What is a good skid steer
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Category: Allis Chalmers
Forum Name: Farm Equipment
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URL: https://www.allischalmers.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=51433
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Topic: What is a good skid steer
Posted By: Spud
Subject: What is a good skid steer
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2012 at 8:53pm
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I am looking for a good skid steer to load pipe and heavy objects, push snow, and move around gooseneck trailers. I don't know a lot about them. I see a lot of Bobcats out there so was leaning that way.
I found an 873 with 2000 hours for $16K. 1998 and enclosed cab. Are these a good unit to get assuming it is in good shape mechanically?
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Replies:
Posted By: AC WD45
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2012 at 9:01pm
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Bobcat. handles a 6ft 26" deep material bucket like nothing ------------- German Shepherd dad 1957 Allis Chalmers WD45 #WD234847 1951 Allis Chalmers WD #WD88193 |
Posted By: sparky
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2012 at 9:08pm
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I have a 751 that I bought new in 2000 and it has been a good machine. Took it to a friend once to clean chicken houses and it was only gone from my farm a couple of days and I missed it BAD! They are a very handy machine. A 873 is a horse and I'm partial to Bobcats for they are the oldest established skid steer company and have a great background. Everyone and everyone makes skidsteers now. I have a material bucket and a toothed digging bucket, a set of forks(handy) and a root/brush grapple(super handy) for mine. I think you will be satisfied with this machine. Good Luck. ------------- It's the color tractor my grandpa had! |
Posted By: Redwood
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2012 at 9:47pm
| I owned a John deere when they were made the same as the new holland. Nothing matchs it for visibililty, and the balance is good due to the way the bucket is mounted. You don't have the two towers at the back blocking you view. I was very happy with it. |
Posted By: Eldon (WA)
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2012 at 11:32pm
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I have a JD 7775 which is a rebadged NH and I love it. I bought it with over 3000 hours on it 4 years ago and it has been a dependable machine other than some electronic glitches. The Yanmar diesel starts easy in the cold and is very economical...the wheelbase is longer than a Bobcat, so it isn't as bouncy, but it does turn hard on pavement. The last Bobcat I rented had so many safety features and electronic controls that it could barely turn a 2' post hole auger...... ------------- ALLIS EXPRESS! This year: |
Posted By: Nathan (SD)
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 12:11am
| 35 or 40 series Gehl. I have used all others except NH. If you do your own maintenence, the Gehl really shines. We have had good luck with the Deutz oil cooled motors but some other people have had troubles. I like hand controls. I can't bend my ankles worth a darn and the manure and mud build up on and under foot pedals. Every company gives you just about every control configuration imaginable. I do believe that the Mustang is the only one that offers the T- handle though. |
Posted By: Matt (Jordan,MN)
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 2:03am
| I worked at a Bobcat dealer for 10 years. I have worked on them all and i liked Bobcat the best. All you need to do to service them is open the rear door or raise the boom put the boom stop in place and flip up the cab. You don't have to lay under them and remove a belly plate to drain the oil. If you have a dead battery again all you need to do is open the rear door and the battery is right there and easy to jump start. If i ever by a skid steer it wil be a Bobcat. The 873 are a very good machine. There was 1 owned by a pallet company that had around 20,000 hour on it. It wasn't the prettiest machine but it still was running. The 873 uses a oil cooled Duetz engine that has a timeing belt and they should be replace every few thousand hours. If the belt does break it does not harm anything major but does bend a few pushrods. Another thing that they like to do is blow out the head gasket. It seams that they only do this with the factory gasket and not the replacement. Here again it does not harm anything but it will smoke alot since your burning engine oil. Matt |
Posted By: B26240
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 6:58am
| Spud -- Bobcat's are made right there in Gwinner N.D. |
Posted By: MBWisc
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 7:45am
| Gehl and NH. |
Posted By: Coke-in-MN
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 8:12am
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There is not a better balanced machine that the NH . Looked at a lot of machines and when I bought my first one was a NH785 with the Perkins engine . Ran that for 5 to 6 years with only one pump needing work. Replaced it with a JD of same style and was a total move backwards as the JD balance was different and in sand was useless. Lift height on the NH was the biggest advantage as had higher reach to load over side of trucks.Balance with a lifting load did not cause front end to tip forward. With the new so called universal mount system most attachments interchange between different mfg now which is a advantage for versatile finding of attachments to work between machines. If your going to be doing more than a couple different things look for a quick attach system so as you do not have to get out of machine to change implements. If you need attachments check sons page i have listed of his custom built things for skidloaders . ------------- Faith isn't a jump in the dark. It is a walk in the light. Faith is not guessing; it is knowing something. "Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful." |
Posted By: Spud
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 8:31am
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I have been told that the New Hollands get a lot of "slap" in them as they age because of so many pieces to the lift mechanism. Is there any truth in that? It would be used a lot on dry cement floors so the longer wheelbase of the NH might make it skid harder.
