What is The Best Mid-Size Skid Steer?
- Thread starter cyclone88
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scootr
Elite Member
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2022
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- 4,917
- Location
- Temecula California
- Tractor
- Kubota MX5200 HST, 773 Bobcat, Cat forklift
Bobcat 773 is so very handy. Makes a great second tractor. Recently got a SSQA receiver hitch attachment on sale at Titan. Used the SS to dig out a little parking space next to a garage that was built into a slope yrs ago. And placed the cargo trailer ( now mostly used for storage) into the new spot using the 773.
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My recommendation is that you purchase a well-maintained bobcat loader. You can check the Bobcat 773 and 873. Here are links to features I found on the Web for you.
Bobcat 873 Specs, Weight, Horsepower, Lift Capacity - Skidsteers.NET
Bobcat 773 Specs, Weight, Horsepower, Lift Capacity - Skidsteers.NET
Good luck.
Bobcat 873 Specs, Weight, Horsepower, Lift Capacity - Skidsteers.NET
Bobcat 773 Specs, Weight, Horsepower, Lift Capacity - Skidsteers.NET
Good luck.
Hay Dude
Super Star Member
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- Aug 28, 2012
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- 18,046
- Tractor
- Challenger MT655E, Massey Ferguson 7495, Challenger MT535B, Krone 4x4 XC baler, (2) Kubota ZD331’s, 2020 Ram 5500 Cummins 4x4, IH 7500 4x4 dump truck, Kaufman 35’ tandem 19 ton trailer, Deere CX-15, Pottinger Hay mowers
I spent 2 hours stuck in a skid steer cab in 40* weather with a t-shirt on.
I was clearing brush on a hillside. Fuel level was reading 1/4-1/3 tank. Apparently, the fuel system didn’t like sideways slopes and the machine starved for fuel with the brush cutter and loader arms blocking the cab door.
I tried to restart it but it wouldn’t.
Called a repairman/friend to come get me after about an hour stuck out in the middle of nowhere in the cab with the sun setting.
Then I realized there was enough battery power to turn on key, crank engine, and push pilot control down at same time to lower the loader arms and I could escape. I didn’t realize the pilots would just barely work enough to operate the hydraulics on the engine starter motor. By the time I got the arms out of the way of the door, the battery was dead.
Next day it wouldn’t run. We didn’t know why. We replaced the electric fuel pump. Still wouldn’t run. Then we added about 10 gallons of fuel and it fired right up. I think the fuel gauge was incorrectly calibrated or the fuel pickup was stuck on the high side of the tank.
I continue to rent them, but that day is stuck in my mind forever. Those cabs seem awful tiny when you can’t get out of them.
I was clearing brush on a hillside. Fuel level was reading 1/4-1/3 tank. Apparently, the fuel system didn’t like sideways slopes and the machine starved for fuel with the brush cutter and loader arms blocking the cab door.
I tried to restart it but it wouldn’t.
Called a repairman/friend to come get me after about an hour stuck out in the middle of nowhere in the cab with the sun setting.
Then I realized there was enough battery power to turn on key, crank engine, and push pilot control down at same time to lower the loader arms and I could escape. I didn’t realize the pilots would just barely work enough to operate the hydraulics on the engine starter motor. By the time I got the arms out of the way of the door, the battery was dead.
Next day it wouldn’t run. We didn’t know why. We replaced the electric fuel pump. Still wouldn’t run. Then we added about 10 gallons of fuel and it fired right up. I think the fuel gauge was incorrectly calibrated or the fuel pickup was stuck on the high side of the tank.
I continue to rent them, but that day is stuck in my mind forever. Those cabs seem awful tiny when you can’t get out of them.
Last edited:
dirttoys
Platinum Member
I have a 773 and can confirm it is a solid reliable machine, even once it is worn out
Best,
ed
Hmmm...I wonder if OP ever found a machine? $15k budget is tight, but you can find a decent machine for that.
I picked up a Case 75XT with 1,000hrs on it just over a year ago for under $19k...from a dealer, so private party sales could be lower.
Lots of hate for wheeled machines I'm reading. Most seem like scare tactics. Burning alive in one? Getting stuck? Flipping over? LoL Common sense can avoid all of that. I dig rocks out of the ground on a hillside at home. Zero issues with tipping.
I picked up a Case 75XT with 1,000hrs on it just over a year ago for under $19k...from a dealer, so private party sales could be lower.
Lots of hate for wheeled machines I'm reading. Most seem like scare tactics. Burning alive in one? Getting stuck? Flipping over? LoL Common sense can avoid all of that. I dig rocks out of the ground on a hillside at home. Zero issues with tipping.
That picture is badly photoshopped (fake)