Operating
Your Lawn
WARNING
Do not mow on inclines
with aslope in excess
of 15 degrees (a rise
of approximately 2-1/2
feet every 10feet). The
tractor couldoverturn
and cause serious
injury.
To help avoid blade
contact or athrown
object injury,keep
bystanders, helpers,
children and pets at
least75 feet from the
machine while it is in
operation.Stop ma=
chine if anyone enters
the area.
4. Tomovein reverse,placethe shiftleverin the
REVERSEposition,check that theareabehindis
clearthenslowlydepressthe drivepedal.
Driving On Slopes
Refertothe SLOPEGAUGEonpage3 to helpdeter-
mineslopeswhereyou mayoperatethetractorsafely.
_ WARNING" Do not mow on
inclineswith aslope in excess
of 15 degrees (a rise of approxi-
mately 2-1/2 feet every 10 feet).
The tractor could overturn and
cause serious injury.
• Mowupand downslopes,NEVERacross.
• Exerciseextremecautionwhenchangingdirection
onslopes.
• Watchforholes, ruts,bumps,rocks,or otherhidden
objects.Uneventerraincouldoverturnthemachine.
Tallgrasscanhide obstacles.
• Avoidturnswhendrivingon a slope.If a turn must
bemade,turn downthe slope.Turningupa slope
greatlyincreasesthechanceofa roll over.
• Avoidstoppingwhendrivingupa slope. If it is
necessarytostopwhiledriving up aslope, startup
smoothlyandcarefullytoreducethe possibilityof
flippingthetractoroverbackward.
Setting The Cruise Control
1. Placetheshift leverinthe FORWARDposition,
thenslowlydepressthedrive pedaluntil the desired
speedisachieved.
2. Lightlydepressthecruisecontrolbutton.
3. Whilecontinuingtoholdthe cruisebuttonin,liftyour
footfromthe drive pedal(youshouldfeel the cruise
latchengage).
Onceengaged,thecruisecontrolbutton andthedrive
pedalwilllockin the"down"position,andthetractorwill
maintainthesameforwardspeed.
NOTE:Cruisecontrolcannot be engagedatthe
tractor'sfastestgroundspeed.Ifthe operatorshould
attempttodo so,the tractor will automaticallydecelerate
tothe fastestoptimalmowinggroundspeed.
Disengagethecruisecontrolusingoneof thefollowing
methods:
1. Depressthebrakepedalto disengagethecruise
controlandstopthe tractor.
2. Lightlydepressthedrivepedal.
Tochangeto thereversedirectionwhenoperatingwith
cruisecontrol,depressthebrakepedalto disengagethe
cruisecontrolandbringthe tractorto a completestop.
Thenplacethe shiftleverinthe REVERSEpositionand
depressthedrivepedal.
Engaging the Blades
EngagingthePTO(BladeEngage)transferspowertothe
cuttingdeckor other(separatelyavailable)attachments.
Toengagetheblades,proceedas follows:
1. Movethethrottlecontrollever totheFAST(rabbit)
position.
Models with Manual PTO
2. a. Graspthe PTO(BladeEngage)leverand pivotit all
thewayforwardinto theengaged(ON) position.
Models with Electric PTO
b. Pullthe PTO(BladeEngage)knoboutwardintothe
engaged(ON)position.
3. Keepthethrottlelever intheFAST(rabbit)position
forthe mostefficientuse of the cuttingdeck or other
(separatelyavailable)attachments
IMPORTANT:The engine(on modelswitha manualPTO)
orelectric PTOclutch(on modelswith anelectric PTO)
willautomaticallyshutoffif thePTOis engagedwiththe
shiftleverin positionfor reversetravelwith the ignition
keyinthe NORMALMOWINGposition.Referto Safety
InterlockSwitchesearlierinthissection.
Using the Deck Lift Lever
Toraisethe cuttingdeck,movethe decklift lever tothe
left,thenplace itinthenotch best suitedfor yourapplica-
tion.Referto SettingTheCuttingHeightearlierinthis
section.
Mowing
_ARNING: To help avoid blade
contact or a thrown object injury,
keep bystanders, helpers, children
and petsat least 75 feet from the
machine while it is in operation.
Stop machine if anyone enters the
area.
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