The Bobcats are popular around here. It probably helps that they are built in the state as one poster said.
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Posted By: StewartMD
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 9:24am
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Spud, We have a NH 555 Deluxe. They do have the longer wheel base, but not sure how it compares to other skidloaders on dry cement. Ours spends most of it's time in the barnyard scraping manure. They are nicer to load trucks because your booms move straight up allowing you to dump towards the center of the truck or manure spreader. For the slop in the pins.....if you keep them greased you won't have much problems....i think alot of times poor maintenance is the reason.
One thing to keep in mind...not sure how much driving around you will be doing....but ground speeds and boom and bucket speeds vary greatly between all brands and models so test driving a few different brands and models is well worth it. ------------- 8030, 8010, 220, 185, 160, D-17, WD, Unstyled WC, CA, G, 20-35, Gleaner E |
Posted By: Stan IL&TN
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 9:26am
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I was able to borrow a JD 7775 to move some gravel around and inside the barn. I thought it was better than sliced bread. After doing the gravel I was looking for other stuff to pick up or push. I was a little kid in a candy store. Only other time I had more fun was when I drove dad's new 7045. ------------- 1957 WD45 dad's first AC 1968 one-seventy 1956 F40 Ferguson |
Posted By: chevy436
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 9:38am
| I have a case 2004 60xt now has 3000hrs on it. has a 4b3.9cummins engine. The machine has been trouble free and I really like it. with pallet forks I can lift 2000lbs on a skid.I tried a john deere 320 demo a few years ago and didnt like it hydrolics were noisy and seemed gutless. have heard of electrical and engine problems. just my 2cents |
Posted By: DREAM
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 9:41am
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I have a Gehl CTL 60. Tracked machine, so it's not going to work for you on concrete. I think it is a great machine for dirt work. Yanmar water cooled diesel. Plenty of HP, and tracks give it great ground pressure to move a lot of dirt fast. It's also a two speed machine. If it were me, I would definitely get a two speed, as it will save you some time moving from place to place. Also would go with the full joystick controls in whatever you chose. They are much easier to operate and less fatigue on your feet/ankles than the stick steer with foot controls. Had a Bobcat 773 before this one, and it was a world of difference. Good luck. ------------- I didn't do it! It was a short, fat, tall, skinny guy that looked like me! |
Posted By: sparky
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 12:22pm
The bobcat's worked better for us in the chicken houses because the bucket raised higher per the boom height which was beneficial with the feeders and waterers winched up in the low ceiling houses. With that said,ALL skidsteers are a h---l of a lot better than a scoop shovel and wheelbarrow!! ------------- It's the color tractor my grandpa had! |
Posted By: D17 owner
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 12:34pm
| I own a gehl 3510 I like that it old thow. We have a gehl 7810 at work that is nice to with a high/low in it. I ran a cat 226 witch I loved that all joy stick I also like case controls. I hate foot controls. I do like a foot throtle. Jd just dont do it for me father inlaw has a 320 with cab. I hate it, it's hard getting in and out of it. The door folds inside witch is a pain I just dont like them. He has a bobcat A300 with is in the shop more then the farm. Well good luck with whatever you buy. |
Posted By: Coke-in-MN
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 12:35pm
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Trick to any skid loader is to have something to skid on , a little sand or dirt on the surface to break the traction some. NH is a longer set on wheels but nothing lacking in handling and a lot gained in stability. I tried several machines on demo on one job site , had 5 different machines delivered and jumped from one to the other doing work. The cat machine with tracks was great but price ruled it out. Tracks are great if you work in rough areas as they smooth out the bumps and jars. For putting in drainfields the skid loader worked great but when it came to mound septic systems needed tracks of some type to keep from compaction . When I just used the HD5G as was cheaper than buying tracks for the NH. ------------- Faith isn't a jump in the dark. It is a walk in the light. Faith is not guessing; it is knowing something. "Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful." |
