Sorry, no owners manual here. I'll keep my eyes open though and will pick one up if I see it.
I have some decent pics of the older Varible speed machines (70's). If I ever get a chance to scan them in.....
I have a ton of info from 1976 Sears merchandising literature. One day I will get to scanning that in also. It starts out with 5hp riders and goes up to the "Sears Best" tractors.
i've been looking for a manual for a gtv 16 and came across something almost identical. my model # is 917.253720, i found an owners manual for model 917.253724. it is downloadable at hammerwall.com.