MTD 760-779 manual

Safety • Assembl y • Operation • Adjustment • Maintenance • T roubleshooting • W arranty Warning : This uni t is equip ped with a n internal com bustio n engine an d should not b e used on or near any unim proved forest-covered, bru sh- covered or grass -c ov ered lan d unless t he engine’s e xhaust system is e quipp ed with a sp ark [...]

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 able of Contents BE FOR E Y OU S T AR T A S SE MB LI NG Y OUR NE W E QUI P ME N T , please loca te the model pla te on the eq uipment an d copy the inf ormatio[...]

3 1 Slope Gauge W ARNING Do not mo w on inclines with a slope in e xcess of 1 5 degrees (a rise of appro xima tely 2 - 1/ 2 fee t ev ery 1 0 fe et) . A riding mo wer cou ld ov erturn and ca use seriou s injury . Operat e riding mo wers up and dow n slopes, ne ver a cross the fa ce of slopes . 3IGHTANDHOLDTHISLEVELWITHAVERTICAL?[...]

4 2 Safe Operat ion Practices Children 1 . T ragi c acci dents can o ccur if t he operator is n ot aler t to the pres ence of ch ildren. Chil dren are often attr acted to the mac hine and t he mowing ac tivit y . They do not und erstan d the dang ers. Never assume that chi ldren will re main where you last saw th em. a. Keep childr en out of the mo[...]

5 2 Safe Operation Practices W ARNING This s ymbol points out important sa fety instructions w hich, if not f ollow ed, could endange r the personal saf ety and /or propert y of y ourself an d others. Rea d and follo w all instructions in thi s man- ual bef ore a ttempting to opera te this mach ine. F ailur e to comply with these in structions ma y[...]

6 Slope Operati on : Slop es are a major factor rel ated to loss of co ntrol and tip -over acc idents wh ich ca n result in severe injur y or death. All s lopes re quire extra c aution. If you ca nnot back up t he slop e or if you feel uneasy on it, d o not mow it. For your safety , use the slo pe gauge i nclud ed as par t of this man ual to measur[...]

7 2 Safe Operat ion Practices This s ymbol points out important sa fety instructions w hich, if not f ollow ed, could endange r the personal saf ety and /or propert y of y ourself an d others. Rea d and follo w all instructions in thi s man- ual bef ore a ttempting to opera te this mach ine. F ailur e to comply with these in structions ma y resu lt[...]

8 3 Setting Up Y our Lawn T ractor NO TE: This Operat ors Manual co ve rs a range of product specif ications for v ariou s models. Cha racteristics an d fea tur es discussed and / or illust rated i n this man ual may not be applicable to a ll models. MTD LL C reserves the right to ch ange product specification s, designs and equipm ent without noti[...]

9 3 W ARNING Make sure the rid ing mower’ s engine is off, remov e the igni- tion ke y , and set the parking brak e before remov ing the shippin g brace. Setting Up Y our Lawn T ractor The shippin g brace, used for packagi ng purposes onl y , must be remov ed and discarded before operating y our ridi ng mower . The mowi ng deck is capable of thro[...]

10 Attaching The Seat Seat st yles var y by tractor mo del and there are t hree dif ferent st yles available : • Stand ard Adjust ment • Quic k Adjustm ent & • Knob Ad justment If the seat for your trac tor was not att ached at the fac tor y , refer to Fig. 3- 5, Fig. 3 - 6, and Fig. 3 - 7 to ident ify your tractor ’ s seat st yle and f[...]

11 3 W ARNING Setting Up Y our Lawn T ractor Figure 3-8 Identifying the Mulch Plug On trac tor mode ls so equi pped, a mul ch plug c an be found wit hin the cu tti ng deck ’s discharg e opening. NOT E : Refer to Mulching in t he “O perating Y our Lawn T rac tor” se ctio n of this manua l for more detaile d informa- tion. If you’ d prefer to[...]

12 4 Operating Y our Lawn T ractor Kno w Y our La wn T ractor Figure 4-1 A Spee d Control Lever/ Parki ng Brake E Throt tle Contr ol Lever B Clutch -Br ake P edal F Ignit ion Switc h Modu le C Shif t Lever G Dec k Lif t Lev er D Choke Control† H PTO ( Blade Engage ) Lever NOTE : A ny reference in this ma nual to the RIGH T or LEFT side of t he tr[...]

