Bobcat 853 The Oppositelock Review

"unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)" (unclevanos)
03/11/2015 at 19:10 • Filed to: Bobcat

It’s diesel, all wheel drive, and weighs more than a pickup truck. Did I mention it is a diesel?!

[ full disclosure - Bobcat produced this machine years ago so that I can operate it to clean snow and freeze my ass off.]

The Bobcat skid steer is a well known machine that dates back to the M60 loader of the late 1950s. The Bobcat has taken the Jeep wrangler approach through out its evolution. For instance, the post 2000 models have heat, a/c, doors, and addresses the NVH issues (optional). If you need a machine that can accomplish your contracting/farming business while suffering in the weather, this is the one you need.

Exterior 5/10

It is white and allows it to be seen in working conditions. It is a homely looking machine, there is nothing captivating about its design. There is no Hoffmeister kink, mean drunk tail lights, nor flared quarter panels. It is just a machine with many functions in mind. Almost all Bobcats have a functional look. It’s not going to win best show from the guys of cars and coffee. The roll over protection prevents you on being the front cover of Tractor Roll Over Magazine.

Interior 4/10

I only took one picture of the 853 so here is something I dug up from the internet

It has a seat, a throttle control, foot pedals to control the bucket/arm, and the two sticks. There is a safety bar to prevent the machine from creeping and holding you in place after hitting a collar on a manhole. The throttle has the settings of turtle slow to distance runner sprinting fast. Control and direction of the Bobcat are guided with the two sticks like a tank. Full aft forward of the sticks makes you go forward. You get the idea. A gauge cluster hangs at the top of the cabin.

Gearbox 7/10

It is a hydrostatic transmission that delivers the traction through chain drive. So it is only two speeds which are reverse and forward. If you wanted a manual transmission on this, you are nuts. This transmission endures a lot of work from the machine so I give a bonus in points for it. It’s not triptronic steptronic crap so if you’re looking for this on a skidsteer you’re asking too much or should ask Ferrari to build you one.

Ride and Handling 0/10

LOL. It won’t oversteer around a bend but it will turn on its own axis.

Toys 0/10

ROFL You’re kidding me right?

Audio 5/10

I like the sound of a four pot Kubota diesel, it sounds angry. Giving it full throttle sounds like it is about to shoot a rod out the block. The benefit from all the noise is that you can’t hear what the outside world is doing. So you can either sing Radiohead to yourself without looking like an oddball or curse the damn ice forming on the road. Also at idle, you can’t really hear what your boss is saying.

Practicality 9/10

It has the length of a classic mini and fits onto a trailer with ease. It weighs 6500lbs and fits in the smallest of spaces with its skid steer turns. The bucket can scoop and pile any material with no problem. I love the practicality of the Bobcat and can go on about it.

Acceleration 9/10

This Kubota engine has guts. If you goose the throttle and slam the stick forward hard enough, the Bobcat can do a wheelie and all of your NHRA drag race wheelies will be lived. Actually no I don’t recommend this and assume no legal responsibilities. Ir’s quick for a 6500lb object that is made of pure steel. Horsepower isn’t the end goal here but torque is needed.

Comfort 2/10

It has a seat that I can sit and feel no shakes. The no heater option and no door on the Bobcat really take a toll on you when you operate in those conditions. You can fart in the cabin with no repercussions, so at least that is a viable option. The vibration of the machine isn’t bad but the windows rattle due to it.

Value 10/10

Yes it has better resale than your MOAB ready 1999 Wrangler painted primer with obvious Bondo patches even though you are asking 15,000 firm on Craigslist...and it is a 2.5L for further insult. This machine has great resale value especially if you are willing to un-mothball an example like this one which sat in neglect for sometime. You can make a profit by renting it out or doing clean up for example. Parts are expensive and obtained through no nonsense dealers, but its a price you have to pay for a machine of this caliber. Also what other machine can accomplish this:

Maybe other skidsteers, but this is a Bobcat verdammt!

