Craftsman 917.258920 Owner's Manual page 15

BEFORE STARTING THE ENGINE
CHECK ENGINE OIL LEVEL (See Fig. 11)
o The engine in your tractor has been shipped, from the
factory, already filled with summer weight oil.
° Check engine oil with tractor on level ground.
° Unthread and remove oil fill cap/dipstick; wipe oil off°
Reinsertthe dipstickintothe tube and restoilfill cap on
the tube. Do not thread the cap ontothe tube. Remove
and read oil level. If necessary, add oil until "FULL"
mark on dipstick is reached. Do not overfill.
, For cold weather operation you should change oil for
easier starting (See "OIL VISCOSITY CHART" in the
Maintenance section of this manual).
o To change engine oil, see the Maintenance section in
this manual.
FILL CAP/DIPSTICK
FIG. 11
ADD GASOLINE
° Fill fuel tank. Use fresh, clean, regular unleaded
gasoline with a minimum of 87 octane° (Use of leaded
gasoline will increase carbon and lead oxide deposits
and reduce valve life)o Do not mix oil with gasoline.
Purchase fuel in quantities that can be used within 30
days to assure fuel freshness,
IMPORTANT: WHEN OPERATING IN TEMPERATURES
BELOW 32°F(0°C), USE FRESH, CLEAN WINTER GRADE
GASOLINE TO HELP INSURE GOOD COLD WEATHER
STARTING°
WARNING: Experience indicates that alcohol blended
fuels (called gasohol or using ethanol or methanol) can
attract moisture which leads to separation and formation 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. Drain 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 instruc-
tions for additional information. Never use engine or
carburetor cleaner products in the fuel tank or permanent
damage may occur.
............................... i,iii ii ,i,,llllllii
_ CAUTION: Fill to bottom of gas tank
/
filler neck. Do not overfill. Wipe off any
J
spilled oil or fuel. Do not store, spill or
use gasoline near an open flame.
TO START ENGINE (See Fig. 7)
When starting the engine for the first time or if the engine
has runout of fuel, it will take extra cranking time to move
fuel from the tank to the engine°
° Be sure freewheel control is in the transmission en-
gaged position.
° Sit on seat in operating position,depress clutch/brake
pedal and set parking brake.
= Place motion control lever in neutral (N) position.
, Move attachment clutch to "DISENGAGED" position.
= Move throttlecontrol to fast position
= Pull choke control out for a cold engine start attempt.
For a warm engine start attempt the choke controlmay
not be needed.
NOTE: Before starting, read the warm and cold starting
procedures below.
° Insertkeyintoignition and turnkeyclockwiseto"START"
positionand release key as soo'nas engine starts° Do
not run starter continuouslyfor more than fifteen sec-
onds per minute. If the engine does not start after
several attempts, push choke control in, wait a few
minutesand try again, tf engine stilldoes not start, pull
the choke control out and retry.
WARM WEATHER STARTING (50 ° F and above)
° When engine starts, slowly push choke control in until
the engine begins to run smoothly. If the engine starts
to run roughly,pull the choke control out slightly for a
few seconds and then continue to push the control in
slowly.
• The attachments and ground drive can now be used. If
the engine does not accept the load, restart the engine
and allowit to warm up for one minute using the choke
as described above.
COLD WEATHER STARTING (50 ° F and below)
° When engine starts, slowly push choke control in until
the engine begins to run smoothly. Continue to push
the choke control in small steps allowing the engine to
accept small changes in speed and toad, until the
choke control is fully in. If the engine starts to run
roughly, pull the choke control out slightly for a few
seconds and then continue to push the control in
slowly. This may require an engine warm-up period
from several seconds to several minutes, depending
on the temperature.
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WARM UP
° Before driving the unit in cold weather, the transmis-
sion should be warmed up as follows:
° Be sure the tractor is on level ground°
o Place the motion control lever in neutral.
Release the parkingbrake and let the clutch/brake
slowly return to operating position.
• Allow one minute for transmissionto warm up.This
can be done during the engine warm up period.
° The attachments can be used duringthe engine warm-
up period after the transmission has been warmed up
and may requirethechoke controlbe pulledout slightly.
NOTE: If at a high altitude (above 3000 feet) or in cold
temperatures (below 32 F) the carburetor fuel mixture may
need to be adjusted for best engine performance. See %0
ADJUST CARBURETOR" in the Service and Adjustments
section of this manual.
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