Does anyone actually LIKE Hyster monotrol pedals?

ichudov · Jul 28, 2012

I am wondering if I am the only person here who hates Hyster monotrol pedals. They seem to be an awfully designed control, and very dangerous also, because someone who accidentally steps on the pedal (say if you climb in or out), would move the forklift. Same would not happen with a regular forward/reverse lever.

Any comments?

Mike C. · Jul 28, 2012

Had one at the pump shop. I finally got to where I could use it, but never really liked it. I want to put the thing in fwd or rev and THEN use the pedal.

Only worse one was the Linde we had for a short time... get this, it had two pedals, one on each side of the steering column. The right one was fwd, the left one (where the brake usually resides) was REVERSE, with a brake pedal in the center, under the steering wheel. Add to that the fact that operating the lift or tilt revved the engine on the governor and it was a really scary POS to run. You would be cruising along on it being careful with a heavy load, get to a high spot in the parking lot and grab the lift lever to ease the load up a little. Governor would kick in and the engine would take off, instantly accellerating the whole machine in the process. Then you are doing some delicate lifting work putting an assembly together. You are trying to hold the lift in place and inch fwd, but you hit the rev pedal instead of the brake. Everybody hated that machine.

ichudov · Jul 28, 2012

Mike C. said:
Had one at the pump shop. I finally got to where I could use it, but never really liked it. I want to put the thing in fwd or rev and THEN use the pedal.

Only worse one was the Linde we had for a short time... get this, it had two pedals, one on each side of the steering column. The right one was fwd, the left one (where the brake usually resides) was REVERSE, with a brake pedal in the center, under the steering wheel. Add to that the fact that operating the lift or tilt revved the engine on the governor and it was a really scary POS to run. You would be cruising along on it being careful with a heavy load, get to a high spot in the parking lot and grab the lift lever to ease the load up a little. Governor would kick in and the engine would take off, instantly accellerating the whole machine in the process. Then you are doing some delicate lifting work putting an assembly together. You are trying to hold the lift in place and inch fwd, but you hit the rev pedal instead of the brake. Everybody hated that machine.

Wow, that Linde sure had the Hyster Monotrol beat in the "un-usability" department!

i

LKeithR · Jul 28, 2012

Our shop forklift is a small Hyster with a monotrol and yes, I HATE the da*n thing too! Reverse is easy because it defaults to that position. Going forward at a steady pace is OK because you're applying steady pressure to the pedal but trying to inch forward is a real pain in the ass. Relax the pressure too much and before you know it you're going backwards, often with a bit of a jerk. Not a good system at all.

Can they be adjusted at all?

atomarc · Jul 28, 2012

I have used both the Linde with the two pedals and the Hyster Monotrol. I was the forklift mechanic so I didn't drive them 8 hours a day....you folks are supposed to be machinists so you probably don't drive these machines all day long either. Both of the systems work exceptionally well for the full time drivers...especially the Linde with the forward/reverse pedals. Change is hard...you can't possible give a fair appraisal of a system when you don't give it a fair shot.

Talk to a forklift driver in a mill or a loading dock or a cannery or a paper mill or whatever...the Monotrol is good, almost as nice as the fine German innovation, the Linde with the forward/reverse pedals. Think of it as a Deckel in drag!!

Stuart

Garwood · Jul 29, 2012

My 2500 Hyster is a monotrol. I hated it the day I bought it, damn near drove it right off my trailer while loading it. Took me about a year of using it a few hours a week to get to where I could manipulate it delicately and now I love it.

I think the monotrol is fantastic, it takes no thought at all to operate once you're used to using it. My 2500 is 43 years old and sure wasn't cared for before I got it, not that it's babied now, and works well.

Like anything else there are some tricks to using it. When you get how the whole system works down pat you can really do a lot with them. The monotrol can function just like a stickshift/clutch type truck. Makes them very handy when you really need to get moving or push something around.

WHHJR · Jul 29, 2012

Not being Short makes the monitrol nearly unusable for me. Too much leg, not enough space. My real problem with Hyster is the parking brake Safety interlocks. One little spring break and no workie...

sealark37 · Jul 29, 2012

As noted above, the drivers who work all day driving these devices love the various single pedal lift trucks. For those of us who use one now and again, they require a total brain shift in order to drive it safely. I much prefer the old "gas-brake-clutch" paradigm. The forward-reverse lever is OK, though. Regards, Clark

Milacron · Jul 29, 2012

I've only driven a Monotrol Hyster once, but I seem to recall the main problem would be if you were going up a ramp with a machine on the forks and needed to stop and restart while still on the incline...difficult to do without rolling back...might have to employ the emergency brake and gradually let off that. Had a late model Linde with the two pedals and had no such problems once I got used to it.

