Slope Operation - Yard-Man 959 Series Owner's Manual

* Never operate the mower in wet grass. Always be
sure of your footing. A slip and fall can cause serious
pelsenal fnjury. Keep a firm hold on the handle and
walk, never run. If you fee[ you are losing your
footing, RELEASE THE BLADE CONTROL HANDLE
IMMEDrATLEY and the blade will stop rotating wghin
three seconds.
, MOW only in daylight or good artificial lighb
• Stop the blade when crossing gravel drives, walks or
roads.
• If the equipment should start to vibrate abnormally,
stop the engine and check immediately for the
cause. Vibration is generally a warning of trouble.
• Shut the engine off and wait untir the blade comes to
a complete stop before removing the grass catcher
or unclogging the chute The cutting blade continues
to rotate for a few seconds after the engine is shut
off. Never place any pad of the body in the brade
area until you are sure the blade has stopped
rotating.
• Never operate mower without proper guards, grass
catcher, plates or other safety protective devices in
place.
• Muffler and engine become hot and can cause a
burn. Do not touch.
,
• Only use accessories approved for this machine by
the manufacturer. Read, undersland, and fellow all
instructions provided with the approved accessory.
It situations occur which are not covered in this
manual, use care and good judgment. Contact your
dealer for assistance Telephone 1-800-800-7310
for the name of your nearest dester.
SLOPE OPERATION
For your salsty, use the slope gauge included as part of this
manual to measure slopes before operating this unit on a
sloped or hilly area, If the slope is greater than 15 degrees
as shown on the slope gauge, do not operate this unit on
that area or sedous injury could result•
DO:
• Mow across the face of slopes; never up and down
Exercise extreme caution when changing direction
on s!opes•
• Watch for holes, ruts hidden objects, or bumps Tall
grass can hide obstacles.
• Always be sure of your footing• A slip and fall can
cause serious personal injury. If you feel you are
losing your balance release the blade control handle
immediststy and the blade will stop in less than 3
seconds•
DO NOT:
• Do not mow near drop-offs, ditches or embankments.
The operator could lose footing or balance.
• Do not mow slopes greater than 15 degrees as
shown on the slope gauge
• Do not mow on wet grass Reduced footing could
cause slippfng.
3. CHILDREN
Tragic accidents can occur if the operator is not alert to the
presence of children. Children are often attrasted to the
mower and the mowing activity. Never assume that children
will remain where you last saw them.
• Keep children out of the mowing area and under the
watchful care of a responsible adult other than the
operator.
• Be aled and turn mower off if a child enters the area
• Before and while moving backwards, look behind
and down for small children or other objects•
• Never allow children under age 14 to operate the
mower Children 14 years of age and above should
read and understand the operation instructions and
safety rules in this manual.
• Use extreme care when approaching blind corners,
shrubs, trees, or other objects that may obscure your
vision of a child or hazard.
4. SERVICE
• Use extreme care in handling gasoline and other
luels. They are extremely flammable and the vapors
are
e×ploslve
• Use only an approved gasoline container.
• Neverremovegascaporaddfuelwhiletheengineis --
running Allow engine to cool at least two mfnutes
before refueling.
RepJaoe gasoline cad securely and wipe off any
spilJed gaseJine before stading the engine as _i may
cause a fire or explosion.
• Extinguish all cigarettes, cigars, pipes and other
sources of ignition
• Never refuel machine indoors because flammable
vapors will accumulate in the area.
• Never store the machine or fuel oostainer inside
where there is an open flame or spark such as a gas
water heater, space heater, or tamace
• Never run an engine inside a closed area•
• To reduce fire hazard, keep mower free of grass,
leaves, or other debris build-up. Clean up oil or fuel
spillage Allow mower to cost at least 5 minutes
before stanng.
• Before cleaning, repairing, or inspecting, make
certain the blade and all moving parts have stopped
Disconnect the spark plug w_re, and keep the wire
away from the spark plug to prevent accidental
starting.
• Check the blade and engine mounting bolts at
trequenl intervals for proper tightness Also, visually
inspect blade for damage (eg, bent, cracked or _-_
worn), Replace with blade which meets original
equipment specifications listed in this manual.
• Keep all nuts, bolts, and screws tight to be sure the
equipment is in safe working condition.