out of fuel, it will take extra cranking time to move fuel | | |
| | | before mowing. |
| from the tank to the engine. | | |
| • Always operate engine at full throttle when mowing |
| • Sit on seat in operating position, depress clutch/brake |
| | | to assure better mowing performance and proper dis- |
| pedal and set parking brake. | | |
| | | charge of material. Regulate ground speed by selecting |
| • Place gear shift lever in neutral (N) position. | | |
| | | a low enough gear to give the mower cutting perfor- |
| • Move attachment clutch to “DISENGAGED” position. | | |
| | | mance as well as the quality of cut desired. |
| • Move throttle control to fast position | | |
| • When operating attachments, select a ground speed |
| • Pull choke control out for a cold engine start attempt. For |
| | | that will suit the terrain and give best performance of the |
| a warm engine start attempt the choke control may not | | |
| | | attachment being used. |
| be needed. | | |
| | | |
| NOTE: Before starting, read the warm and cold starting | | | |
| procedures below. | | | |
| • Insert key into ignition and turn key clockwise to | | | |
| “START” position and release key as soon as engine | | | |
| starts. Do not run starter continuously for more than | | | |
| fifteen seconds per minute. If the engine does not start | | | |
| after several attempts, push choke control in, wait a few | | | |
| minutes and try again. If engine still does not start, pull | | | |
| | | FIG. 8 |
| the choke control out and retry. | | |
| | | |
| WARM WEATHER STARTING (50° F and above) | MULCHING MOWING TIPS |
| • When engine starts, slowly push choke control in until |
| IMPORTANT: FOR BEST PERFORMANCE, KEEP MOWER |
| the engine begins to run smoothly. If the engine starts |
| HOUSING FREE OF BUILT-UP GRASS AND TRASH. |
| to run roughly, pull the choke control out slightly for a few |
| CLEAN AFTER EACH USE. |
| seconds and then continue to push the control in slowly. | • The special mulching blade will recut the grass clippings |
| • The attachments and ground drive can now be used. If | | | many times and reduce them in size so that as they fall |
| the engine does not accept the load, restart the engine | | | onto the lawn they will disperse into the grass and not be |
| and allow it to warm up for one minute using the choke | | | noticed. Also, the mulched grass will biodegrade |
| as described above. | | | quickly to provide nutrients for the lawn. Always mulch |
| COLD WEATHER STARTING (50° F and below) | | | with your highest engine (blade) speed as this will |
| • When engine starts, slowly push choke control in until | | | provide the best recutting action of the blades. |
| the engine begins to run smoothly. Continue to push the | • | Avoid cutting your lawn when it is wet. Wet grass tends |
| choke control in small steps allowing the engine to | | | to form clumps and interferes with the mulching action. |
| accept small changes in speed and load, until the choke | | | The best time to mow your lawn is the early afternoon. |
| control is fully in. If the engine starts to run roughly, pull | | | At this time the grass has dried and the newly cut area |
| the choke control out slightly for a few seconds and then | | | will not be exposed to the direct sun. |
| continue to push the control in slowly. This may require | • For best results, adjust the mower cutting height so that |
| an engine warm-up period from several seconds to | | | the mower cuts off only the top one-third of the grass |
| several minutes, depending on the temperature. | | | blades (See Fig. 9). For extremely heavy mulching, |
| • The attachments can be used during the engine warm- | | | reduce your width of cut on each pass and mow slowly. |
| up period and may require the choke control be pulled out | • Certain types of grass and grass conditions may require |
| slightly. | | | that an area be mulched a second time to completely |
| NOTE: If at a high altitude (above 3000 feet) or in cold | | | hide the clippings. When doing a second cut, mow |
| temperatures (below 32 F) the carburetor fuel mixture may | | | across or perpendicular to the first cut path. |
| need to be adjusted for best engine performance. See “TO | • | Change your cutting pattern from week to week. Mow |
| ADJUST CARBURETOR” in the Service and Adjustments | | | north to south one week then change to east to west the |
| section of this manual. | | | next week. This will help prevent matting and graining |
| MOWING TIPS | | | of the lawn. |
| | | |
| • Mower should be properly leveled for best mowing | | | MAX 1/3 |
| performance. See “TO LEVEL MOWER HOUSING” in | | |
| the Service and Adjustments section of this manual. | | | |
| • The left hand side of mower should be used for trimming. | | | |
| • Drive so that clippings are discharged onto the area that | | | |
| has been cut. Have the cut area to the right of the | | | |
| machine. This will result in a more even distribution of | | | |
| 13 | | FIG. 9 |
| clippings and more uniform cutting. | |
| | |