MTD 26M warranty Operating Your Lawn Mower, Know Your Lawn Mower

4

Operating

Your Lawn

Mower

WARNING

The blade control

mechanism is a

safety device. Never attempt to bypass its

Know Your Lawn Mower

Blade Control

Drive Control

Choke Control

Recoil

Starter

Gasoline Fill

Mulching Baffle

Oil Fill

Height Adjustment

Levers

Figure 4-1

operations.

Use extreme care

when handling

gasoline. Gasoline is extremely flammable and the vapors are explosive. Never fuel the machine indoors or while the engine

is hot or running.

Extinguish cigarettes,

cigars, pipes and other sources of ignition.

Keep hands and feet away from the chute area on cutting deck.

Refer to warning label on the unit.

Now that you have set up your lawn mower for opera- tion, get aquainted with its controls and features. These are described below and illustrated on this page. This knowledge will allow you to use your new equipment to its fullest potential.

Blade Control

The blade control is attached to the upper handle of the mower. Depress and squeeze it against the upper handle to operate the unit. Release it to stop engine and blade.

WARNING: This blade control mecha- nism is a safety device. Never attempt to bypass its operations.

Drive Control

The drive control is located on the underside of the upper handle and is used to engage the drive. Squeeze it against the upper handle to engage the drive; release it to slow down or stop mower from propelling. See Figure 4-1.

Mulching Baffle

Instead of collecting the grass clippings in the grass catcher, your mower has the option of recirculating the clippings back to the lawn. Remove grass catcher (if applicable), and operate with the mulching baffle only for this purpose.

Cutting Height Adjustment Levers

One adjustment lever is located on each wheel and is used to adjust the cutting height. All four levers have to be at the same relative position to ensure a uniform cut.

Recoil Starter

The recoil starter is attached to the right upper handle. Stand behind the unit and pull the recoil starter rope to start the unit.

Choke Control

The choke control is located on the left side of the handle and when activated, closes the choke plate on the carburetor and aids in starting the engine.

Gas and Oil Fill-Up

1.Add oil provided before starting unit for the first time out of the box. Follow engine operation section for this. See Figure 4-1 above for location of the oil fill.

2.Service the engine with gasoline as instructed in the engine operation section. See Figure 4-1 above for location of gas fill.

WARNING: Use extreme care when han- dling gasoline. Gasoline is extremely flammable and the vapors are explosive. Never fuel the machine indoors or while the engine is hot or running. Extinguish cigarettes, cigars, pipes and other sources of ignition.