Manual

CLEARING THE TINES
Beforeclearingthetinesby hand,stoptheengine,allowall moving
partsto stopanddisconnectthe sparkplugwire.Failureto followthis
warningcouldresultinpersonalinjury.
* Thetines havea self-clearingactionwhicheliminatesmostof the
tanglingof debris.However,occasionallydry grass,stringystalks
ortough vinesmaybecometangled.Followtheseproceduresto
helpavoidtanglingandto clearthe tines, ifnecessary.
* Toreducetangling,setthedepth regulatordeepenoughto get
maximum"chopping"actionasthetineschopthematerialagainst
the ground.Also,tryto till undercrop residuesor covercrops
whiletheyaregreen,moistandtender.
* Whiletilling,try swayingthe handlebarsfromsideto side(about
6" to 12").This"fishtailing"actionoftenclearsthe tinesof debris.
TILLING TiPS & TECHNIQUES
Beforetilling,contactyourtelephoneor utilitiescompanyandinquire
l ifundergroundequipmentor linesareusedon yourproperty.Do not
[till nearburiedelectriccables,telephonelines,pipesor hoses.
Tilling Depth
* Thisisa CRT(counter-rotatingtine)tiller.As thewheelspull
forward,the tinesrotatebackward.Thiscreatesan "uppercut"
tine actionwhichdigsdeeply,uprootingsoilandweeds.Don't
overloadtheengine,butdigas deeplyas possibleon eachpass
On laterpasses,the wheelsmaytendto spin inthe soft dirt. Help
themalongby liftingupslightlyonthe handlebar(onehand,palm
up, worksmosteasily).
* Avoidthetemptationto pushdown onthe handlebarsinan
attemptto forcethetiller to digdeeper.Doingso takesthe weight
off the poweredwheels,causingthemto losetraction.Withoutthe
wheelsto holdthe tiller back,the tineswill attemptto propelthe
tiller backward,towardsthe operator.
Whencultivating(breakingupthe surfacesoil aroundthe plants
to destroyweeds,See Figure15),adjustthe tinesto digonly 1"
to 2" deep. Usingthe shallowtillingdepthhelpspreventinjuryto
the plantswhoserootsoftengrowcloseto the surface.Ifneeded,
liftupon the handlebarsslightlyto preventthetinesfromdigging
too deeply.(Cultivatingon a regularbasisnot onlyeliminates
weeds,it also loosensandaeratesthe soil for bettermoisture
absorptionandfasterplantgrowth.)Wateringthegardenareaa
fewdayspriortotilling will maketillingeasier,aswill lettingthe
newlyworkedsoilsetfor a dayor twobeforemakingafinal,deep
tilling pass.
Figure15
Choosing the Correct Wheel & Tine Speeds
Withexperience,you willfind thetilling depthandtillingspeed
combinationthatis bestfor yourgarden.Setthe enginethrottleleverat
a speedto givethe engineadequatepowerandyet allowit to operate
at the slowestpossiblespeeduntilyou haveachievedthemaximum
tillingdepthyou desire.Fasterenginespeedsmaybe desirable
whenmakingfinal passesthroughtheseedbedor whencultivating.
Selectionofthe correctenginespeed,inrelationto thetilling depth,
will ensurea sufficientpowerlevelto do thejobwithoutcausingthe
engineto labor.
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