Maintenance - Mower; Blade Care; Daily Maintenance; Cleaning Mower - Craftsman 917.255813 Owner's Manual

I
BLADE
WASHER
LOCKWASHER_
HEX BOLTGR5_-_
FIGURE 21
£L
ASSEMBLY
FLANGES
1. When grinding, care should be taken to maintain blade bal-
ance and the blade should be checked for proper balance
before reinstallation on mower, Unbalanced or bent blade
will cause excessive vibration when running, and eventual
damage to mower or engine Replace bent, damaged or un-
balanced blades.
To check Blade balance, drive a nail into a beam or wall.
Leave about one inch of the straight nail exposed, Place
Center Hole of clean Blade over the head of the nail (Fig.
22). NOTE: CENTER HOLE OF BLADE ON NAIL,, tF
BLADE IS PROPERLY BALANCED, BLADE SHOULD
REMAIN IN POSITION SHOWN IN FIG. 22, IF EITHER
END OF THE BLADE MOVES DOWNWARD, BLADE IS
NOT BALANCED AND MUST BE REPLACED.
.
To ensure satisfactory operation r it is recommended that
before the start of each mowing season, the old blades be
discarded and replaced with new blades, Mower blades can
be purchased at any Sears Service Center/Departments and
most Sears Retail Stores
¸¸¸
FIGURE 22
MAINTENANCE = MOWER
FOR ANY ADJUSTMENTS, INSPECTION
OR MAINTENANCE:
PUSH TRACTOR CLUTCH-BRAKE PED-
AL COMPLETELY INTO BRAKE POSI-
TION, PLACE bARKING BRAKE IN
"ENGAGED" POSITION. MOVE GEAR
SHIFT LEVER TO "NEUTRAL" POSI-
TION, PLACE ATTACHMENT CLUTCH
LEVER IN "DISENGAGED" POSITION,
TURN IGNITION KEY TO OFF POSI-
TION. F/lAKE ABSOLUTELY SURE THE
BLADES AND ALL MOVING PARTS
HAVE COMPLETELY STOPPED. RE-
MOVE THE IGNITION KEY, DISCON-
NECT THE SPARK PLUG WIRES FROM
THE SPARK PLUGS AND KEEP WIRES
AWAY FROM THE PLUGS TO PREVENT
INJURY FROM ACCIDENTAL STARTING,
BLADE CAR E
For best results mower blades must be kept sharp The blades
can be sharpened with a few strokes of a file or on a grinding
wheel° We suggest they be sharpened after every 15 hours of
mowing,. Do not attempt to sharpen while on mower_
DAI LY MAI NTENANCE
Make sure all nuts on bolts are tight and cotter pins and retain-
er springs are secure= Keep blades sharp, Observe atl safety pre-
cautions. K_ep mower well lubricated (refer to page 22),
CLEANING MOWER
DISCONNECT SPARK PLUG WIRES TO
PREVENT ACCIDENTAL STARTING BE-
FORE CLEANING.
Water pressure from a garden hose will remove fresh clippings
from underside of mower. Clean mower after each mowing_
BLADE REPLACEMENT
Raise Mower to highest position to permit access to Blades.
t. Remove Bolt, Lockwasher and Washer (Fig 21) (turn
counterclockwise (f-X),
2. Place new Blade between Flanges, (the word "TOP" is
stamped on all Blades to assure proper installation), and
secure with Washer, Lockwasher and Bolt previously re-
moved. TIGHTEN SECUR ELY.
ALWAYS USE GRADE 5 HEAT TREATED
BOLTS TO ATTACH BLADES_ CHECK
BOLTS IN BLADES OCCASIONALLY TO
MAKE SURE BOLTS ARE TIGHT. TOR-
QUE BOLTS 30 - 35 FT. LBS.
A GRADE 5 HEAT TREATED BOLT
CAN BE IDENTIFIED BY THREE
LINES ON THE BOLT HEAD AS
SHOWN AT LEFT,