• Slowdownbeforeturning.Operatethemachinesmoothly.Avoid
erraticoperationandexcessivespeed.
Disengageblade(s),setparkingbrake,stopengineandwaituntil
the blade(s)cometoa completestopbeforeremovinggrass
catcher,emptyinggrass,uncloggingchute,removinganygrassor
debris,or makinganyadjustments.
Neverleavea runningmachineunattended.Alwaysturnoff
blade(s),setparkingbrake,stopengineandremovekeybefore
dismounting.
Useextracare whenloadingorunloadingthemachineintoa
trailerortruck.Thismachineshouldnot bedrivenupor down
ramp(s),becausethe machinecouldtip over,causingserious
personalinjury.Themachinemustbe pushedmanuallyon
ramp(s)to loador unloadproperly.
Mufflerandenginebecomehotandcan causea burn.Donot
touch.
Checkoverheadclearancescarefullybeforedrivingunderlow
hangingtreebranches,wires,dooropeningsetc.,wherethe
operatormaybestruckor pulledfromthemachine,whichcould
resultinseriousinjury.
Disengageallattachmentclutchesanddepressthe brakepedal
completelybeforeattemptingto start engine.
Yourmachineisdesignedto cutnormalresidentialgrassof a
heightnomorethan10".Donotattemptto mowthroughunusually
tall,dry grass(e.g.,pasture)orpiles of dryleaves.Drygrassor
leavesmaycontactthe engineexhaustand/or builduponthe
mowerdeckpresentinga potentialfire hazard.
Useonlyaccessoriesandattachmentsapprovedfor this machine
by themachinemanufacturer.Read,understandandfollowall
instructionsprovidedwiththeapprovedaccessoryor attachment.
Fora list of approvedaccessoriesandattachments,call 1-800-
659-5917.
Dataindicatesthatoperators,age60yearsandabove,are
involvedin a largepercentageof ridingmower-relatedinjuries.
Theseoperatorsshouldevaluatetheirabilityto operatethe riding
mowersafelyenoughto protectthemselvesandothersfrom
seriousinjury.
If situationsoccurwhicharenot coveredinthismanual,usecare
andgoodjudgment.Contact1-800-659-5917for informationand
assistance.
SLOPE OPERATION
Slopesarea majorfactorrelatedto lossofcontrolandtip-over
accidentswhichcan resultinsevereinjuryor death.Allslopesrequire
extracaution.Ifyoucannotbackuptheslopeor if youfeel uneasyon
it, do not mowit.
Foryoursafety,use theSlopeGuideincludedaspartof this manual
to measureslopesbeforeoperatingthis machineona slopedor hilly
area. Iftheslopeis greaterthan15degreesas shownonthe Slope
Guide,do notoperatethis machineonthatareaor seriousinjurycould
result.
Do:
o
Mowupanddown slopes,notacross.Exerciseextremecaution
whenchangingdirectionon slopes.
• Watchfor holes,ruts,bumps,rocks,orother hiddenobjects.
Uneventerraincouldoverturnthe machine.Tallgrasscan hide
obstacles.
Useslowspeed.Choosea lowenoughspeedsettingsothat
you willnothavetostopor shiftwhileon the slope.Tiresmay
lose tractionon slopeseventhoughthe brakesarefunctioning
properly.Alwayskeepmachinein gearwhen goingdownslopes
to takeadvantageofenginebrakingaction.
• Followthemanufacturer'srecommendationsfor wheelweights
or counterweightstoimprovestability.Forrecommendations,call
1-800-659-5917.
• Useextracarewithgrasscatchersor otherattachments.These
can changethe stabilityof the machine.
Keepallmovementonthe slopesslowandgradual.Donot make
suddenchangesinspeedor direction.Rapidengagementor
brakingcouldcausethe frontof the machinetolift andrapidlyflip
overbackwardswhichcouldcauseseriousinjury.
• Avoidstartingorstoppingona slope.Iftireslosetraction,disen-
gagethe blade(s)andproceedslowlystraightdownthe slope.
DoNot:
• Donot turnon slopesunlessnecessary;then,turnslowlyand
graduallydownhill,ifpossible.
• Donot mowneardrop-offs,ditchesor embankments.The mower
could suddenlyturnover if a wheelisoverthe edgeof a cliff,
ditch,or if an edgecavesin.
• Donot try to stabilizethe machinebyputtingyourfooton the
ground.
• Donot usea grasscatcheron steepslopes.
• Donot mowon wetgrass.Reducedtractioncouldcausesliding.
• Donot attemptto coastdownhill.Over-speedingmaycausethe
operatortolosecontrolof the machineresultingin seriousinjury
or death.
• Donot towheavypull behindattachments(e.g.loadeddumpcart,
lawn roller,etc.)on slopesgreaterthan5 degrees.Whengoing
down hill,the extraweighttendstopushthe tractorandmay
causeyou toloosecontrol(e.g.tractormayspeedup, brakingand
steeringabilityarereduced,attachmentmayjack-knifeandcause
tractorto overturn).
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