Craftsman 247.23000 Operator's Manual page 16

Terrace Gardening
1. Tocreatea terrace,start at thetop of the slopeand work down
Go back and forth acrossthe first row.See Figure21.
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_REPEAT
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Figure21
Eachsucceedinglowerterraceis startedby walkingbelowthe
terraceyouare preparing.Foradded stabilityof thetiller, always
keepthe uphillwheelin the soft, newlytilled soil. Donot till the
last 12"or moreof thedownhilloutside edgeof each terrace.This
untilledstrip helps preventtheterracesfrom breakingapart and
washingdownhill.It also providesa walkingpathbetweenthe
rOWS.
Loading & Unloading the Tiller
Loadingand unloadingthe tillerintoa vehicleis potentiallyhazard-
I ous and doingso is not recommended unless absolutelynecessary,
_asthis could resultin personalinjuryor propertydamage.
If you mustload or unloadthe tiller,followthe guidelinesgivenbelow:
• Beforeloadingor unloadingthe tiller, stopthe engine,wait for all
partsto stopmoving,disconnectthe spark plug wireand let the
engineand mufflercool.
• The tilleris tooheavyand bulkyto be safelylifted byone person.
Twoor morepeopleshouldsharethe load.
• Usesturdyrampsand manually -- with the engineshut off -- roll
the tiller intoand out of the vehicle.Twoor morepeopleare
neededto do this.
• The rampsmustbe strongenoughto supportthe combined
weightof the tiller and anyhandlers.The rampsshouldprovide
good tractionto preventslipping;they shouldalsohaveside rails
to guide the tilleralong the ramps;and they shouldhavea locking
deviceto securethemto the vehicle.
• The handlersshouldwearsturdyfootwearthat will help to prevent
slipping.
• Positionthe loadingvehicle so that the rampangle is as flat
as possible(the less inclineto the ramp,the better).Turnthe
vehicle'sengineoff and applythe parkingbrake.
• Whengoing up the ramps,standin the normaloperatingposition
and pushthetiller aheadof you. Havea personat each sideto
turn the wheels.
• Whengoing downthe ramps,walk backwardwith the tiller
followingyou. Keepalertfor anyobstaclesbehindyou. Positiona
personat eachwheelto controlthe speedof the tiller. Nevergo
downthe rampstiller-first,as the tillercouldtip forward.
• Placewoodenblockson thedownhillsideof the wheelsif you
needto stop the tillerfrom rollingdownthe ramp.Also, usethe
blocksto temporarilykeepthe tiller in placeon the ramps(if
necessary),and to chockthe wheelsin placeafterthe tiller is in
the vehicle.
• After loadingthe tiller,preventit from rollingby chockingthe
wheelswith blocks,and securelytie thetiller down.
CLEARING THE TINES
Beforeclearingthe tines byhand,stop the engine,allowall moving
parts to stop and disconnectthe sparkplug wire. Failureto followthis
warningcould resultin personalinjury.
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The tines havea self-clearingaction whicheliminatesmostof the
tanglingof debris.However, o ccasionallydry grass,stringystalksor
toughvines may becometangled. Followthese procedures to help
avoidtanglingand to clearthetines, if necessary.
• To reducetangling,set the depthstakedeepenoughto get
maximum "chopping"action as thetines chop thematerialagainst
the ground.Also, try to till undercrop residuesor covercrops
whilethey are green,moistand tender.
Whiletilling, try swayingthe handlebarsfrom sideto side(about
6" to 12").This "fishtailing" action often clearsthe tines of debris.