Craftsman 917.388741 Owner's Manual page 9

MOWING TIPS
• 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
clippings. It may also be necessary to
reduce ground speed and/or run the
lawn mower over the area a second
time.
• For extremely heavy cutting, reduce the
width of cut by overlapping previously
cut path and mow slowly.
• For better grass bagging and most
cutting conditions, the engine speed
should be set in the FAST position.
• 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.
• If a trail of clippings is left on the right
side of a rear discharge mower, mow in
a clockwise direction with a small
overlap to collect the clippings on the
next pass.
• 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 catcher
off with water and let dry before using.
• Keep top of engine around starter clear
and clean of grass clippings and chaff.
This will help engine air flow and
extend engine life.
MULCHING MOWING TIPS
IMPORTANT: For best performance, keep
mower housing free of built-up grass and
trash. See "CLEANING" in the 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 biedegrade 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 iswet. Wet
grass tends to form dumps and interferes
with the mulching action. The best time to
mew your lawn is the early aftemeen. 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
cut_ng height so that the lawn mower cuts
off only the top one-third of the grass
blades. If the lawn is overgrown it will be
necessary to raise the height of cut to
reduce pushing effort and to keep from
overleading the engine and leaving
clumps of mulched grass. For extremely
heavy grass, reduce your width of cut by
overlapping previously cut path and mow
slowly.
MAXt_
• Certain types of grass and grass condi-
tions 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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