Posted By: dscott
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 11:11pm
| I have ran several different machines and own a bobcat 863 and a new holland lx 865. Rated 1900# for the 863 and 2100# 865 and are good machines but each have the strong points the new holland will lift 4000 # before its gets so lite in the rear you can;t use it. The 863 does 2500# before it goes nose down. The bobcat is 18 inches shorter, and is more nimble. So I guess what I'm sayin is you need to know what you are gonna do with it.................When worked hard all day both use approx. the same amount of fuel. |
Posted By: dscott
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2012 at 11:14pm
| Its a good idea to stay away from any of them that have had tracks and polyfilled tires on them. Super hard on the case chains. |
Posted By: SHAMELESS
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2012 at 1:52am
| i don't own one...but have driven several...spent alot of time tipping forward ina bobcat...NH....seemed the most stable....neighbor had a JD and he kept having to replace engine mounts in it, he got rid of it and bought a case...that was a night/day difference to the better! i hear from alot of const people they like the gehl's the best, but i think they have quit making them! |
Posted By: DougG
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2012 at 5:54am
| New Holland, the best - John Deere copied them,, |
Posted By: jjpetrich
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2012 at 7:14am
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Bobcat has more of the important engine parts right where the back opens up which makes them eaiser to work on. ------------- On the farm wd,wd45,180,200,7020,8010,8050,f,L2,2 b engines |
Posted By: Brian S(NY)
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2012 at 7:25am
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I rented a Bobcat once and really liked the hand controls. I used a NH with footcontrols on the farm (LS 180?) and it was OK but didnt like the foot controls because it was always packed full of manure. also the NH sucked when loading a spreader with manure because when you raised the bucket half of it would fall over the back of the bucket and land in the operator station. ------------- God made man.Sam colt made man equal. |
Posted By: Brian S(NY)
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2012 at 7:28am
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by the way.. just like compact trators they all seem to hold their value well. The local hardware store guy bought a Gehl 12 yrs ago for 38000./ he just traded it in last week and they allowed him 30000. pretty good investment. ------------- God made man.Sam colt made man equal. |
Posted By: Jordan(OH)
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2012 at 9:43am
| Another NH vote. It's not very hard to tip the bucket forward while raising if the manure is spilling on you. My Bobcat experience also is they like to tip. |
Posted By: HagerAC
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2012 at 12:29pm
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Our old NH 783 is a beast of a machine. What ever you do, do not, buy a JD 320. As mentioned earlier they are complete junk. We have one where I work and it is the most gutless wonder in the world, and it constantly overheats. ------------- 30+ A-Cs ranging from a 1928 20-35, to a 1984 8070FWA, Gleaner R52 |
Posted By: dscott
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2012 at 5:22pm
You wouldn't say that if you had to put a pump drive and cooling fan belt on the 863 or come to thing the darn battery is a real pain to change as well. Case chain renewal is again less then a good time.
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jjpetrich wrote:Posted By: dscott
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2012 at 5:28pm
Sounds like operator error to me. My NH doesn't have the bucket postioning feature that the Bobcat has but I have no trouble with material falling in the cab unless I severly overfill the bucket.
