42" Briggs & Stratton 17.5 hp Gas Powered Riding Lawn Tractor Operator's Manual

If yourtractorhasnot beenputinto usefor anextendedperiodof time,
chargethe batteryas follows:
1. Setyour batterychargerto delivera maxof 10amperes.
If yourbatterychargeris automatic,chargethe batteryuntilthe
chargerindicatesthatchargingiscomplete.Ifthe chargeris not
automatic,chargefor nofewerthaneight hours.
FUSE
One20AMPfuseis installedin yourtractor'swiringharnesstoprotect
the tractor'selectricalsystemfromdamagecausedbyexcessive
amperage.
If theelectricalsystemdoesnot function,or yourtractor'senginewill
not crank,first checkto be certainthatthe fusehasnot blown.It can
befoundat the rearof the unit,underneaththefenderlocatedby the
battery.
Alwaysusea fusewiththe sameamperagecapacityfor replacement.
CUTTING BLADES
Shutthe engineoff andremoveignitionkeybeforeremovingthe
cuttingblade(s)for sharpeningor replacement.Protectyourhands
by usingheavygloveswhengraspingthe blade.
Periodicallyinspectthebladeand/or spindlefor cracksordamage,
especiallyafter you'vestrucka foreignobject. Donot operatethe
machineuntil damagedcomponentsare replaced.
Toremovetheblades,proceedas follows.
1. Removethedeckfrombeneaththe tractor,(referto CuttingDeck
Removalearlierinthis section)thengentlyflip thedeckoverto
exposeitsunderside.
2. Placea blockof woodbetweenthe centerdeckhousingbaffle
andthe cuttingbladeto actas a stabilizer.
SeeFig.20.
f
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Figure20
.
4.
Removethe hexflangenut thatsecuresthe bladeto the spindle
assembly.SeeFig.20.
To properlysharpenthe cuttingblades,removeequalamounts
of metalfrombothendsof the bladesalongthe cuttingedges,
paralleltothe trailingedge,at a250.to 300angle.Alwaysgrind
eachcutting bladeedgeequallyto maintainproperbladebalance.
SeeFig.21.
Figure 21
Ifthe cuttingedgeof the bladehas previouslybeensharpened,or if
any metalseparationis present,replacethe bladeswith newones.
A poorlybalancedbladewill causeexcessivevibration,maycause
damageto the tractorand/or resultin personalinjury.
5. Testthe blade'sbalanceusinga bladebalancer.Grindmetalfrom
the heavysideuntil it balancesevenly.
NOTE: Whenreplacingthe blade,be sureto installthe bladewiththe
sideof the blademarked"Bottom"(orwitha part numberstampedin
it)facingthe groundwhenthe moweris inthe operatingposition.
Usea torquewrenchto tightenthe bladespindlehexflangenut to
between70Ibs-ftand 90Ibs-ft.
CHANGING THE DECK BELT
Besureto shutthe engineoff, removeignitionkey,disconnectthe
Isparkplugwire(s)andgroundagainsttheengineto preventunin-
ltended startingbeforeremovingthe belt.
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All beltsonyourtractoraresubjectto wearandshouldbereplacedif
any signsof wearare present.