Product Manual

12
“VARI-SPEED” DRIVE CONTROL
• Self-propelling is controlled by hold-
ing the operator presence control bar
down to the handle and pulling the drive
control bar up to the handle. The closer
to the handle the bar is pulled, the faster
the unit will travel.
• Forward motion will stop when either the
operator presence control bar or drive
control bar are released. To stop forward
motion without stop ping engine, re lease
the drive control bar only. Hold op er a tor
presence control bar down against
handle to con tin ue mowing without self-
propelling.
NOTE: If after releasing the drive control the
mower will not roll backwards, push the mower
forward slightly to disengage drive wheels.
FRONT WHEEL DRIVE MODELS ONLY:
• To keep drive control engaged when
turning corners, push down on the
handle to lift the front wheels off the
ground while turning lawn mower.
“AUTOWALK” DRIVE CONTROL
• Self-propelling is controlled by hold ing
the operator presence control bar down
to the handle and pulling the drive con-
trol lever rearward to the handle. The
farther toward the handle the lever is
pulled, the faster the unit will travel.
• Forward motion will stop when either
the operator presence control bar or
drive control lever are released. To stop
forward motion without stop ping engine,
re lease the drive control lever only. Hold
op er a tor presence control bar down
against handle to con tin ue mowing with-
out self-propelling.
NOTE: If after releasing the drive control the
mower will not roll backwards, push the mower
forward slightly to disengage drive wheels.
FRONT WHEEL DRIVE MODELS ONLY:
• To keep drive control engaged when
turning corners, push down on the
handle to lift the front wheels off the
ground while turning lawn mower.
VARI-SPEED “THUMBSCREW”
ADJUSTMENT
Over time, the drive control system may
become “loose”, resulting in decreased
speed. There is a thumbscrew on the
un der side of the drive control housing to
increase tension on the drive cable. Pro-
ceed as follows:
• Turn unit off and disconnect spark plug
wire from spark plug.
• Rotate thumbscrew counter-clockwise to
tighten the drive cable.
• Operate mower to test drive speed.
• If condition fails to improve after the
above steps (forward speed remains
the same), your drive belt is worn and
should be re placed.
NOTE: If mower begins to "creep" forward,
the drive cable is too tight. Rotate thumb-
screw clockwise to loosen drive cable.
DRIVE
CONTROL
ENGAGED
Drive
control bar
DRIVE
CONTROL
DISENGAGED
Operator presence control bar
Thumb-
screw
“AUTOWALK” ADJUSTMENT
Over time, the drive control system may
become “loose”, resulting in decreased
speed. There is a turnbuckle on the
un der side of the drive control housing to
increase tension on the drive cable. Pro-
ceed as follows:
• Turn unit off and disconnect spark plug
wire from spark plug.
• Turn nut on underside of drive control to
increase drive speed.
• Operate mower to test drive speed.
Readjust as required.
• If condition fails to improve after the
above steps (forward speed remains
the same), your drive belt is worn and
should be re placed.
Adjustment
turnbuckle
TO
ENGAGE
DRIVE
CONTROL
Drive control
lever
DRIVE
CONTROL
DISENGAGED
Operator presence control bar
13
VARI-SPEED “BLOCK” ADJUSTMENT
Over time, the drive control system may
become “loose”, resulting in decreased
speed. There are holes in the drive control
housing to increase tension on the drive
cable. Pro ceed as follows:
• Turn unit off and disconnect spark plug
wire from spark plug.
• Loosen nut, move drive control hous-
ing down handle to the next hole and
retighten nut.
• Operate mower to test drive speed.
• If condition fails to improve after the
above steps (forward speed remains
the same), your drive belt is worn and
should be re placed.
DRIVE
CONTROL
ENGAGED
Drive
control bar
DRIVE
CONTROL
DISENGAGED
Operator presence control bar
TO ADJUST,
MOVE DOWN
TO NEXT HOLE
Recoil
starter
handle
Operator
presence
control bar
WARNING: Al co hol blended fuels (called
gaso hol or using ethanol or metha nol) can
at tract mois ture which leads to sepa ra tion
and for ma tion of acids during storage. Acidic
gas can damage the fuel system of an en gine
while in stor age. To avoid engine prob lems,
the fuel system should be emptied before
stor age of 30 days or longer. Drain the fuel
tank, start the engine and let it run until fuel
lines and car bu re tor are empty. Use fresh
fuel next season. See Stor age In struc tions
for ad di tion al in for ma tion. Never use en gine
or car bu re tor clean er prod ucts in fuel tank or
per ma nent dam age may occur.
TO START ENGINE
CAUTION: The mow er blade rotates
whenever the engine is running.
• Move engine speed control to FAST
position (or to CHOKE/START position
on models equipped with choke feature).
• If your mower has a primer, to start a
cold engine, push primer as many times
as in struct ed in the engine manual
packed with your mower. Use a fi rm
push. This step is not usually nec es sary
when start ing an engine which has
already run for a few minutes.
• Hold operator presence control bar
down against han dle.
MODELS WITH RECOIL START ER
• Pull starter handle quickly. Do not allow
starter rope to snap back.
MODELS WITH ELECTRIC START ER
• Push the engine start button (or turn the
key on models so equipped).
IMPORTANT: Do not crank engine more
than fi ve continous seconds each time you
try to start. Wait 5 to 10 seconds between
each attempt.
ALL MODELS
• For engines equipped with choke, slowly
move engine speed control lever to
FAST after engine starts.
BEFORE STARTING EN GINE
Read the engine manual packed with your
mower.
FILL ENGINE WITH OIL
Your lawn mower is shipped without oil in
the engine.
• Be sure mower is level and area around
oil fi ll is clean.
• Remove engine oil fi ller plug (oil fi ll cap/
dipstick on models so equipped).
• Slowly add oil. For type and grade of
oil to use, see “ENGINE” in the Mainte-
nance section of this manual.
• Fill to the top of slot in fi ller hole (to
“FULL” line on dipstick on models so
equipped). Do not overfi ll.
• Replace plug (oil fi ll cap/dipstick on
models so equipped) and tighten.
• Check oil level before each use. Add oil
as needed.
• To change oil, see Maintenance section
of this manual.
FILL GASOLINE TANK
• Fill gasoline tank with fresh, clean,
unleaded gaso line. DO NOT USE PRE-
MIUM GASOLINE. BE CARE FUL NOT
TO OVERFILL TANK.