Safety
ThesemachinesmeetorexceedANSIB71.4–2004
specicationsineffectatthetimeofproduction
Improperuseormaintenancebytheoperatororowner
canresultininjury.Toreducethepotentialforinjury,
complywiththesesafetyinstructionsandalwayspay
attentiontothesafetyalertsymbol,whichmeans
Caution,Warning,orDanger—personalsafety
instruction.Failuretocomplywiththeinstructionmay
resultinpersonalinjuryordeath.
SafeOperatingPractices
ThefollowinginstructionsarefromtheCENstandard
EN836:1997andANSIB71.4-2004.
Thisproductiscapableofamputatinghandsand
feetandthrowingobjects.Alwaysfollowallsafety
instructionstoavoidseriousinjuryordeath.
Training
•ReadtheOperator'sManualandothertraining
materialcarefully.Befamiliarwiththecontrols,
safetysigns,andtheproperuseoftheequipment.
•Neverallowchildrenorpeopleunfamiliarwith
theseinstructionstousethelawnmower.Local
regulationscanrestricttheageoftheoperator.
•Nevermowwhilepeople,especiallychildren,or
petsarenearby.
•Keepinmindthattheoperatororuseris
responsibleforaccidentsorhazardsoccurringto
otherpeopleortheirproperty.
•Donotcarrypassengers.
•Alldriversshouldseekandobtainprofessional
andpracticalinstruction.Suchinstructionshould
emphasize:
–theneedforcareandconcentrationwhen
workingwithride-onmachines
–controlofaride-onmachineslidingonaslope
willnotberegainedbytheapplicationofthe
controllevers.Themainreasonsforlossof
controlare:
◊insufcientwheelgrip,especiallyonwet
grass;
◊beingdriventoofast;
◊inadequatebraking;
◊thetypeofmachineisunsuitableforits
task;
◊lackofawarenessoftheeffectofground
conditions,especiallyslopes;
◊incorrectloaddistribution.
Preparation
•Whilemowing,alwayswearsubstantial,
slip-resistantfootwearandlongtrousers.Donot
operatetheequipmentwhenbarefootorwearing
opensandals.
•Thoroughlyinspecttheareawheretheequipment
istobeusedandremoveallobjectswhichmaybe
thrownbythemachine.
•Warning—fuelishighlyammable.
–Storefuelincontainersspecicallydesigned
forthispurpose.
–Refueloutdoorsonlyanddonotsmokewhile
refueling.
–Addfuelbeforestartingtheengine.Never
removethecapofthefueltankoraddfuel
whiletheengineisrunningorwhentheengine
ishot.
–Iffuelisspilled,donotattempttostartthe
enginebutmovethemachineawayfromthe
areaofspillageandavoidcreatinganysource
ofignitionuntilfuelvaporshavedissipated.
–Replaceallfueltankandcontainercaps
securely.
•Replacefaultysilencers/mufers.
•Beforeusing,alwaysvisuallyinspecttoseethat
theblades,bladeboltsandcutterassemblyare
notwornordamaged.Replacewornordamaged
bladesandboltsinsetstopreservebalance.
Operation
•Bealert,slowdownandusecautionwhenmaking
turns.Lookbehindandtothesidebeforechanging
directions.
•Donotoperatetheengineinaconnedspace
wheredangerouscarbonmonoxidefumescan
collect.
•Mowonlyindaylightoringoodarticiallight.
•Beforeattemptingtostarttheengine,disengage
allbladeattachmentclutchesandshiftintoneutral.
•Rememberthereisnosuchthingasasafeslope.
Travelongrassslopesrequiresparticularcare.T o
guardagainstoverturning:
–donotstoporstartsuddenlywhenonaslope;
–useslowspeedsonslopesandduringtight
turns;
–stayalertforhumpsandhollowsandother
hiddenhazards.
•Watchoutfortrafcwhencrossingornear
roadways.
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