MTD 588 manual

Safety • Assembl y • Operation • Tips & T echniques • Maintenance • T roubleshooting • P ar ts Lists • Warranty Warning : This un it is equi pped wi th an internal c ombu stion en gine and s hould not be u sed on or near any unim proved forest-c overed, brush- covered or grass -c overed land unles s the eng ine’ s exhaust system[...]

2 Finding and Recor ding Model Number Model Number Serial Number Please do NO T return the unit to the retailer from whic h it was purc hased, without fir st contacting Customer Suppor t. T ab le of Contents BE FORE Y OU S T ART A SSE MBLING Y OUR NEW E QUIP MENT , please loca te the model pla te on the equipmen t and copy the inf ormation t o the[...]

3 1 Slope Gauge W ARNING Do not mo w on inclines with a slope in e xcess of 1 5 degre es (a rise of appro ximat ely 2- 1/ 2 feet e very 1 0 fee t) . A riding mow er could o ve r turn and cause s erious inj ury . If opera ting a w alk - behind mo wer on such a slope , it is extreme ly difficult to main tain y our footi ng and y ou could slip , resul[...]

4 2 Safe Operat ion Practices Children T ragic accidents can occur if operator is not aler t to presence of children. Children are often attracted to mow er and mowing activity . They do not understand the dangers . Nev er assume that children will remain where you last sa w them. 1. K eep children out of the mowing area and under watchful care of [...]

5 1 9. Shu t the en gine o ff a nd wait un til th e blad e com es to a com plete s top be fore rem oving t he gra ss cat cher or u nc log - ging t he c hute. The c ut ting b lade c ont inues t o rotate for a few s eco nds af ter the e ngin e is shu t off. Never pl ace any par t o f the b ody in the b lade are a unti l you are sure t he bla de has s[...]

6 3 Setup and Adjustment 1 . Remove any packing materi al whic h may be between upper an d lower handle s. a. Pull up and b ack on up per handl e as shown in Step 1 . Make cer tain t he lower handle i s seated securel y into the hand le mount ing brackets. b. Tig hten hand kno bs secur ing up per handl e to lower handle. Make sure th at each carr i[...]

7 Step 6 CU TT I NG HEI GHT Step 6 All whee ls must be placed in the s ame rela tive pos ition. GRA SS CA T C HER Step 7 Mak e certain bag is turned ri ght side out bef ore assembl ing (warn ing label wil l be on the outside). 3 Setup and Adjustment Step 7 Step 8 Never operate mo wer unless the hooks on the grass catcher are firm ly seated in the s[...]

8 4 Operating Y our Lawn Mo wer Now that y ou hav e set up your lawn mo wer f or op- eration, get aquainted with its controls and f eatures. These are described below and illustrated on this page. This knowledge will allow y ou to use your new equipment to its fullest potential. Blade Control The blade control is attached to the upper handle of the[...]

9 4 Operating Y our Lawn Mo wer W ARNING The operation of any lawn mo wer can result in foreign ob jects being throw n into the ey es, which can damage you r ey es sev erely . Alwa ys wear safety glasses while operating the mower , or while performing any ad justments or repairs on it. Be sure no one other than the operator is standing near the law[...]

10 5 Maintaining Y our Lawn Mo wer W ARNING Alwa ys stop engi ne, disconnect spark plug, and grou nd against eng ine before cleaning, lubr icating or doing an y kind of maintenance on y our machine. W e do not recomme nd the use o f pressu re wash ers or garden hose to cle an yo ur unit. The se ma y cause damage t o electric components , spindles, [...]

11 Figure 5 5 Maintaining Y our Lawn Mo wer W ARNING When remov ing the cutting blade for sharpenin g or replacement , protect yo ur hands with a pair of heavy glo ves or use a heavy rag to hold the blade. An unbalanced blade will ca use ex ce ssiv e vibration when ro tat- ing at hi gh spee ds. It may cau se damage to mo wer , and could break causi[...]

12 F or r ep ai r s be yo nd th e mi nor a dj us tm en ts li st ed h er e , con ta ct an a ut hor i zed s er v ice de al er . 6 T r ouble Shooting Cause Pr oblem Remedy En gine fails t o star t 1 . Blade c ontrol d isengag ed. 2. Spark pl ug wire disc onne cted. 3. Fuel tank empt y or stal e fuel. 4. Engine not pri med. 5. Faulty spar k plug. 6. Bl[...]

13 7 Safety Labels                                                                                   [...]

14 39 38 41 10 17 46 47 19 40 30 44 12 30 24 32 18 32 25 27 45 22 21 43 23 26 15 28 29 45 42 16 14 4 8 3 2 33 20 6 7 9 11 5 1 13 37 34 35 45 45 31 36[...]

15 8 P ar ts List 1 7 4 7 - 1 1 61 A Blade C ontrol Ha ndle 2 7 49 - 1 09 2A Upper H andle 3 7 4 7 - 0 408 0 Grass Catc her Frame 4 7 49 - 0928A Lower Handle 5 720 - 0279 Wing Nut 6 7 10- 1 205 Rope Gui de 7 7 10- 1 1 7 4 Carriage B olt ,5 /1 6 - 1 8 x 2 8 66 4- 0 4027 Grass B ag Assemb ly 9 720 - 02072 Star Knob 1 0 7 10- 059 9 Screw, 1/4-20 x . 5[...]

The limi ted warranty s et fort h below is gi ven by MTD LLC with respec t to new merchan dise purc hased a nd used in t he United St ates, its pos ses- sions an d territori es. “ MTD” warrant s this pro duc t against d efects in m aterial and work manshi p for a perio d of two ( 2 ) years com menci ng on the d ate of origina l purchas e and wi[...]