Mowing Tips - Craftsman 917.377521 Owner's Manual

warmew: weather over priming may cause
flooding and engine will not start. If you
do flood engine, wait a few minutes before
attempting to start and do not repeat
priming steps.
MOWING TIPS
o Under certain conditions, such as very tall
grass, it may be necessary to raise the
height of cut to reduce pushing effort and to
keep from overloading the engine and
leaving clumps of grass clipping&
o For extremely heavy cutting, reduce the
width of cut and raise the rear of the lawn
mower housing one (1) wheel adjuster
setting higher than the front for better
discharge of grass.
° For better grass bagging and most cutting
conditions, the engine speed should be set
in the fast position°
o When using a rear discharge lawn mower in
moist, heavy grass, clumps of cut grass
may not enter the grass catcher. Reduce
ground speed (pushing speed) and/or run
the lawn mower over the area a second
time_
o If a trail of grass clippings is left on the right
side of a rear discharge lawn mower, mow
in a clockwise direction with a small overlap
to collect the clippings on the next pass.
° Keep top of engine around starter clear and
clean of grass clippings and chaff° This will
help engine air flow and extend engine life.
• Pores in cloth grass catchers can become
filled with dirt and dust with use and
catchers will collect less grass. To prevent
this, regularly hose catchers off with water
and let dry before using.
MULCHING MOWING TiPS
IMPORTANT: For best performance, keep
mower housing free of built-up grass and
trash. See "Cleaning" in Maintenance section
of this manual.
° The special mulching blade will recut the
grass clippings many times and reduce
them in size so that as they fall onto the
lawn they will disperse into the grass and
not be noticed. Also, the mulched grass will
biodegrade quickly to provide nutrients for
the lawn. Always mulch with your highest
engine (blade) speed as this will provide the
best recutting action of the blades.
° Avoid cutting your lawn when it is wet° Wet
grass tends to form clumps and interferes
with the mulching action., The best time to
mow your fawn is the early afternoon. At
this time the grass has dried and the newly
cut area will not be exposed to the direct
sun.
° For best results, adjust the lawn mower
cutting height so that the lawn mower cuts
off only the top one-third of the grass blades°
tf the lawn is overgrown it will be necessary
to raise the height of cut to reduce pushing
effort and to keep from overloading the
engine and leaving clumps of mulched
grass. For extremely heavy mulching,
reduce your width of cut by overlapping
previously cut path and mow slowly.
o Certain types of grass and grass conditions
may require that an area be mulched a
second time to completely hide the
clippings. When doing a second cut, mow
across or perpendicular to the first cut path,
,, Change your cutting pattern from week to
week. Mow north to south one week then
change to east to west the next week, This
will help prevent matting and graining of the
lawn.
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