Advice on Older Skid Loader Purchase

[Shaneard]

I had a Case 1845C, 4 cylinder Cummins diesel. It was a tough machine. 1989 model, kept it 10 years and sold it for more than I paid for it. If you can find an older Case they are good machines.

 

[TBigLug]

I had a 753 that was a nice, low hour (~2000) machine. I had two buckets for it, but the larger one (66") was in better shape, so I used that exclusively.

The good:
- Easy to transport, was only about 5K pounds.
- Was very well taken care of by previous owner
- Full cab with heat
- Ran and operated perfectly, looked great with a more modern paint job too
- Only $9,000
- More power than traction or ballast

The bad:
- VERY tippy front to back. When the bucket was off, it wanted to roll back on the slightest incline. With attachment on the front, it will roll forward easily. On my hills in NY, it was next to useless.
- Foot controls are a pain to get use to. I finally mastered them and then got rid of the machine.
- You cannot get out of the cab until the boom is down. Makes working by yourself a pain if you are lift objects with a chain or something.
- While my machine was in good shape, I did have electrical issues. Most were easily fixed, but my machine had a early version of electronic controls/gauges that are known to cause major issues. Later model 753 went to a more simple set-up. Avoid the old ones with digital LED displays.
- My L2501 is more stable and lifts about the same in the loader. The only thing I gave up was better grading ability with the SS.

Best of luck. Be patient and you'll find a decent machine. I found mine through a local dealer that auctions their old machines to a private re-seller. Try going through those guys and see what you can find.

Thank you for those insights. I wondered about maneuvering from attachment to attachment with nothing on the front. Or just a bale spear. I do have pretty hilly ground. The whole property (lol all 9 acres) is the South slope of a hill.

I looked at an 873 with the extended wheelbase and thought that would be nicer.

 

[TBigLug]

I have been messaging back and forth with a guy who has what sounds like a Gehl 6625. Any experience with these machines? At the top of my bidget but comes with a pair of buckets, extra weight kit, forks and a backhoe attachment (which I would need as much as the SS itself). How hard would ot be to find attachments set up for the Gehl system? I would need to add a bale spear and post hole digger. I couldn't just rent a PHD with a Gehl attachment.

 

[laurencen]

does the Gehl use the same universal attachment other machines have< I use my attachments as hole digger, buckets and trencher on a Deer skidsteer no issues, on the other hand multi attachments such as grader, V plow and snowblower need the communication port to control the valves and may not work

 

[TBigLug]

This model year Gehl I believe uses a Gehl specific style instead of the universal.

 

[crashz]

Ask the seller about the controls too. I think depending on the year and options Gehls could be had with the T - bar handle and foot controls. Personally, I'm not a fan of the T bar style.

I thought all skid-steers had the same quick attach set-up?

Edit - I see they had a different style now.

 

[4570Man]

Ask the seller about the controls too. I think depending on the year and options Gehls could be had with the T - bar handle and foot controls. Personally, I'm not a fan of the T bar style.

I thought all skid-steers had the same quick attach set-up?

Edit - I see they had a different style now.

The T handle Gehls aren’t bad. That’s the earlier version of the modern joystick controls. The old skid steers with foot pedals and hand sticks really suck.