• Thebladecontrolhandleis a safetydevice.Neverattemptto
bypassits operation.Doingso makesthe safetydeviceinopera-
tiveandmayresultin personalinjurythroughcontactwiththe
rotatingblade.Thebladecontrolhandlemustoperateeasily
in bothdirectionsandautomaticallyreturntothedisengaged
positionwhenreleased.
• Neveroperatethe mowerinwetgrass.Alwaysbe sureof your
footing.A slipandfallcancauseseriouspersonalinjury.Ifyou
feelyou arelosingyourfooting,releasethebladecontrolhandle
immediatelyandthebladewillstop rotatingwithinthreeseconds.
• Mowonlyin daylightor goodartificiallight.Walk,neverrun.
• Stopthe bladewhencrossinggraveldrives,walksor roads.
• Ifthe equipmentshouldstart tovibrateabnormally,stopthe
engineandcheckimmediatelyfor the cause.Vibrationis gener-
allya warningof trouble.
• Shutthe engineoff andwaituntilthe bladecomestoa complete
stopbeforeremovingthe grasscatcheror uncloggingthechute.
Thecuttingbladecontinuesto rotatefor afewsecondsafterthe
bladecontrolisreleased.Neverplaceany partofthebodyinthe
bladeareauntilyou aresurethebladehasstoppedrotating.
• Neveroperatemowerwithoutpropertrail shield,dischargecover,
grasscatcher,bladecontrolhandleor othersafetyprotectivede-
vicesin placeandworking.Neveroperatemowerwithdamaged
safetydevices.Failuretodo socan resultinpersonalinjury.
Mufflerandenginebecomehotandcan causea burn.Donot
touch.
• Neverattemptto makea wheelorcuttingheightadjustmentwhile
theengineis running.
• Onlyuse partsand accessoriesmadeforthis machineby the
manufactureraslistedin thePartspagesof thisOperator's
Manual.Failuretodosocanresultin personalinjury.
• Whenstartingengine,pullcordslowlyuntilresistanceisfelt,then
pullrapidly.Rapidretractionof startercord(kickback)willpull
handandarmtowardenginefasterthanyoucan let go. Broken
bones,fractures,bruisesor sprainscould result.
• If situationsoccurwhicharenotcoveredinthismanual,usecare
andgoodjudgement.Contact1-800-4MY-HOME®for information
andassistance.
SLOPE OPERATION
Slopesare amajorfactor relatedto slipandfall accidents,whichcan
resultinsevereinjury.Operationon slopesrequiresextracaution.If
youfeel uneasyona slope,do not mowit. Foryoursafety,usethe
SlopeGuideincludedaspartof thismanualto measureslopesbefore
operatingthis machineon a slopedor hillyarea.Iftheslopeis greater
than15degrees,donotmowit.
Do:
o
Mowacrossthefaced slopes;neverupanddown.Exercise
extremecautionwhenchangingdirectiononslopes.
• Watchfor holes,ruts,rocks,hiddenobjects,or bumpswhichcan
causeyoutosliportrip.Tallgrasscan hideobstacles.
• Alwaysbesureof yourfooting.A slipandfall cancauseserious
personalinjury.Ifyou feelyouarelosingyourbalance,release
thebladecontrolhandleimmediatelyandthebladewillstop
rotatingwithinthree(3) seconds.
DoNot:
• Donotmowneardrop-offs,ditchesor embankments,because
youcouldloseyourfootingorbalance.
• Donotmowslopesgreaterthan15degreesas shownon the
slopeguide.
• Donotmowon wetgrass.Unstablefootingcouldcauseslipping.
CHILDREN
Tragicaccidentscanoccuriftheoperatorisnot alerttothepresence
ofchildren.Childrenareoftenattractedto themowerandthe mowing
activity.Theydonotunderstandthedangers.Neverassumethat
childrenwill remainwhereyou lastsawthem.
Keepchildrenoutofthemowingareaandunderwatchfulcareof
a responsibleadultotherthan theoperator.
• Bealertandturnmoweroffif achildentersthearea.
• Beforeandwhilemovingbackwards,look behindanddown for
smallchildren.
• Useextremecare whenapproachingblindcorners,doorways,
shrubs,trees,orotherobjectsthatmayobscureyourvisionof a
childwhomayrunintothemower.
• Keepchildrenawayfromhot or runningengines.Theycan suffer
burnsfroma hot muffler.
• Neverallowchildrenunder14yearsof ageto operatethis
machine.Children14andovershouldreadand understandthe
instructionsandsafeoperationpracticesinthis manualandon
themachineand betrainedandsupervisedbyan adult.
SERVICE
SafeHandlingOf Gasoline:
• Toavoidpersonalinjuryor propertydamageuseextremecare
in handlinggasoline.Gasolineisextremelyflammableandthe
vaporsareexplosive.Seriouspersonalinjurycanoccurwhen
gasolineis spilledon yourselfor yourclothes,whichcanignite.
Washyourskinandchangeclothesimmediately.
• Useonly anapprovedgasolinecontainer.
• Neverfill containersinsidea vehicleoron atruckortrailerbed
witha plasticliner.Alwaysplacecontainerson thegroundaway
fromyourvehiclebeforefilling.
• Removegas-poweredequipmentfromthetruck ortrailerand
refueliton theground.Ifthisis notpossible,thenrefuelsuch
equipmenton atrailer witha portablecontainer,ratherthanfrom
a gasolinedispensernozzle.
• Keepthe nozzleincontactwiththe rimofthefueltankor
containeropeningatall timesuntilfuelingis complete.Donotuse
a nozzlelock-opendevice.
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