But as previously mentioned, both features are meant for high usage situations. If one only uses the forklift a few minutes a week a more conventional F/N/R hand shift, accelerator pedal, brake pedal set up would be safer I admit. I liked the "automatic engine acceleration when lifting" feature on my Linde, but could live without it...simple enough for my limited use to accelerate the engine as needed manually.

I guess the bottom line is I would be ok with Monotrol if I never needed to go down/up inclines...but I still wouldn't "like" it and would only buy one if screamin deal.

willbird · Jul 29, 2012

I drove a Toyo lift truck for around 2000 hours, you know you have driven one too much when your in a parking lot in your pickup truck and when you stop you look up (for the overhead mirror) and toot your horn, and your wife looks at you like your NUTS ;-).

Walking through Costco or Sam's a year after I got out of that Toyo I STILL look up for the mirror, of course the mirros ARE nice in a factory even if your on foot, and would be an asset at sam's :-).

But having driven a two pedal lift truck just a little I bet it WOULD be nice. Live unloading a flat bed semi and reloading it gets really tiresome pretty quick like with the Toyota.

Bill

Garwood · Jul 29, 2012

Milacron said:
I've only driven a Monotrol Hyster once, but I seem to recall the main problem would be if you were going up a ramp with a machine on the forks and needed to stop and restart while still on the incline...difficult to do without rolling back...might have to employ the emergency brake and gradually let off that. Had a late model Linde with the two pedals and had no such problems once I got used to it.

But as previously mentioned, both features are meant for high usage situations. If one only uses the forklift a few minutes a week a more conventional F/N/R hand shift, accelerator pedal, brake pedal set up would be safer I admit. I liked the "automatic engine acceleration when lifting" feature on my Linde, but could live without it...simple enough for my limited use to accelerate the engine as needed manually.

I guess the bottom line is I would be ok with Monotrol if I never needed to go down/up inclines...but I still wouldn't "like" it and would only buy one if screamin deal.

The monotrol is just like a stickshift, though the controls to work it that way may not be apparent. The driveway into my shop is gravel with a healthy slope. I run my smooth hard tired monotrol up and down the hill and it isn't that big of a deal when you get used to it. Actually, it's no challenge at all. The truck doesn't have the power to pull itself up the hill empty if you just step on the pedal.

I think the biggest change for me was talking with guys that run these things all day long and a couple friends who used to work on them. How the pedals worked wasn't apparent to me- I thought it was a forward/reverse/throttle pedal and nuetral/brake pedal, but that's not entirely true. You have to operate the brake like a clutch.

I also figured out you don't operate these things like they're something special. You run them on the governor and use the clutch to do the work. Certainly not how I use equipment, but when I had material to unload and only so much time to do it in and really followed the advice I got from guys who run these things all day everything went much smoother. The truck is meant to have the piss run out of it.

Mike C. · Jul 29, 2012

Well, no kidding... warehouse workers like the monotrol and Linde dual pedal setup. I'm sure for simply stacking pallets and unloading trucks they are great, but that's not what a typical shop uses a forklift for. If a dock worker drops a pallet, he just loads it back up and sends it on to the customer (as evidenced by a lot of machinery I have repaired due to damage in shipping). If you drop a 3,000lb assembly on your co-worker because the truck revved up in fwd when you tried to tilt the load up and instinctively stepped on the brake and got the rev pedal instead... As milacron said, they probably got them really cheap.

Actually, on the better forklifts, you have three pedals, left is brake/clutch, center is brake only. That's the easy way to have total control over movement. You can just ease your foot over to the center pedal while in gear and you are then able to load the drivetrain against the brake. No jerking or rolling back, takes all the slack out of the system for super precise movement when inching stuff into place.

Garwood · Jul 29, 2012

Mike C. said:
Well, no kidding... warehouse workers like the monotrol and Linde dual pedal setup. I'm sure for simply stacking pallets and unloading trucks they are great, but that's not what a typical shop uses a forklift for. If a dock worker drops a pallet, he just loads it back up and sends it on to the customer (as evidenced by a lot of machinery I have repaired due to damage in shipping). If you drop a 3,000lb assembly on your co-worker because the truck revved up in fwd when you tried to tilt the load up and instinctively stepped on the brake and got the rev pedal instead... As milacron said, they probably got them really cheap.

Actually, on the better forklifts, you have three pedals, left is brake/clutch, center is brake only. That's the easy way to have total control over movement. You can just ease your foot over to the center pedal while in gear and you are then able to load the drivetrain against the brake. No jerking or rolling back, takes all the slack out of the system for super precise movement when inching stuff into place.

It's not difficult to do exactly what you are talking about with the monotrol pedals.