Subtotal 51

Yes I can count and which amazes me even further. Overall the Bobcat 853, is a great skid steer for its practicality and its attitude of function over form. There are other skid steer brands that are better but I haven’t operated them, only bobcats so I can’t tell you how a John Deere is better. I’ll give it 9 extra points for being a diesel since Oppo likes compression ignition engines a lot

Final score 70/100 Or Equivalent to 9.5/10 on a IGN rating.

It’s like Skyrim but with diesel skidsteers.

Specs

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DISCUSSION (14)

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)
03/11/2015 at 19:26

A Bobcat 853 is the reason I quit my last job. I work for Pirtek, we do onsite hydraulic hose repair. At the end of the day they sent me out to New Hampshire (I live in Rhode Island) for a busted hydraulic line on one of these. There were a bunch that are easy to do...anything on the arm, most of the ones in the engine compartment. But not this one. No, it's the one in the bottom row of the block all the way in the back of the compartment. And it was backed up to a pile of snow, so I had to do the job while kneeling on a snow bank. The next day I went in and gave my two weeks notice. They ended up keeping me on in a different job, but yeah, I hate working on Bobcats.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
03/11/2015 at 19:36

Yeah the transverse engine is hard to work on. There is a 743B I operate dubbed "Frankenstein", the Kubota engine crapped out so my Dad put a 2.2 Isuzu diesel out of a thermo king into it. So now the engine is longitudinal and way too much HP for the little 743, but easy to work on. It has the electric cooling fan out of a Mercedes, a radiator from god knows what, the safety bar from another bobcat, and lights from a forklift. The damn thing thing is 10x more reliable than the kubota. For instance the isuzu doesn't complain to start in 15F weather while the 853 struggles.

MrDakka > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)
03/11/2015 at 19:40

I take it that it has no suspension other than the seat and your ass?

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)
03/11/2015 at 19:41

Sweet lord. We had an ancient 743 at one place I worked and it was unspeakably light on its front wheels already. Would pop a wheelie like nothing else - and you gave it more power ? On the other hand, the 753 and 7753 were very tractable and mannerly, as was the T180.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > MrDakka
03/11/2015 at 19:43

It's just the seat and your gluteus maximus.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
03/11/2015 at 19:50

The Kubota rebuild kit was out of the question in pricing. My dad had an SB2 Max laying around, and we didn't know how powerful it was until it bucked at 30% throttle. I think of the 853 as a ballerina when it operates, the 743 is a brute.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)
03/11/2015 at 19:53

I still remember one time after I gave that 743 a wash I started to take it up a hill and went into simple harmonic motion against the sticks. Wham-wham-wham'ed myself in the chest about 3 times. I can haz wheelie bars?

edu-petrolhead > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)
03/13/2015 at 12:52

Thanks for increasing my desire of driving one of these by a thousand-fold.

Everytime I see one I think about the endless hooning possibilities.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > edu-petrolhead
03/14/2015 at 00:28

They're simple to operate, just don't slam into a building while hooning.

thebigbossyboss > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)
03/14/2015 at 14:07

How did I miss this? Well done well done. I think with the Bobcat though when you scored ride and handling 0 you made a mistake. "ride" yes. But handling...can't it turn itself around the spot?? Turning radius better than original mini warrants at least a 2. :D

thebigbossyboss > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
03/14/2015 at 14:07

You can haz chest compression.

thebigbossyboss > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)
03/14/2015 at 14:08

always sound advice.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > thebigbossyboss
03/14/2015 at 14:18

this got buried in save Clarkson posts, so many people didn't read this I think. You can't oversteer nor apex a Bobcat so I gave it a 0 for as a joke.

thebigbossyboss > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)
03/14/2015 at 17:14

I have never driven one but I aspire to someday!! You can't apex it...but you can do donuts. Many many donuts!