Craftsman 944.514610 - Manual (Page 6)

• Never let the moving chain contact
any object at the tip of the guide bar.
• Keep the working area free from ob­
structions such as other trees,
branches, rocks, stumps, etc. Elimi­
nate or avoid any obstruction that
your chain could hit while you are
cutting. When cutting a branch, do
not let the guide bar contact branch
or other objects around it.
• Keep your chain sharp and properly
tensioned. A loose or dull chain can
increase the chance of kickback oc­
curring. Follow manufacturer’s chain
sharpening and maintenance instruc­
tions. Check tension at regular inter­
vals with the engine stopped, never
with the engine running. Make sure
the bar clamp nut is securely tight­
ened after tensioning the chain,
• Begin and continue cutting at full
speed. If the chain is moving at a
slower speed, there is greater
chance of kickback occurring.
• Cut one branch at a time.
• Use extreme caution when re-enter­
ing a previous cut.
• Do not attempt cuts starting with the
tip of the bar (plunge cuts).
• Watch for shifting of wood or other
forces that could close a cut and
pinch or fall into chain.
• Use the Reduced-Kickback Guide
Bar and Low-Kickback Chain speci­
fied for your unit,
MAINTAIN CONTROL
• Keep a good, firm grip on the pruner
with both hands when the engine is
running and don’t let go. A firm grip
will help you reduce kickback and
maintain control. Keep the fingers of
your left hand encircling and your
left thumb under the assist handle.
Keep your right hand completely
around the throttle handle whether
your are right handed or left handed.
• Stand with your weight evenly bal­
anced on both feet.
• Stand slightly to the left side of the
pruner to keep your body from being
in a direct line with the cutting chain.
KICKBACK SAFETY FEATURES
The following features are included on
your pruner to help reduce the hazard
of kickback; however, such features
will not totally eliminate this danger.
As a pruner user, do not rely only on
safety devices. You must follow all
safety precautions, instructions, and
maintenance in this manual to help
avoid kickback and other forces which
can result in serious injury.
• Reduced-Kickback Guide Bar, de­
signed with a small radius tip which
reduces the size of the kickback
danger zone on the bar tip.
Reduced Kickback Symmetrical Guide Bar
Small Radius Tip
SymfYietricai Guide Bar
Large Radius Tip
Low-Kickback Chain, designed with
a contoured depth gauge and guard
link which deflect kickback force and
allow wood to gradually ride into the
cutter.
Contoured Depth Gauge
Elongated Guard Link
^• **4—
T
Deflects
! kickback force
Low-Kickback
Chain
i
Y and allows wood
to gradually ride
into cutter
Can Obstruct Material
Not a Low-Kickback Chain
TRANSPORTING AND STORAGE
• Do not grasp or hold exposed blade.
• Stop powerhead before leaving work
area.
• Allow powerhead and gearbox to cool
before storing or transporting it in a
vehicle,
• Store unit and fuel in area where fuel
vapors cannot reach sparks or open