Craftsman 944.363211 Owner's Manual page 9

ADD GASOLINE
• Fill fuel tank to bottom of tank fi ller neck.
Do not overfi ll. Use fresh, clean, regular
unleaded gasoline with a minimum of 87
octane. Do not mix oil with gasoline. Pur-
chase fuel in quan ti ties that can be used
within 30 days to assure fuel freshness.
CAUTION: Wipe off any spilled oil or
fuel. Do not store, spill or use gasoline
near an open fl ame.
CAUTION: Alcohol blended fuels (called
gasohol or using ethanol or methanol) can
attract moisture which leads to separation
and for ma tion of acids during storage. Acidic
gas can damage the fuel system of an engine
while in storage. To avoid engine problems,
the fuel system should be emptied before
stor age of 30 days or longer. Empty the gas
tank, start the engine and let it run until the
fuel lines and carburetor are empty. Use fresh
fuel next season. See Storage In struc tions
for additional information. Never use engine
or carburetor cleaner products in the fuel tank
or permanent damage may occur.
TO STOP ENGINE
• To stop engine, release operator pres-
ence con trol bar.
TO START ENGINE
NOTE: Due to protective coatings on the
engine, a small amount of smoke may be
present during the initial use of the prod-
uct and should be considered normal.
1. To start a cold engine, push primer three
(3) times before trying to start. Use a fi rm
push. This step is not usually necessary
when starting an engine which has al-
ready run for a few minutes.
2. Hold operator presence control bar down
to the han dle and pull starter handle quick-
ly. Do not allow starter rope to snap back.
NOTE: In cooler weather it may be necessary
to repeat priming steps. In warmer weather
over priming may cause fl ooding and engine
will not start. If you do fl ood engine, wait a
few minutes before attempting to start and
do not repeat priming steps.
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 over load ing the
en gine and leaving clumps of grass clip-
pings. It may also be necessary to re-
duce 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 pre vi ous ly
cut path and mow slowly.
• For better grass bagging and most cut-
ting conditions, the engine speed should
be set in the FAST position.
• Pores in cloth grass catchers can be-
come fi lled 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 fl ow 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 clip pings 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
bio de grade quickly to provide nu tri ents 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 in ter feres
with the mulch ing action. The best time to
mow your lawn is the early afternoon. At this
time the grass has dried, yet the newly cut
area will not be exposed to direct sunlight.
• 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. If the lawn is over grown it
will be necessary to raise the height of cut
to reduce pushing effort and to keep from
over load ing the engine and leaving clumps
of mulched grass. For ex tremely heavy
grass, reduce your width of cut by overlap-
ping previously cut path and mow slowly.
• Certain types of grass and grass con di tions
may re quire that an area be mulched a sec-
ond time to com pletely hide the clip pings.
When doing a sec ond cut, mow across
(per pen dic u lar) to the fi rst 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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