Engaging The Blades; Mulching; Using The Deck Lift Lever; Mowing - Craftsman 247.25000 Operator's Manual

ENGAGING
THE BLADES
Engagingthe PTO(Blade Engage)transferspowerto thecuttingdeck.
Toengagethe blades,proceedas follows:
1. Movethe throttle/chokecontrolleverto the FAST(rabbit)position.
2. Graspthe PTO(BladeEngage)leverand pivotit all the way
forwardintothe engaged(ON)position.
3. Keepthe throttleleverin the FAST(rabbit)positionfor the most
efficientuseof the cuttingdeck.
NOTE: The enginewill automatically shut off if the PTO(Blade
Engage)leveris movedintothe engaged(ON) positionwith the shift
leverin Reverse.
MULCHING
A mulchkit is availableas an attachment.Mulchingis a processof
recirculatinggrassclippingsrepeatedlybeneaththe cuttingdeck. The
ultra-fineclippingsare thenforced back intothe lawnwherethey act
as a naturalfertilizer.Contactthe nearest Parts & Repair Service
Center to purchasea mulchkit forthis unit.
Tolocatethe nearestParts& RepairServiceCenter, c ontact
1-800-4-MY-HOME®.
USING THE DECK LIFT LEVER
To raisethe cuttingdeck,movethe deck lift leverto the left,then place
it in the notchbest suitedfor yourapplication.Referto SettingThe
CuttingHeightearlier in this section.
MOWING
To helpavoidbladecontact or a thrownobject injury,keepbystand-
ers, helpers,childrenand petsat least 75 feet from the machine
whileit is in operation.Stopmachineif anyoneentersthe area.
The followinginformationwill be helpfulwhenusingthe cuttingdeck
with yourtractor:
Planyourmowingpatternto avoiddischargeof materialstoward
roads,sidewalks,bystanders and the like. Also,avoiddischarging
materialagainsta wall or obstructionwhich may causedischarged
materialto ricochetbacktowardthe operator.
• Donot mowat highground speed,especiallyif a mulchkit or
grass collectoris installed.
• Forbest resultsit is recommended that the first two laps be cut
with the dischargethrowntowardsthe center.After the firsttwo
laps, reversethedirectionto throwthe dischargeto theoutside
for the balanceof cutting.This will givea better appearanceto the
lawn.
• Donot cut the grass tooshort. Shortgrassinvitesweedgrowth
and yellowsquicklyin dry weather.
• Mowingshouldalwaysbe done with the engineat full throttle.
• Underheavierconditionsit maybe necessaryto go backoverthe
cut areaa secondtime to get a cleancut.
• Do NOTattemptto mowheavy brushand weedsand extremely
tall grass.Yourtractoris designedto mow lawns,NOTclear
brush.
• Keepthe bladesharpand replacethe blade whenworn. Refer
to CuttingBlade in the Maintenancesectionof this manualfor
proper bladesharpeninginstructions.
• The lampsturn OFFwhenthe ignitionkey is movedto the STOP
position.
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