13 4 Operating Y our Lawn T ractor W ARNING Never lea ve a ru nning machine unattended. Alwa ys d isengage PTO , mov e shift lever int o neutral position, set parking brak e, stop engine and remo ve k ey to pre vent un intended starting. Throttle Contr ol Le ver The throt tle c ontrol lever is loc ated on the ri ght side of the trac tor’s dash pa[...]

14 NOT E : The parki ng brake must be set if th e operator leaves the seat with t he engine r unning or th e engine will automat ically s hut off. Clutch-Brake P edal The clu tch- brake pedal i s located o n the lef t side of the lawn trac tor , along the r unning bo ard. Depress t he clutc h-b rake pedal par t way down when slowin g the tractor by[...]

15 4 Operating Y our Lawn T ractor Rever se Caution Mode ( Mo dels e quip ped wit h ignitio n switch modul e) W ARN IN G : Us e extreme c autio n while ope rating t he trac tor in th e REVERSE CA UT ION M ODE . Always look d own and be hind b efore an d while b ackin g. Do not op erate t he trac tor whe n chil dren or oth ers are arou nd. Stop t he[...]

16 W ARNING A V OID SERIOUS INJUR Y OR DEA TH • GO UP A ND DOW N SLOPES, NOT ACR OSS. • A VOID S UDDEN T URN S. • DO NOT O PERA TE TH E UNIT W HERE IT C OUL D SLIP OR T IP . • IF MACH INE STOPS G OIN G UPHIL L, STOP B L ADE ( S) A ND BACK DOW NHI LL SLOWL Y . • DO NOT M OW WHEN C HILD REN OR OTH ERS ARE AR OUN D. • NEV ER CARRY CHILD RE[...]

17 4 Operating Y our Lawn T ractor W ARNING W ARN IN G : Be fore le aving the op erato r’ s posi tion for a ny reason, d ise ngag e the bla des, p lac e the shi ft lever in n eutral, eng age th e parkin g brake, sh ut engi ne off and re move the key . IM PORT ANT : When stop ping the tr actor for any reason while on a g rass sur face, always: 1 .[...]

18 4 Operating Y our Lawn T ractor Mowing W ARN IN G : T o hel p avoid blad e cont act or a thrown ob jec t injury , kee p bystand ers, hel pers, c hild ren and p ets at l eas t 7 5 fe et from the m achi ne whil e it is in o pera tion. Stop m achi ne if anyone e nters th e area . The followi ng informatio n will be hel pful when usin g the cut ting[...]

19 Mulching Selec t mod els come e quippe d with a mul ch kit wh ich incor porates sp ecial b lades, already s tandard o n the tractor, in a process of rec irculat ing grass c lippi ngs repeatedl y beneath th e cut ting de ck. The ul tra-fine clip pings are t hen forced bac k into the lawn where t hey act as a natura l fert ilizer . Obser ve the fo[...]

20 W ARN IN G : N ever atte mpt to m ake any adju stme nts whil e the e ngine i s running , except w here sp eci fied i n the op erato r’ s manu al. Leveling the Dec k NOT E : Check t he tractor ’ s tire pres sure before per form- ing any dec k leveling adjustm ents. Refer to Tire s on page 24 for information reg arding tire pre ssure. Front T [...]

21 5 W ARNING Adjusting Y our Lawn T ractor P arking Brake Adjustment W ARN IN G : N ever atte mpt to a djust th e brake s whil e the eng ine is ru nning. Always dis enga ge P T O, move shift lever in to neu tral pos ition, s top eng ine an d remove key to prevent un inte nde d startin g. If the tra ctor does n ot come to a co mplete stop wh en the[...]

22 6 Maintaining Y our Lawn T ractor Figure 6-1 W ARNING Before per form ing any mai ntenance or repairs, disengage PTO , mov e shift lever int o neutral position, set parking brak e, stop engine and remo ve k ey to pre vent un intended starting. W ARN IN G : Be fore pe rforming a ny mai nten ance o r repai rs, dise ngag e P T O, move shift lever i[...]

23 6 Maintaining Y our Lawn T ractor Figure 6-2 Cleaning the Engine And Deck Any fuel or oil s pilled on t he machi ne should be w iped off pr omptly. Do NO T allow d ebris to ac cumulate aroun d the co oling fins of t he engine o r on any other par t of the machin e. IM PORT ANT : The use of a press ure washer to clean your tractor is N OT recomme[...]