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Posted By: ironac
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2012 at 1:17am
| Got a JD 7775 which is basically a NH but anyways love it to death. Also have a White 4-25-L that is used to get into small buildings and such. Works great! |
Posted By: BennyLumpkin
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2012 at 9:19am
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I've had two Bobcats and hate both....had nothing but problems.....blew the motor in my current one at 1000 hours. Dropped a liner and grenaded the Duetz. Not a cheap fix. ------------- Central PA Allis Express 1934 WC254 1945 WF 1945 WC135755 1951 WD68085 1953 WD45-150217 1957 WD45D-230744D B110 |
Posted By: NEJim
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2012 at 9:21am
| I've had a Bobcat 610, 873, and 2 S250's over the years. I wouldn't have anything else. |
Posted By: 67olds
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2012 at 9:49am
| I really like working on the case. I have ran an 1845C and 75X, the controls are a little nicer in the 1845, but just about everything else is better in the 75. I dont like the bobcats i have run because of the foot controls. Gehls are very tough machines. I also dont like CATs just because of the joystick control but the power from that machine was really amazing. Ive heard nothing but bad things about JD as far as reliability goes. The case machines are the ones where i have the most experience. Very dependable. |
Posted By: 67olds
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2012 at 9:52am
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Posted By: 67olds
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2012 at 9:53am
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Posted By: Steve-Ohio
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2012 at 3:44pm
| Have owned two New Hollands and they have been great, highly recommend them! |
Posted By: JohnCO
Date Posted: 05 Jun 2012 at 12:27am
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I've got to put in a good word for JCB Robots. They are the ones with only one lift arm so you can get in from the side. The latest models are really easy to enter and exit, my 185 has a bit of a step up and back down but still easier then climbing over the loader bucket. The 185 has a Perkins 72 Hp engine, the newer ones have a JCB made turbo diesel. Balance is quite good, handles a 1.3 yd bucket with compost, too big for dirt. The 3/4 yd bucket is fine. JCB is a family owned business in England but some of their equipment is built in the US. I bought mine as a repo from an ethanol plant in Minn for $10,000 with 1100 hr. ------------- "If at first you don't succeed, get a bigger hammer" Allis Express participant |
Posted By: Butch(OH)
Date Posted: 05 Jun 2012 at 6:30am
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A skid steer loader is a pretty basic piece in reality. Diesel engines by X, Y or Z. Hydraulics by X or Y. Yes there are boom differances and self leveling linkages but what I am getting to here is buy one that is worn out or abused and all brands are junkers. Treat it like POS and they all break and cause heart burn. We are chronic cheap skates when it comes to such but when we were shopping we shopped condition/size and price with no band bias and ended up with a 2000 2040 Mustang a couple years ago for a song. It has done everything we asked of it. We put a 100 or so hours year on it and we have had zero problems with it. The Bobcat snobs turn up thier collective noses at such as they are a basic unit as skid steers go but that is just fine with me, I dont make a living inside of it I just want it to start and operate when I hop in it. Ours has a fully enclosed cab which is nice for pushing snow and has been converted to the universal qucik attach, which is nessisary IMO as is the third valve we have. I agree with one of the other posters about attachments. If a person "needs" a skidsteer he needs to own a bucket, forks and a grapple. Everything else we rent for cheap when we need it. We gave $4500, I dont have to take in work to make the paymemts, LOL |
Posted By: Scott(GA)
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2012 at 9:40pm
Never mind the skid steers...
What's the story with the L-29?
Best regards,
Scott
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Posted By: LNG Luke
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2012 at 9:59pm
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A CAT with pilot controls is a nice one, one hand dose forward reverse left right and one is a joystick control for the bucket. I run heavy equiptment for a living and this is what I prefer to run you can do some real fine grading with one and if your driving it down the road you only need one hand if u get one with the two speed in it it is real nice for moving snow too |
Posted By: 67olds
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2012 at 10:17pm
that's my girlfriends dads. We were moving it out of the barn where it has been for quite a few years. Yes he has a jet next to his tractors. Haha
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Posted By: Moonlighter
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2012 at 7:12am
| I would recommend New holland or the 4 digit Deere machines have ran several myself grew up in the midwest working on several large dairy farms and tried most models and I would say the NH and deeres were best. The one large farm had 3 machines that worked almost around the clock it seemed like and in rough conditions they were 4 digit deere machines, talked to the owner a couple years ago and they added on some newer deere machines and started having serious problems at 2000-4000hours where the older ones didn't have issues till about 8-9000 hours. He wishes they still made good machines and will rebuild the old ones when it is time |
Posted By: ACFarmer
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2012 at 12:26pm
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New Holland hands down.... ------------- Making A living everyday farming with and working on Allis Equipment |
Posted By: TedBuiskerN.IL.
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2012 at 7:18pm
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If you value your knees, stay away from the Bobcat foot controls. Most farmers who have used them for years are looking forward to knee replacements. Get a Gehl. ------------- Most problems can be solved with the proper application of high explosives. |
Posted By: joshjohndeere
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2012 at 8:15pm
| i am a john deere tech and have ran new hollands and bobcats and gehls and deeres. i would go for the gehl first the new holland second and deere third. i dont like bobcats they tip too easy especially when u have no bucket or pallet forks on them they are just too tippy for me. as for deere everyone on here was talking about 320 deeres being crap i would agree because every dealer pushed them and they were a small frame machine hat everyone thought was big. the new D series is very awesome and technician friendly but i still prefer the gehls and newhollands.. my preference on the gehls is the 7600, 7800, 7810, and 7610's.. the other series in gehls dont have the strecthed out wheel base that i like. my only problems with new hollands is the motors in the older ones didnt have the greatest longevity that they should. |