I Added Hydraulic Restrictors to my Top 'n' Tilt Today

[MtnViewRanch]

I'm surprised somebody hasn't also mentioned that you can add an adjustable needle valve to one side of the hydraulic circuit also. The needle valve will give you complete control of flow for any sized cylinder, but is more expensive than the simple orifice. I've also been advised that you should not install an orifice just before a right angle connector. The high pressure jet can actually cut through the fitting. This is hearsay, but comes from Mark Carter of CCM. Frankly, if you are not in a constant flow situation, I think the chance of this being an issue is nil.

Jim, it was my own personal experience that has turned me off on the use of needle valves to control the flow for Top & Tilt cylinders. When I first put the "TnT" on my 32hp tractor, I used needle valves to control the flow. Did they work, yes. did they work good, NO. To get the needle set the best that I could adjust it, I had to have the needle valve closed all the way and then open it they smallest amount possible. That is actually harder to do than it sounds. Anyway, they did work, but even with the needle valves the hydraulics moved a bit faster than I liked, but they were manageable and I used them like that for years.

When I put the restrictors in and got rid of the needle valves, WOW, this is sooooooo much better. For me anyway.

 

[BIG DOOLEY]

I'm surprised somebody hasn't also mentioned that you can add an adjustable needle valve to one side of the hydraulic circuit also. The needle valve will give you complete control of flow for any sized cylinder, but is more expensive than the simple orifice. I've also been advised that you should not install an orifice just before a right angle connector. The high pressure jet can actually cut through the fitting. This is hearsay, but comes from Mark Carter of CCM. Frankly, if you are not in a constant flow situation, I think the chance of this being an issue is nil.

I have a Parker F600B but it is only rated for 2000 psi @ 8 gpm.
It is about 500 psi under rated.
I think the flow controler is a better idea than the orifice.
You can mount it between a female and male coupler half and use it inline when needed.
Would need 2 of them because they are full flow in one direction.
This would probably be better.
http://compare.ebay.com/like/310544684448?var=lv&ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar
Tom

 

[Gordon Gould]

I think the flow controler is a better idea than the orifice.
You can mount it between a female and male coupler half and use it inline when needed.
Would need 2 of them because they are full flow in one direction.
This would probably be better.
HOKE 2112F4Y NEEDLE VALVE 316 STAINLESS STEEL 6000PSI on eBay!
Tom

I guess I have to respectably disagree with you. The flow restrictors are only $10, $20 for two cylinders, so they are cheap enough to dedicate to the TnT cylinders. And they work very well.

If you used your flow controlers idea you woud need 4 at $32.50 ea plus two additional sets of quick couplers for another $40 or so. Granted you would have a universal system that you could adjust for any impliment. But in my book it would be a pain in the neck adjusting all those valves all the time. And if you found you didn't really have to readjust them then you might as well have the fixed orifice type.

For $20 I would try the flow restrictors first. But to each his own.

 

[npalen]

I might mention that is a good idea if only one restrictor per cylinder is used to put it in the "out" port of the cylinder. This is probably true only when the "out" port is the one that controls a relatively heavy overrunning load. Otherwise, a restrictor plumbed,say, at the far end of the cylinder "in" hose could create a high vacumn in the line and possibly ingest air and/or contamination into the system.
It's interesting that master and slave cylinder setups do not seem to be mentioned on this forum. They are used extensively in farm tillage and seeding equipment to coordinate movement between various sections of the implement. An example would be a pair of 4" bore master cylinders on the center section which are mechanically connected to each other. Each master then feeds one or more of it's slaves to coordinate raising and lowering the implement over, say, a 60' width. The first slave would be a 3 3/4" bore and the next 3 1/2" bore which tends to offset the area lost when the rod side of the master cylinder feeds the base side of it's slave cylinder and so on "down the line".