To Start Engine; Mowing Tips; Warm Weather Starting; Cold Weather Starting - Craftsman 917.271110 Owner's Manual

mix oilwithgasoline. Purchase fuel i n
quantities thatcanbeused within 3 0
days toassure f uel f reshness.
IMPORTANT: When operating intempera-
tures
below 32°F(0°C), use fresh, clean
wintergradegasolineto help insuregood
,_dAweatherstarting.
RNING: Experienceindicates that
alcoholblendedfuels (calledgasoholor
-usingethanolor methanol)can attract
moisture whichleads to separationand
formationof acidsduringstorage.Acidic
gas can damage the fuel systemof an
enginewhilein storage.To avoidengine
problems, t he fuel systemshouldbe emp-
tied beforestorageof 30 days or longer.
Drainthe gas tank, startthe engine and
let it rununtil the fuel linesand carburetor
are empty.Use fresh fuel nextseason.
See Storage Instructions f or additional
information. N ever use engineor carbure-
tor cleaner productsin the fuel tankor per-
nent damage may occur.
CAUTION: Fillto bottomof gas tank
filler neck. Do not overfill. W ipe offany
spilledoil or fuel. Do not store,spillor use
gasolinenear an openflame.
TO START ENGINE
When startingthe enginefor the first time
or if the engine has runout of fuel,it will
take extracrankingtimeto movefuel from
the tank to the engine.
• Siton seat in operatingposition,
depressclutch/brake pedaland set
parkingbrake.
• Placegear shiftlever in neutral(N) posi-
tion.
• Move attachmentclutchto =DISEN-
GAGED" position.
• Move throttlecontrolto choke position.
Note: Beforestarting read the warm and
coldstartingproceduresbelow.
• Insertkey intoignitionand tum key
clockwiseto =START" positionand
releasekey as soonas enginestarts.
Do not run startercontinuously for more
than fifteen secondsper minute.If the
engine does not startafterseveral
attempts,movethrottle controlto fast
position,wait a few minutesand try
again. If enginestilldoes not start,
movethe throttlecontrol beck to the
choke position and retry.
WARM WEATHER STARTING (50° F
AND ABOVE)
• When engine starts,move the throttle
controlto the fast position.
• The attachmentsand grounddrivecan
now be used.If the enginedoes not
acceptthe load, restartthe engine and
allowit to warm up for one minuteusing
the choke as describedabove.
COLD WEATHER STARTING ( 50° F
AND BELOW)
• When engine starts,allowengine to run
with the throttlecontrolin the choke
position untilthe engine runsroughly,
then movethrottle controlto fast posi-
tion. Thismay requirean engine warm-
up periodfrom severalsecondsto sev-
eral minutes,dependingon the temper-
ature.
• The attachments can also be used dur-
ingthe enginewarm-upperiod.
NOTE: If at a highaltitude(above 3000
feet) or in coldtemperatures (below32 F)
the carburetor fuel mixturemay need to be
adjustedfor best engineperformance.
See =TOADJUST CARBURETOR"in the
Serviceand Adjustments sectionof this
manual.
MOWING TIPS
• "13re c hainscannotbe used when the
mowerhousingis attachedto tractor.
• Mowershouldbe properlyleveledfor
bestmowingperformance. S ee =TO
LEVEL MOWER HOUSING"in the
Serviceand Adjustments sectionof this
manual.
• The lefthand sideof mowershouldbe
usedfor trimming.
• Driveso thatclippingsare discharged
ontothe area that hasbeen cut. Have
the cut area to-the rightof the tractor.
This willresultin a more even distribu-
tion ofclippingsand more uniformcut-
ting.
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