[thenrie]

Thanks! That pretty much covered my questions, but presented a couple new ones.

What do you mean by "float"? Is that where a lift is free to move up and down, like when you sit the bucket on the ground. I seem to recall that my dad's Kubota B6100 had a little lever or something on the valve that controlled float, but I can't recall what it was or did. His also had detents on the up/down control that held the pressure on when needed, like so I could tilt and lift the bucket with one hand.

What is the benefit and purpose/use of closed or open center spool valves?

I think I'm going to pick up one of those JD valves. Iv'e seen them go for as little as $40+sh on ebay. I can make/run my own steel lines if room is an issue in the 1650. Building a decent handle shouldn't be a problem either. The Cub handles are pretty simple.