Bobcat 553 Drive Motor

[Cjryland]

Hello all. Need some help. After several months it dawned on me that my hydraulic fluid magically disappearing wasn't leaking onto the ground. I removed 16 gallons of oil and fluid from the chaincase. I found the left drive motor has a serious leak. Upon removing the motor I found that the shaft itself cannot be turned by hand. Is this normal? Am I putting a bandaid on a major wound by replacing the seals on the drive motor but not addressing the hard turning motor? Thanks all. Appreciate the replies. Also, if I must replace the motor has anyone very rebuilt one themselves?

 

[Tazza]

A good hydro motor will not be able to be turned by hand, they are meant to be tight.
Not sure if your model has case drain filters, i didn't think it did. It it does, check that they are not plugged, if they get plugged, they can cause excessive back pressure and push past the seals.
What style drive motor do you have, does the shaft have a seal on it? or does the end have a gear and sort of flops around?
If it flops around, there is no shaft seal on the motor, the seal is on the motor carrier, these do go bad and cause leakage into the chain case.