Fuse; Cutting Blades; Changing The Deck Belt - Craftsman 247.288853 Operator's Manual

If yourtractorhasnot beenput into useforan extended periodof time,charge the
batteryasfollows:
1. Setyourbatterycharger t o deliveramaxof 10amperes.
2. If yourbatterychargerisautomatic, c harge the batteryuntil the charger
indicates that charging iscomplete. I fthe charger i s notautomatic, c harge
forno fewerthaneighthours.
Fuse
One20AMPfuseisinstalledin yourtractor'swiring harness t o protectthe tractor's
electrical s ystem from damage caused byexcessive a mperage.
If the electrical s ystem doesnot function,or yourtractor'senginewill notcrank,
first check to becertainthatthe fusehasnot blown.It canbefoundatthe rearof
the unit, underneath the fenderlocated bythe battery.
Alwaysuseafuse with the sameamperagecapacityfor replacement.
Cutting Blades
Shutthe engineoff andremoveignitionkeybeforeremoving the cutting
blade(s) f or sharpeningor replacement.Protect y our handsbyusing heavy
[g oveswhen graspng the bade.
Periodicallyinspectthe bladeand/or spindlefor cracksor damage,
[especiallyafter you'vestrucka foreign object. Donot operate the machine
[until damaged componentsarereplaced.
Toremove the blades, p roceed asfollows:
1. Remove t he deckfrom beneath the tractor,(referto CuttingDeck Removal
earlierin thissection) t hengentlyflip the deckoverto expose its underside.
2. Place ablockof woodbetweenthe center d eckhousing baffleandthe
cuttingbladeto actasastaNIizer. S eeFigure 22.
3. Remove t he hexflangenut thatsecures t he bladeto the spindleassembly.
Toproperlysharpen the cuttingblades, r emove equal a mounts of metal
from bothendsof the bladesalongthe cuttingedges, p aralleltothe trailing
edge,at a25°- to 30° angle.Always grindeachcutting bladeedgeequallyto
maintainproperbladebalance. SeeFigure 23.
Figure 23
If the cutting edge of the bladehaspreviously beensharpened,or if any
metalseparationispresent,replacethe bladeswith newones.
A poorly balancedbladewill causeexcessive vibration, maycausedamageto
the tractor and/or resultin personal injury.
5. Testthe blade'sbalanceusingabladebalancer. G rindmetalfrom the
heavy sideuntil it balances e venly.
NOTE: Whenreplacing the blade,besureto install the bladewith the sideof the
blademarked "Bottom" (orwitha part number s tampedinit)facingthe ground
whenthe mowerisinthe operatingposition.
HexFlange Nut
jJ
Figure22
Use atorque wrench to tighten the bladespindlehex flange nut to between
70Ibs-ft and 90 Ibs-ft.
Changing the DeckBelt
Besureto shut the engine off, removeignitionkey,disconnectthe spark
plug wire(s)and groundagainst the engine to prevent unintendedstarting
beforeremovingthe belt.
All belts on yourtractor aresubjectto wear andshouldbe replacedif any
signsof wearare present.
IMPORTANT: The V-beltfoundon yourtractorisspecially designed to engage
anddisengage s afely. A substitute(non-OEM) V-beltcanbedangerous b ynot
disengaging completely. F ora properworkingmachine, u seidentical e quipment
beltsaslistedinthe partspages of thisOperator's M anual.
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