Making Adjustments - Yard Machines 430 Series Operator's Manual

• Disconnect the spark plug wire and ground it
against the engine to prevent accidental starting
while equipment is unattended.
Using Your Rotary Mower
_ WARNING: Never operate your unit without
either the rear deflector or entire grass
catcher assembly in place.
• Be sure that lawn is clear of stones, sticks, wire, or
other objects which could damage lawn mower or
engine. Such objects could be accidentally thrown
by the mower in any direction and cause serious
personal injury to the operator and others.
• For best results, do not cut wet grass because it
tends to stick to the underside of the mower,
preventing proper discharge of grass clippings, and
could cause you to slip and fall. New grass, thick
grass or wet grass may require a narrower cut.
• Blade speed should be adjusted to the condition of
the lawn.
• For a healthy lawn, never cut more than one-
third of the total length of the grass at any one
cutting. Lawn should be cut in the fall as long as
there is growth.
• This mower is designed to be operated at full
throttle to give you the best cut and do the most
effective job of bagging the cut grass.
WARNING: If you strike a foreign object,
stop the engine. Remove wire from spark
plug, thoroughly inspect the mower for
any damage, and repair the damage
before restarting and operating the
mower. Extensive vibration of the mower
during operation is an indication of
damage. The unit should be promptly
inspected and repaired.
UsingtheMulcher
• For effective mulching, do not cut wet grass
because it tends to stick to the underside of the
deck, preventing proper mulching of grass
clippings. New or thick grass may require a
narrower cut. The ground speed should be
adjusted to the condition of the lawn. If mowing has
been delayed and the grass has been allowed to
grow in excess of 4", mulching is not
recommended. Mow using the grass bag (if so
equipped) to reduce the grass height to 3-1/4"
maximum before mulching.
SECTION 6: MAKING ADJUSTMENTS
WARNING: Do not at any time make any
adjustment to lawn mower without first
stopping engine and disconnecting spark
plug wire.
Cutting Height
An adjusting plate and thumb lever at each wheel
position provides cutting height adjustment. Each
adjusting plate has nine height positions. Height of cut
will be changed when the thumb lever is moved from
one hole to another.
Simply depress the lever towards wheel and move
wheel and lever assembly to desired position. All
wheels must be placed in the same relative
position. See Figure 14.
Height
• dl'ustment
Lever
Figure 14
HandleHeight
Your mower is shipped with the handle in the higher
height position.To lower the handle height for your
convenience, proceed as follows.
Lower _4,
Handle
Notch
Figure 15
• Remove the starter rope from the rope guide.
• Remove the upper handle by removing the hand
knobs and carriage bolts. Lay the upper handle out
of the way, being careful not to bend or kink the
cables.
• Remove the hairpin clips from the weld pins on the
handle brackets. Press outward on the legs of the
lower handle, and remove it from the mower.
• Turn the lower handle around so the notches on the
bottom of the lower handle are facing forward as
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