Mowing Tips; Mulching Mowing Tips - Craftsman ELECTRIC START 42" MOWER AUTOMATIC LAWN TRACTOR 944.602951 Owner's Manual

OPERATION
• Sitting in the tractor seat, start engine. After the engine
is running, move throttle control to slow position. With
motion control lever in neutral (N) position, slowly
disengage clutch/brake pedal.
• Move motion control lever to full forward position and
hold for five (5) seconds. Move lever to full reverse
position and hold for five (5) seconds. Repeat this
procedure three (3) times.
NOTE: During this procedure there will be no movement of
drive wheels. The air is being removed from hydraulic drive
system.
• Move motion control lever to neutral (N) position. Shut-
off engine and set parking brake.
• Engage transmission by placing freewheel control in
driving position (See "TO TRANSPORT" in this section
of manual).
• Sitting in the tractor seat, start engine. After the engine
is running, move throttle controlto half (112) speed. With
motion control lever in neutral (N) position, slowly
disengage clutch/brake pedal.
• Slowly move motion control lever forward, after the
tractor moves approximately five (5) feet, slowly move
motion control leverto reverse position. After the tractor
moves approximately five (5) feet return the motion
control lever to the neutral (N) position. Repeat this
procedure with the motion control lever three (3) times.
• Your tractor is now purged and now ready for normal
operation.
MOWING TIPS
• Mower should be propedy leveled for best mowing
performance. See =TO LEVEL MOWER HOUSING" in
the Service and Adjustments section of this manual.
• The lefthand side of mower shouldbe used for trimming.
• Drive so that clippings are discharged ontothe area that
has been cut. Have the cut area to the right of the
machine. This will result in a more even distribution of
clippings and more uniform cutting.
• When mowing large areas, start bytuming to the right so
that clippings will discharge away from shrubs, fences,
driveways, etc. After one or two rounds, mow in the
opposite direction making left hand turns until finished
(See Fig. 11).
• If grass is extremely tall, it should be mowed twice to
reduce load and possible fire hazard from dried clip-
pings. Make first cut relatively high; the second to the
desired height.
• Do not mow grass when it is wet. Wet grass will plug
mowerand leave undesirable clumps. AIIowgrasstodry
before mowing.
• Always operate engine at full throtUe when mowing
to assure better mowing performance and proper dis-
charge of material. Regulate ground speed byselecting
a low enough gear to give the mower cutting perfor-
mance as well as the quality of cut desired.
• When operating attachments, select a ground speed
that willsuit the terrain and give best performance ofthe
attachment being used.
RG. 11
MULCHING MOWING TIPS
IMPORTANT: FOR BEST PERFORMANCE, KEEP MOWER
HOUSING FREE OF BUILT-UP GRASS AND TRASH.
CLEAN AFTER EACH USE.
• The special mulching blade willrecut the grassclippings
many times and reduce them in size so that as they fall
onto the lawn they willdisperse intothe grass and notbe
noticed. Also, the mulched grass will biodegrade
quickly to provide nutrientsfor 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 clumps and interferes with the mulching action.
The best time to mow your lawn isthe early afternoon.
At this time the grass has dried and the newly cut area
will not be exposed to the direct sun.
• For best results, edjust the mower cutting height so that
the mower cuts off only the top one-third of the grass
blades (See Fig. 12). For extremely heavy mulching,
reduce your width of cut on each pass and mow slowly.
• Certain types of gress and grass conditionsmay 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.
MAX 1/3
FIG. 12
14