Craftsman 247.29922 Operator's Manual page 16

Choosing the Correct Tine Speed
With experience, y ou will findthe tillingdepthand tilling speed
combinationthat isbest for yourgarden.Set theengine throttlelever at
a speedtogive the engineadequatepowerand yet allowit tooperate
at the slowestpossiblespeeduntilyou haveachievedthe maximum
tillingdepthyoudesire. Fasterenginespeedsmay be desirable
whenmakingfinalpassesthroughthe seedbedor when cultivating.
Selectionof the correctenginespeed,in relationto the tillingdepth,
will ensurea sufficientpowerlevelto do thejob withoutcausingthe
engineto labor.
Suggested Tilling Patterns
• Whenpreparinga seedbed,go overthesame pathtwice inthe
first row,thenoverlapone-halfthe tillerwidth on the rest of the
passes.See Figure19.
• Whenfinishedinone direction,makea secondpass at a right
angle,See Figure20. Overlapeachpass for thebest results(in
very hard ground,itmay take threeor four passesto thoroughly
pulverizethe soil.)
• If thegarden sizewill not permitlengthwiseand then crosswise
tilling,then overlapthe firstpassesby one-halfa tillerwidth,fol-
lowedby successive passesat one-quarterwidth.See Figure21.
Donot operatethe tilleron a slopetoo steepfor safeoperation.Till
slowlyand be sureyouhavegood footing.Neverpermitthe tiller to
freewheeldownslopes.Failureto followthis warningcouldresultin
personalinjury.
Tilling on a Slope
1. Tillonlyonmoderate slopes,neveronsteepground wherethefooting
isdifficult.
2. Tillingup and downslopes isrecommended overterracing.Tilling
verticallyon a slopeallowsmaximumplantingarea and also
leavesroomforcultivating.
NOTE:Whentilling on slopes,be surethe correctoil levelismain-
tainedinthe engine (checkeveryone-halfhour of operation).The
incline of the slopewillcause the oil to slant awayfrom itsnormal
leveland this can starveengineparts of requiredlubrication.Keepthe
motoroil levelat thefull pointat all times.
Figure19
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Figure20
Tilling Up and Down a Slope
1. Tokeepsoil erosionto a minimum,be sureto add enoughorganic
matterto the soilso that it hasgood moistureholding textureand
try to avoidleavingfootprintsor wheelmarks.
2. Whentillingvertically,tryto makethefirstpassuphillasthetillerdigs
moredeeplygoing uphill thanit doesdownhill.In soft soil or
weeds,you may haveto lift the handlebarsslightlywhile goingup-
hill.Whengoing downhill,overlapthe first pass byaboutone-half
the widthof the tiller.
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Figure21