Maintenance; Raising And Lowering; Operating Tips; Removing S Now - Craftsman 486.24838 Operator's Manual

RAISING ANDLOWERING
• Toraise, p ushdownonthe lifthandle untilthesnow
thrower l ocksinthe raised transport p osition.
• Tolower, p ushdown slightly onthelifthandle andpull
thetrigger. W iththetriggerpulled, s lowly lower the
snow thrower u ntilit reaches t heground.
CAUTION: Donotoperate thesnow
thrower w ithout t he rearweight a ttached
tothetractor t oprovide extra traction and
stability
REMOVING S NOW
Snowremoval conditions v arygreatly fromlightfluffy
snowfall towetheavy snowOperating i nstructions m ust
beflexible tofit theconditions e ncountered. Theoperator
mustadaptthelawntractor a ndsnowthrower t odepthof
snow, w inddirection, temperature andsurface conditions.
• Before beginning o peration, thoroughly i nspect t he
areaofoperation andremove alldoormats, s leds,
boards, wiresandotherforeign objects
• Thespiral a ugerspeed is directly related to engine
speedFormaximum snowremoval anddischarge,
maintain highengine rp.m (fullthrottle)It is advisable
to operate thelawntractor a ta slowground speed
(1 st gear)forsafeandefficient s nowremoval.
• Indeep, d riftedor banked snowit willbenecessary t o
usefullthrottle anda slowground speed (1stgear).
Drive forward intothesnow, d epress thetractor's
clutch-brake pedalandallowthespiral a uger to clear
thesnowRepeat t hismethod until a pathiscleared.
Onthesecond pass, o verlap thefirstenough toallow
thesnowthrower t o handle thesnow withoutrepeated
stopping andstarting offorward motion.
• Inextremely d eepsnow, r aisethesnowthrower f rom
theground to remove thetoplayeranddriveforward
onlyuntil t hetractors fronttiresreach theuncleared
bottom layer o f snow. D epress thetractor's clutch-
brakepedal a ndallowthespiral a uger toclearthe
snowReverse t hetractor a ndlower thesnowthrower
totheground. Drivethetractor f orward until t hesnow
againbecomes toodeep Repeating t hisprocess into
andoutofdriftswilleventually c leareventhedeepest
ofsnowpiles.
• If thesnowthrower b ecomes c logged withsnowor
jammed witha foreign object, d isengage t hesnow
thrower i mmediately andshutoffthetractor e ngine.
Unclog thesnow thrower b efore resuming o peration.
DANGER: Shutoffengine and
disengage s nowthrower b efore
unclogging d ischarge c huteUnclog using
a wooden stick,notyourhands
OPERATING TiPS
• Discharge snow down wind whenever possible
To help prevent snow from sticking to the snow thrower,
allow the snow thrower to reach outdoor temperature
before using it A light coat of wax may also be applied
to the inside surface of the snow thrower housing and
discharge chute.
• Use tire chains to improve traction.
Use rear wheel weights to improve traction
• Before the first snowfall, remove all stones, sticks and
other objects which could become hidden by the snow
Permanent obstacles should be marked for visibility
Overlap each pass slightly to assure complete snow
removal
CUSTOMER RESPONSIBILITIES
• Read and follow the maintenance schedule and the maintenance procedures listed in this section.
MAINTENANCE SCHEDULE
Fill in dates as you
complete regular service
Check for loose tasteners
Check scraper and shoes kJr wear
Cleaning
Lubrication Section
_'__ Service Dates
' t l i I I
I 11 ! I I t I t
LUBRICATION
• Oil aH pivot points on the snow thrower.
• Oil the pivot points of the two idler arms on the clutcW
idler assembly
• Apply penetrating oil to the control cables of the
discharge chute
• Apply a good grade of spray lubricant to the trigger
assembly and the chute tilt control assembly
CHECK SCRAPER AND SHOES FOR WEAR
(Refer to figures 64 and 65 on page 29.)
• The scraper plate and skid shoes on the bottom of the
snow thrower are subject to wear. To prevent damage
to the spiral auger housing, replace plate and shoes
before wear is excessive.
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