Craftsman 917.270660 - Manual (Page 15)

• For cold weather operation you should
change oil for easier starting (See “OIL
VISCOSITY CHART” in the Mainte­
nance section of this manual).
• To change engine oil, see the Mainte­
nance section in this manual.
ADD GASOUNE
• Fill fuel tank. Use fresh, clean, regular
unleaded gasoline with a minimum of
87 octane. (Use of leaded gasoline will
increase carbon and lead oxide depos­
its and reduce valve life). Do not mix oil
with gasoline. Purchase fuel in quanti­
ties that can be used within 30 days to
assure fuel freshness.
IMPORTANT;
When operating in tem­
peratures below 32“F(0®C), use fresh,
clean winter grade gasoline to help in­
sure good cold weather starting.
^WARNING:
Experience indicates that
alcohol blended fuels (called gasohol or
using ethanol or methanol) can attract
moisture which leads to separation and
formation of acids during storage. Acidic
gas can damage the fuel system of an
engine while in storage. To avoid engine
problems, the fuel system should be
emptied before storage of 30 days or
longer. Drain the gas tank, start the
engine and let it run until the fuel lines
and carburetor are empty. Use fresh fuel
next season. See Storage Instructions for
additional information. Never use engine
or carburetor cleaner products in the fuel
tank or permanent damage may occur.
^ CAUTION:
Fill to bottom of gas tank
filler neck. Do not overfill. Wipe off any
spilled oil or fuel. Do not store, spill or use
gasoline near an open flame.
TO START ENGINE
When starting the engine for the first time
or if the engine has run out of fuel, it will
take extra cranking time to move fuel from
the tank to the engine.
• Be sure freewheel control is in the
transmission engaged position.
• Sit on seat in operating position, depress
dutchAxBke pedal and set parking brake.
• Place motion control lever in neutral
(N) position.
• Move attachment clutch to “DISEN­
GAGED” position.
• Move throttle control to choke position.
NOTE: Before starting, read the warm
and cold starting procedures below.
• Insert key into ignition and turn key
ciockwise to “START” position and re­
lease key as soon as engine starts. Do
not run starter continuously for more
than fifteen seconds per minute. If the
engine does not start after several at­
tempts, move throttle control to fast po­
sition, wait a few minutes and try again.
If engine still does not start, move the
throttle control back to the choke posi­
tion and retry.
WARM WEATHER STARTING (50° F and
above)
• When engine starts, move the throttle
control to the fast position.
• The attachments and ground drive can
now be used. If the engine does not ac­
cept the load, restart the engine and al­
low it to warm up for one minute using
the choke as described above.
COLD WEATHER STARTING ( 5 0 ° F and
below)
• When engine starts, allow engine to
run with the throttle control in the choke
position until the engine runs roughly,
then move throttle control to fast posi­
tion. This may require an engine warm­
up period from several second? to sev­
eral minutes, depending on the temper­
ature.
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WARM UP
• Before driving the unit in cold weather,
the transmission should be warmed up
as follows:
• Be sure the tractor is on level ground.
• Place the motion control lever in neu­
tral. Release the parking brake and let
the clutch/brake slowly return to operat­
ing position.
• Allow one minute for transmission to
warm up. This can be done during the
engine warm up period.
• The attachments can also be used dur­
ing the engine warm-up period after the
transmission has been warmed up.
NOTE:
At a high altitude (above 3000
feet) or in cold temperatures (below 32 F)
the carburetor fuel mixture may need to
be adjusted for best engine performance.
See ‘TO ADJUST CARBURETOR" in the
Service and Adjustments section of this
manual.
15