Mowing Tips; Mulching Mowing Tips - Craftsman EZ3 917.258591 Owner's Manual

ATION
• Sitting in the tractor seat, start engine° After the engine
is running, move throttle control to slow (,im_) 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 leverto neutral (N)position. Shut-
off engine and set parking brake.
• Engage transmission by placing freewheel control in
driving position (See 'q'O TRANSPORT" in this section
of manual)°
• Sittingin thetractor seat, startengine. Afterthe engine
is running, move throttle control to half (1/2) 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 lever to 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
o Tire chains cannot be used when the mower housing
is attached to tractor°
° Mower' should be properly leveled for best mow!ng
performance. See'q'O LEVEL MOWER HOUSING in
the Service and Adjustments section of this manual.
= The left hand side of mower' should be used for trim-
ming.
• Drive so that clippings are discharged onto the area
that has been cut. Have the cut area to the ri_.htof the
machine. This will result in a more even distnbution of
clippings and more uniform cutting.
• When mowing large areas, start by turning 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_ 12).
° tf 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 ptug
mower and leave undesirable clumps. Allow grass to
dry before mowing.
• Always operate engine at full throttle when mowing to
assure better mowing performance and proper dis-
charge of material. Regulate ground speed by select-
ing a low enough gear to give the mower cutting
performance as welt as the quality of cut desired.
• When operating attachments, select a groundspeed
that will suit the terrain and give best perform,=nceof
the attachment being used.
FIG. 12
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 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 biode-
grade quickly to provide nutrients ferthe lawno Always
mulch with your highest engine (blade) speed as this
will provide the best recutting action of the blades_
° Avoid cutting your lawn when itis wet. Wet grass tends
to form clumps and interferes with the mulching action°
The best time to mow your' lawn is the 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, adjust the mower cutting height so that
the mower cuts off only the top one-third of the grass
blades (See Fig. 13). For' extremely heavy mulching,
reduce your' width of cut on each pass and mow slowly.
* Certain types of grass and grass conditions may re-
quire that an area be mulched a second time to com-
pletely 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 he_pprevent matting and graining
of the lawno
MAX 1/3
FIG. 13
16