Bentworker · Jul 29, 2012

I watched a guy first hand drive the forks straight through a concrete curb and into a planter thanks to Monotrol ignorance. Pacific Gas & Electric forklift training... Take one lineman trying to show off, add a hyster with Monotrol and watch him launch full throttle into the curb trying to rev the engine. Destroyed the plastic half box, the curb, and didn't help the forklift at all. I was laughing so hard I was crying.

Anyway, I've used one for the last 5 years and have grown accustomed to it. Got to agree that it a ticket to disaster if someone hops on to operate that is not familiar with it.

cnctoolcat · Jul 29, 2012

My Toyota forklift has a cool system, that at first was tricky getting used to, but now I like it a lot. The gas pedal has a "rocker" on it. Pushing down on the left side of the pedal clicks the rocker down to the left, for forward direction. You just keep your foot on that side of the pedal as you go forward. Brake pedal on left stops forklift as usual.

To reverse, you move your foot to the right side of the gas pedal, pressing down slightly will click the rocker down to the right for reverse. The only way to know you're in reverse is the safety beep.

Is this system different than the Hyster Monotrol?

DDoug · Jul 30, 2012

I drive my old excavator with the feet (on rocker pedals) and run the bucket with my hands.

I drive my skid steer with my hands, and run the bucket with my feet.

I fly a plane with my hands, and steer (when taxi-ing) with my feet (opposite of the excavator).

I drove a dresser dozer (td-8) with hand steering clutches, and foot de-accelerator.

I drove a komatsu -31 with single joystick control, and foot de-accelerator (exactly opposite
of a car/truck)

I drive a ford farm tractor with a hand throttle, and split brakes.

Like anything, once you get the hang of it, it's like power steering.

I like the Monotrol, when your dooing allot of warehouse work.

I don't like the monotrol when trying to rig a machine.

IIRC I saw an older model with a dash mounted switch, instead of the pedal.
You might be able to re-wire, from pedal to dash board.

Mark McGrath · Jul 30, 2012

Mike C. said:
Well, no kidding... warehouse workers like the monotrol and Linde dual pedal setup. I'm sure for simply stacking pallets and unloading trucks they are great, but that's not what a typical shop uses a forklift for. If a dock worker drops a pallet, he just loads it back up and sends it on to the customer (as evidenced by a lot of machinery I have repaired due to damage in shipping). If you drop a 3,000lb assembly on your co-worker because the truck revved up in fwd when you tried to tilt the load up and instinctively stepped on the brake and got the rev pedal instead... As milacron said, they probably got them really cheap.

Actually, on the better forklifts, you have three pedals, left is brake/clutch, center is brake only. That's the easy way to have total control over movement. You can just ease your foot over to the center pedal while in gear and you are then able to load the drivetrain against the brake. No jerking or rolling back, takes all the slack out of the system for super precise movement when inching stuff into place.

It`s obvious you have not driven a Linde for any length of time,if at all.The transmission is independent of the revving caused by the lift and tilt levers.I used a ten tonne diesel Linde for years installing machinery and it`s the best truck I`ve ever had although I`ve had Hysters,Cats,Toyotas and loads of other makes.
The forklift creeps as slow as you want on the throttle and stops dead when you lift your foot irrespective of what you`re doing with the levers.Smaller tonnage models all worked the same way.
My first trip on a Monotrol was backwards through a closed door.First time I`d driven one and the brakes were u/s too.A new to it monotrol cured that.

Mark McGrath · Jul 30, 2012

digger doug;185073 IIRC I saw an older model with a dash mounted switch said:
It`s hydraulic not electric.There`s a small spool valve in the end of the pedal with three hoses on it.

DDoug · Jul 30, 2012

Mark McGrath said:
It`s hydraulic not electric.There`s a small spool valve in the end of the pedal with three hoses on it.

Aw shoot. well nuts to that idea. I figured it had an electric solenoid running the spool.

One thing that DID cause some grief, was the actual "snap" action of that pedal, so
the O.P. may need to lube/fix that. Having to "bang" that pedal to cause a shift
will sometimes cause problems.

One thing I don't like on the hysters....the single handle control for the forks.

Single handle is a good idea, if you could move it e-w as well as n-s, not
"n-s for up/down,go to center, go west thru pawl, commence n-s again for tilt"

Mike C. · Jul 30, 2012

"It`s obvious you have not driven a Linde for any length of time,if at all."

And it's obvious you have not run the machine I speak of. The Linde at the hydraulic shop works as you say, the dual pedal one was a different story. Trust me, that one did NOT regulate ground speed with the transmission independent of the engine speed. If you grabbed the tilt or lift lever while in motion, you took off like a shot.

Does anyone actually LIKE Hyster monotrol pedals?

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