• Slowdownbeforeturning.Operatethemachinesmoothly.Avoid
erraticoperationandexcessivespeed.
Disengageblade(s),setparkingbrake,stopengineand waituntil
theblade(s)cometo a completestopbefore removinggrass
catcher,emptyinggrass,uncloggingchute,removinganygrassor
debris,ormakingany adjustments.
Neverleavea runningmachineunattended.Alwaysturnoff
blade(s),setparkingbrake,stopengine andremovekeybefore
dismounting.
Useextracare whenloadingorunloadingthemachineintoa
trailerortruck. Thismachineshouldnot bedrivenup or down
ramp(s),becausethemachinecouldtip over,causingserious
personalinjury.Themachinemustbe pushedmanuallyon
ramp(s)to loador unloadproperly.
Mufflerandenginebecomehotand can causea burn. Do not
touch.
Checkoverheadclearancescarefullybeforedrivingunderlow
hangingtreebranches,wires,dooropeningsetc.,wherethe
operatormaybestruckor pulledfrom themachine,whichcould
resultinseriousinjury.
Disengageallattachmentclutchesanddepressthebrakepedal
completelybeforeattemptingtostart engine.
Yourmachineisdesignedto cutnormalresidentialgrassofa
heightnomorethan 10".Do not attemptto mowthroughunusually
tall,dry grass(e.g.,pasture)or piles of dry leaves.Drygrass or
leavesmaycontacttheengineexhaustand/or buildupon the
mowerdeckpresentingapotentialfire hazard.
Useonlyaccessoriesandattachmentsapprovedforthismachine
bythe machinemanufacturer.Read,understandandfollowall
instructionsprovidedwiththe approvedaccessoryorattachment.
Fora list of approvedaccessoriesandattachments,call1-800-
659-5917.
Dataindicatesthatoperators,age60years andabove,are
involvedina largepercentageofriding mower-relatedinjuries.
Theseoperatorsshouldevaluatetheirabilitytooperatethe riding
mowersafelyenoughtoprotectthemselvesandothersfrom
seriousinjury.
Ifsituationsoccurwhichare not coveredinthis manual,usecare
andgoodjudgment.Contact1-800-659-5917forinformationand
assistance.
SLOPE OPERATION
Slopesarea majorfactor relatedtoloss ofcontroland tip-over
accidentswhichcanresult insevereinjuryor death.All slopesrequire
extracaution.If youcannot backup the slopeor if youfeel uneasyon
it,do not mowit.
Foryoursafety,usethe SlopeGuide includedaspartof this manual
to measureslopesbeforeoperatingthismachineona slopedor hilly
area.If the slopeis greaterthan 15degreesas shownon the Slope
Guide,do notoperatethis machineonthatarea or seriousinjurycould
result.
Do:
oMowupanddown slopes,notacross.Exerciseextremecaution
whenchangingdirectiononslopes.
• Watchfor holes,ruts, bumps,rocks,or other hiddenobjects.
Uneventerraincouldoverturnthemachine.Tallgrasscanhide
obstacles.
Useslowspeed.Choosea lowenoughspeedsetting sothat
youwill nothave to stopor shiftwhileon theslope.Tires may
losetractionon slopeseventhoughthe brakesarefunctioning
properly.Alwayskeepmachineingearwhen goingdownslopes
totake advantageofenginebrakingaction.
• Followthemanufacturer'srecommendationsforwheelweights
orcounterweightstoimprovestability.Forrecommendations,call
1-800-659-5917.
• Useextracarewith grasscatchersor otherattachments.These
canchangethe stabilityofthe machine.
Keepallmovementonthe slopesslowand gradual.Do not make
suddenchangesinspeedor direction.Rapidengagementor
brakingcouldcausethe frontof the machinetolift andrapidly flip
overbackwardswhichcouldcauseseriousinjury.
• Avoidstarting orstoppingon a slope.If tireslosetraction,disen-
gagethe blade(s)andproceedslowlystraightdownthe slope.
DoNot:
• Donotturn on slopesunlessnecessary;then,turnslowlyand
graduallydownhill,ifpossible.
• Donotmow neardrop-offs,ditchesor embankments.Themower
couldsuddenlyturnover ifa wheel isover theedgeof a cliff,
ditch,or if an edge cavesin.
• Donottry to stabilizethe machinebyputtingyourfoot on the
ground.
• Donotuse a grasscatcheron steepslopes.
• Donotmowon wet grass.Reducedtractioncouldcausesliding.
• Donotattemptto coastdownhill.Over-speedingmaycausethe
operatortolose controlofthe machineresultingin seriousinjury
ordeath.
• Donottow heavypull behindattachments(e.g.loadeddumpcart,
lawnroller,etc.)on slopesgreaterthan5 degrees.Whengoing
downhill,the extraweighttendsto pushthetractorand may
causeyouto loosecontrol(e.g.tractormay speedup,brakingand
steeringabilityarereduced,attachmentmayjack-knifeandcause
tractortooverturn).
4