SECTION 6: OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS

Holding the Trimmer

WARNING: Always wear eye, hearing, foot and body protection to reduce the risk of injury when operating this unit.

Before operating the unit, stand in the operating position. See Figure 14. Check for the following:

•The operator is wearing eye protection and proper clothing

•With a slightly-bent right arm, the operator’s right hand is holding the shaft grip

•The operator’s left arm is straight, the left hand holding the J-handle

•The unit is at waist level

•The cutting attachment is parallel to the ground and easily contacts the grass without the need to bend over

Figure 14

Adjusting Trimming Line Length

The Bump Head™ cutting attachment allows you to release trimming line without stopping the engine. To release more line, lightly tap the cutting attachment on the ground while operating the trimmer at high speed. See Figure 15.

NOTE: Always keep the trimming line fully extended. Line release becomes more difficult when the cutting line gets shorter.

NOTE: Do not rest the bump knob on the ground while the unit is running.

CAUTION: Do not remove or alter the line cutting blade assembly. Excessive line length may make the unit overheat.

Some line breakage will occur from:

•Entanglement with foreign matter

•Normal line fatigue

•An attempt to cut thick, stalky weeds

•Forcing the line into objects such as walls or fence posts

Tips for Best Trimming Results

•For best trimming results, operate unit at full throttle.

•Keep the cutting attachment parallel to the ground.

•Do not force the cutting attachment. Allow the tip of the line to do the cutting, especially along walls. Cutting with more than the tip will reduce cutting efficiency and may overload the engine.

•Cut grass over 8 inches (200 mm) tall by working from top to bottom in small increments to avoid premature line wear or engine drag.

•Cut from right to left whenever possible. Cutting to the left improves the unit's cutting efficiency. Clippings are thrown away from the operator.

•Slowly move the trimmer into and out of the cutting area at the desired height. Move either in a forward- to-backward or side-to-side motion. Cutting shorter lengths produces the best results.

•Trim only when grass and weeds are dry.

•The life of your cutting line is dependent upon:

•Following the trimming techniques

•What vegetation is being cut

•Where vegetation is cut

For example, the line will wear faster when trimming against a foundation wall as opposed to trimming around a tree.

Figure 15

Each time the head is bumped, about 1 inch (25.4 mm) of trimming line releases. A blade in the cutting attachment shield will cut the line to the proper length if any excess line is released.

For best results, tap the bump knob on bare ground or hard soil. If you attempt a line release in tall grass, the engine may stall. Always keep the trimming line fully extended. Line release becomes more difficult when the cutting line gets shorter.

Decorative Trimming

Decorative trimming refers to the removal of vegetation around trees, posts, fences and more.

Rotate the whole unit so that the cutting attachment is at a 30° angle to the ground. See Figure 16.

Figure 16

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