MarkCG & Larry - Remember that our tractors have "open center" hydraulics, so the whole system is just one circuit - therefore, if you put a gauge in it almost anywhere, it will read the pressure (resistance to flow) generated by using any valve in the circuit.
The handiest place (for me, anyway) was on the loader valve block, especially since I almost never remove the loader. (If you use this location to tap into the system, you just have to mount the gauge on a part of the loader that also detaches with the loader. No big deal, unless you really need the gauge when the loader isn't in place, which isn't too likely.) I put a rigid tee directly on the loader valve block "pressure in" port, then re-attached the "pressure in" hose to the inline port on the tee. On the top port of the tee, I put a flow restrictor bushing, followed by the hose to the gauge. The purpose of the flow restrictor bushing is to keep all the fluid from being shot up into the air instantly if the gauge or the line to it burst - I'd at least like to have time to shut the tractor off before it damaged anything.
Again, remembering the "open center" design of the hydraulic system, even though my gauge is mounted to the loader (you can see pictures of it in my "
L4310 Enhancements" thread in the Tractor Customization section), it still registers the pressure required to lift implements by the 3-point hitch, for example, or even the remote cylinders on the hitch itself or gauge wheel implements.
MarkC