24 6 Maintaining Y our Lawn T ractor Tires W ARN IN G : N ever excee d the m aximum infla tion p ressure s hown on th e side wall of tire. The rec ommend ed operati ng tire pressure i s: • Ap proximately 1 0 psi for the r ear tires • Ap proximately 1 4 psi for the front tire s IM PORT ANT : Refer to the tire sid ewall for exact tire manufac tur[...]

25 6 Maintaining Y our Lawn T ractor W ARNING Periodi cally inspect the blade spindles for cracks or damage, especially if y ou strik e a foreign object. Replace immediately if damaged. Be sure to sh ut the engine off, remo ve ignition k ey , discon- nect the spark plug wire (s ) and ground against the engi ne to prev ent unin tended starting befor[...]

26 Changing the Deck Belt W ARN IN G : Be s ure to shut t he eng ine off, remove ignit ion key , disc onne ct the spa rk plug wire (s ) and g round ag ainst the e ngin e to prevent uni ntend ed st arting befo re removing th e belt . All bel t on your tractor are sub ject to wear and sh ould be replac ed if any signs of wear are pres ent. IM PORT AN[...]

27 6 Maintaining Y our Lawn T ractor Engine Pulley 42-Inch Deck Idler Brac ket Deck Idler Pulle ys Figure 6-9 Figure 6-10 4 6- I n c h D e c k Idler Pulleys Belt Cover[...]

28 7 O f f - S e a s o n S t o r a g e / A t t a c h m e n t s W ARNING Drain fuel only i nto an approv ed container outdoors, aw ay from an open flame. Allo w engine to coo l. Ex tingu ish cigarettes, cigars, pipes, and other sources of ignition pr ior to draini ng fuel. Never st ore the machine or fuel container indoors where there is an open fla[...]

29 8 Safety Labels W ARNING Th is s ymb ol po in ts ou t i mp orta nt sa f ety in st ruc tio ns wh ich , if no t fo ll ow ed , co uld en dan ge r the p ers on al sa f ety an d / o r p ro pe rty of y o urs el f a nd o the rs . Re a d a nd f oll o w a ll in st ruc tio ns in th is ma nu al be f or e at - t emp ti ng t o o pe ra te th is ma chi ne . F [...]

30 Cause Pr oblem Remed y En gine fail s to start 1 . PTO engaged. 2. Spark pl ug wire ( s) di sconn ected. 3. Fuel tank empt y or stal e fuel. 4. Choke not acti vated. 5. Faulty spar k plug. 6. Bloc ked fuel line. 7 . Engine flo oded. 8. Parking brake not eng aged. 9. Throt tle cont rol lever not in correc t star ting p ositio n. 1 . Place PTO kno[...]

31 9 T roub le Shooting For r epa irs beyond the minor adjustments list ed here, contact an authorized service deal er . En gine ov erhe ats 1 . Fill cran kcase with pr oper oil. 2. Clean gra ss clip pings an d debri s from around t he engine’s cooling fins and bl ower housing. 1 . Engine oil l ev el low. 2. A ir flow restri cted. En gine hesita [...]

32 R e p l a c e m e n t P ar ts NOT E : Phone ( 80 0 ) 80 0-73 1 0 to order replac ement par ts or a co mplete Part s Manual ( have your full m odel n umbe r and serial num ber ready) . Part s Manual down loads are also availab le free of charg e at ww w. mtdpro duc ts.com. 10 Shift-On - The- Go ® Lawn T ractor Drive Bel t (T ran smissi on) 754- [...]

33 NO TES Use this pag e to make notes and write down important information.[...]

CALIFORNIA EMISSION CONTROL W ARRANTY ST A TEMENT Y OUR W ARRANTY RIGHTS AND OBLIGA TIONS The Ca liforn ia Air Re sourc es Boar d and MT D Cons umer Gro up Inc are p leas ed to expla in the evap orati ve emiss ion c ontro l system warra nty o n your 20 07 lawn mower. In Californ ia, new l awn mower must b e desi gne d, buil t and equ ippe d to meet[...]

The limi ted warranty set for th b elow is given by MTD LLC with res pect to new merchan dise purc hased and u sed in the Un ited States, its posse ssions an d territorie s. “ MTD” warrants t his prod uct agai nst defect s in material an d workman - ship for a per iod of t wo (2 ) years co mmenci ng on the d ate of original purcha se and will, [...]