How do you start a self-propelled Honda push mower?

G

Guitar GUY

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Before now, I've always used a riding mower, which starts pretty much the same as a car. I'm a push mower noob. This mower has two bars that pull toward the handle: one says "blade" and one says "clutch." There's a lever on the left that has a turtle that moves up to a rabbit and after that there's a symbol that looks like two vertical lines with a diagonal one in between with a circle in the middle of it. On the right there's two levers: one locks and unlocks the "caster" and the other is a 1, 2, or 3 speed setting. There is also a pull cord.

No instructions anywhere, just warnings. I don't know what a clutch is, I don't know what a caster is, I don't know what the difference is between what looks like two speed levers...the blades being on or off is the only part I get. Help, please...
@PA—Where is "start position" and what lever is it on? There's three different levers and none of them say "start."
 
Move the lever to the Start position, then push the clutch bar in so its flat with the handle.

You then start yanking the pull cord repeatedly until it fires up, all the time keeping the clutch pulled in. It can be tricky to keep the clutch in while yanking the cord. I sometimes tie it with string, but its probably not a great idea safety wise.

Also if its not been used for a while, it can take a lot of repeated pulling on the cord before it fires up. Just go quicker and quicker until you're either out of breath, or it starts up :)

Once its ticking over, you move the lever to a higher position, and press the other bar to make the mower drive forward.

[Edit: I mean the engine speed lever (with 1,2,3 on it). Normally theres a start position too, but if there isnt, just move it to 1 instead.

Oh, and the caster lever is probably for raising or lowering the wheels slightly, to get a shorter cut].
 
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