Craftsman 917.385192 Lawn Mower User Manual


 
MOWING TIPS
CAUTION: Do not use de-thatcher
bladeattachmentson your mower.Such
attachmentsare hazardous,will damage
your mower and could voidyour warranty.
Under certain conditions,such as very
tall grass, it may benecessaryto raise
the heightof cut to reduce pushing effort
and to keepfrom overloadingthe engine
and leaving clumps of grassclippings.
It may also be necessaryto reduce
groundspeed and/or runthe lawn
mower over the area a secondtime.
For extremely heavy cutting, reducethe
width of cutby overlappingpreviously
cut path and mow slowly.
For bettergrass baggingandmost cut-
ting conditions,the enginespeed should
be set inthe FASTposition.
For side discharge lawn mowers,cutting
in a counter-clockwisedirection, start-
ing at the outside of the areato be cut,
spreadsgrass clippings moreevenly
and puts less load on the engine.To
keep clippingsoff of walkways, flower
beds, etc., makethe first cuts in a clock-
wise direction.
Pores in cloth grasscatcherscan
becomefilled with dirt and dust with use
and catcherswill collect less grass. To
prevent this, regularly hose catcheroff
withwater and let dry before using.
Keep top of engine around starter clear
and clean of grass clippings and chaff.
This will help engine air flow and extend
engine life.
MULCHING MOWING TIPS
IMPORTANT: For best performance,
keep mower housing free of built-up
grass and trash. See "CLEANING" in the
Maintenance section of this manual.
The special mulching blade will recut
the grass clippings 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 biodegrade quickly to
provide nutrients for the lawn. Always
mulch with your highest engine (blade)
speed as this will provide the best recut-
ting action of the blades.
Avoid cutting your lawn when it is 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, yet the newly cut area will not be
exposed to direct sunlight.
For best results, adjust the lawn mower
cutting height so that the lawn mower
cuts off only the top one-third of the
grass blades. If the lawn is overgrown
it will be necessary to raise the height of
cut to reduce pushing effort and to keep
from overloading the engine and leaving
clumps of mulched grass. For extremely
heavy grass, reduce your width of cut
by overlapping previously cut path and
mow slowly.
MAX 1/3
Certain types of grass and grass
conditions may require that an area be
mulched a second time to completely
hide the clippings. When doing a sec-
ond cut, mow across (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.
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