Can I still use the manual lever with the kit fitted?
Yes. The LFT20 and LFT54 do not remove the control lever; they attach only to the outer end of the existing Lift-O-Matik cable, and the tractor-side end stays.
Yes. The LFT20 and the LFT54 do not remove the control lever of the tractor; they only attach to the end of the existing Lift-O-Matik cable outside the tractor. Since the original connection on the tractor side is never touched, the lever and the mechanism stay where they are and manual operation is preserved.
Why the installation is reversible
The outer end of the existing cable is detached and attached to the cable entry socket of the kit. What the kit does is to make electrically the same pulling movement you make by hand; the tractor-side end of the cable, the control lever and the valve quadrant do not change at all. Whether the existing cable has to be removed is asked often: it is not removed, it stays in use. In any case no cable comes with the kit, and the tractor's own cable is used.
This is the basic difference from solutions that intervene in the hydraulic line. A hose that has been cut or a valve quadrant that has been changed leaves a trace when it is undone, and returning the tractor to its original state becomes a job of its own; a connection made at the end of a cable leaves no trace. When the kit comes off, all that is left behind is the old cable and the old lever.
Where manual operation earns its keep
- An electrical fault: with a battery problem, a blown fuse or a broken wire you carry on using the lever by hand; work does not stop.
- Fault finding: your reference point is ready. Take the kit out of circuit and try the lever by hand; if the behaviour is the same, the trouble is not in the kit but in the mechanism or the hydraulics.
- Changing tractor: when you sell the tractor or move to another one, the kit can be taken off and taken with you, and no permanent change is left behind.
- A matter of preference: on some jobs you may want to go on holding the lever yourself; the kit does not prevent that.
The point to watch: cable length
With the kit fitted, the cable leaves a distance on the kit side equal to the pull range of the kit. In manual use, check whether the limit of the lever's travel has changed. If the lever goes past the transport position and enters the continuous pumping zone, the oil heats up and the spring loses its tension. Excessive cable slack weakens both the kit and manual use: part of the pull is spent taking up the slack and the movement reaching the lever is shortened. Knowing what the pull distance means makes this adjustment easier.
The two limits of this protection
The preservation of manual operation does not cover every fault. First, the kit is attached to the outer end of the cable; if the cable itself breaks or locks inside its sheath, neither the kit nor your hand can move the lever. That single fault brings down both ways of operating at once. Second, if the connection at the cable entry socket of the kit works loose, the manual pull is lost as well, because the movement now goes into slack rather than to the lever. Put those two points on your periodic check list.
The order when going over to manual
You do not have to remove the kit to go back to manual use; cutting the supply is enough. The order is this: lower the linkage to a safe position, leave the kit unpowered, then work the lever by hand. Forcing the lever by hand while the kit is powered means pulling the cable against the motor of the kit, and it tires both sides. If you are going to work by hand for a long time, cut the supply at the fuse; that also removes the chance of a switch forgotten in the cab operating by mistake.
Do this once after installation
Leave the kit unpowered, work the lever by hand through its full stroke and note the limits of the movement. Once you have taken that reference, when a problem comes up later you can tell in a few seconds whether the kit or the mechanism is responsible: if the behaviour by hand is wrong, there is no point looking at the kit. If the cable is worn, both manual use and the kit are affected to the same degree; do not put off renewing the cable. After renewing it, repeat the same reference test and note the new limits.
The full topic: Converting a tractor hydraulic lever to electronic control