Hi All! New member here who recently bought a 753. Its really clean, good pins and bushings, two buckets, good paint, runs great, starts good, etc. 2556 hrs. I bought it for $9K, with the thought that it was a good deal. I decided to service it yesterday, as all the filters (Bobcat brand) were changed at 2403 hrs / September 2010. So I changed the oil and fuel filter. The hydraulic filter was changed at the same time in Sept. As I looked at it though, its apparent (my father's opinion too) that the engine has been recently changed with a new one (Kubota 2203), probably at the time of the last service. It runs and starts just like a new engine too. The machine is so clean though, that I did not really notice the difference in the engine vs the rest of the machine. I think I count that as a win. The bad part is I found some cracking in the boom at the boom crossmember/tilt cylinder mount. They are on both sides, top of crossmember, right where the steel radius attached to each main boom. I can't tell if this is just cracked paint or cracked steel, but I will investigate it further. Is this common? The rest of the machine is not beat up at all. This machine was bought to help me start a small, part time mowing/skidsteer service next year. Did I make a mistake. BTW - I practiced a little around our shop. Getting better, but I'm used to running a conventional wheel loader or tractor loader. The foot controls and hand controls are bought to get used to.
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SkidRoe
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- Dec 10, 2009
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Hi and welcome crashz, boom cracks are not that unusual. They can happen for a variety of reasons, breakers are notorious for this. Excavate the crack and weld it up is the best remedy. Otherwise, it sounds like you have a pretty tidy machine. Don't worry about learning the controls, practice makes perfect. We all started where you are now. Before you know it, the skidsteer will feel like an extension of your body.
nobull1
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- Jan 4, 2007
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I have a 97 763 that I purchased about 6 years ago and it had a repaired boom at that time. It appears to be a normal thing for that design, and mine has never caused me any grief. Sounds like a good machine that should serve you well. Brian
Thanks guys! And thanks to the mods who put a title to my thread here! I'll practice a bit more this winter and get it welded up this spring. Seems like its a decent machine, and I'm looking forward to using it!
mahans7
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- Aug 22, 2012
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Welcome crashz. Can you take before and after pictures of the suspected cracked areas. I'm kind of curious and end up learning a bunch in the process. Thanks.
Ed
My T-200 had a really nasty set of cracks in the center of the arms, by the mount for the tilt cylinder. It had been welded all over. I was concerned because I thought I saw some side to side movement when using the corners of the bucket. I have visions of it falling apart. Last spring I had the arms taken off and the center with new steel. They did a beautiful job. I feel better because I don't worry about the arms collapsing, but it doesn't feel any different. There's still a little wobble when working the arms hard, probably due to slop in the pins. I suspect those arms can take a lot.
7LBSSMALLIE
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- Feb 2, 2012
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seen cracks before and will see em again. nature of beast. i am a proffensiol heavy equip tech, but not a welder yes i can weld. (and not bad at it) this is the time to call in the dude that does this for a living,( i farm it out) a> they are stupid good at it, b. they been there done it got the plates on the truck. liabilty, they are insured,c .never had to chase there work. not once;; they a little crazy about that, as in no one will ever have to come in behind me to fix my work. GOD BLESS EM> yea it will cost but will be fixed once and fixed right,(they do put there name on on it as owenership of repairs) thats why a good welder dude is indespenable, fixed once fixed right problem put to bed,
Ducaticorse
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- Sep 20, 2012
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What year is the machine? 9K is a tad high for those hours I would think... Anyway, I had a good amount of welding done on my 753 with 1600hrs on it YESTERDAY. It was in rough shape, (demo machine with extensive breaker use) and I had a legitimate heavy equipment welding specialist come to my place to work on it. He laughed at me and said it was common, and not to worry about it. He dug out the factory welds and laid new bead and promised that it was now stronger than when it came out of the factory. As someone mentioned above, don't half ass the repairs. Take it to a reputable heavy equipment welding specialist....
I know of a few welders that I can have work on it. These guys weld up heavy equipment exclusively. I'll need to prep it first by removing the hydraulic lines to the tilt cylinder and auxiliary ports before anything can be ground out. I'll do the bulk of the prep work and then have one of my friends take the repair from there. Glad to hear that its common, but I'm a little bummed about it. The seller buys and re-sells these units from a local Bobcat dealer. I think he buys all of their wholesale equipment, fixes them up and sells them. This particular unit was from a construction company that apparently took good care of their equipment. I think the selling price is a bit high, but in this area anything less buys a lot more work. I looked at a S150 with twice the hours, but is was beat up really bad. Loose pins, back cover all smashed, cracked and repaired loader arms, etc. But it was cheap. The 753 looked to be much better. The 753 also had two buckets, a full cab and heat. I'll get photos up of the machine and of the cracks as soon as I can.
