mikebramel said:
For full pedal travel, would you rather slam down on the valve or linkage or the foot rest?
Mike has a point. On the loader Travel Control Valve (TCV), for forward travel, the banana plate moves forward and the spool is pulled out of the TCV. For reverse, the banana plate moves rearward and pushes the spool in. The banana plate movement is not symmetric or equal and I have always found reverse to be a little"touchy".
The manual advises:
1. The pedal must not hit the foot rest.
2. The control pin must not hit the end of the slot in the control plate.
Ideally, I think the best outcome is for the pedal to touch the foot rest just at the point of full forward and full reverse. This would take unnecessary stress off of the TCV. Unfortunately, with the linkage geometry I don't think this is possible. Personally, I adjust forward to attain max travel speed when the pedal touches the foot rest. Reverse does not touch the foot rest.
Here is my rationale:
I am more likely to stomp the pedal in forward because I have a clear view of where I am going.
I am more cautious in reverse (for safety reasons) and, since reverse is a little touchy, I never stomp down hard anyway. So I am less likely to stress the TCV.
I am reluctant to recommend this as a "best practice" because my 6018 is the only loader I have used and others may have different experiences.
Once you get all the wear items replaced, experiment with minor adjustments to get the best results.
