Ok, I have a couple of what may be basic questions. So I recently aquired a bobcat 953 and have been working it lightly probably about 30 hours in the last month. The other day I found out the hard way that the fuel gage does not go below 1/4 and found myself dead on a dirt road. I refueled and got it to start and have run it for about two hours since. Tonight it stalled again and wont turn over, it sounds like it is getting fuel and spark but it wont turn over. I had to drag it back into my driveway. Is there anyway to unlock the parking brake once the machine is off? In all of my time operating bobcats I have never had one break down in the field, twice in the yard and once in a driveway neither time did I need to move them before the mechanic got it going. I hope the not starting is just related to the running it dry, which I still cant get over that I did. I can just hear my first bosses voice in my head calling me an idiot :Banghead
there wont be any spark as it is a diesel engine next the breaks on those are hyd brakes like the track machines they don't have a brake wedge and coil like on the 863 s300 250 185 and so on in the wheeled machines so basically you can just drag them around and it really wont hurt anything the fuel systems on those you bleed through the 2 fuel filters they have bleeder valves on the tops of them after you ge the air out of those you can just pump it up and if you can get 2 people there one can crank and the other can pump on the primer bulb to get the rest of the air out
From owning one for years I can tell you the 953 is absolutely one of the worse machines EVER to bleed. Every fuel filter change is a trauma. There is no hand pump and you basically have to crank it till fuel starts to come out the bleeders. We sometimes crack the injector lines if it's being particularly stubborn. I had the dealer do it once and watched to see if I could learn a better way. The tech just cranked it until the starter was almost smoking. Running it dry is worse because everything is dry.
It's a PIA to unlock the brakes-I have used a port-a-power pump teed into the brake line for this and other models. Unless you're going to do it a lot, it may be more set-up than you want to get into. Another PIA is, as you know, bleeding a Perkins. It helps to have connected a battery charger and a remote start switch. Lift as much as you can with the manual pump, then it seems you still need to bleed the injection lines while cranking. And after you bleed every one, it still dosen't start and you have to start over. Very hard on the starter, unless you're patient and let it cool down between cranking attepmts. For me, it was always around the time that I thought there MUST be something wrong with the injection system or compression that it finally started. I was always amazed that a Perkins engine is so hard to bleed but also seems to fire right up when it's freezing.
hmm, the last sunday went dry on one of my harvesters which has 208 Perkins. i knew its low on fuel, but thought it will make back, and right at the last turn it died. so some pumping, a little bit of cranking (still dead), another attempt at pumping and seconds later it started right up. did not even open bleeder, as its right below red hot exhaust. dunno, 208 is an oldie, but seemed an easy start
Our 953 is an early one. Maybe they put a primer pump on the later serial nos. Ours never had one and it's not in the parts books that I've seen. Also there is only one fuel filter on the engine. The primary filter is an automotive style inline under the deck. This filter is easily forgotten, might be a place to look if your not getting good fuel delivery. When you change that filter the fuel line drains out and makes it even harder.
If memory serves, your primer is the manual lever on the bottom of the lift pump, opposite the block of the injection pump. There is no bobcat standard rubber squeeze bulb on your machine. I think........=)
You all are right, what a pain to bleed. I will try to never let that happen again. The machine is new to me and now I know that the fuel gauge is not totally accurate.
I really didn't mean to hijack the thread and it sounds like Guyute has the little lever. Ours doesn't. I know what you're talking about as our 943 had that set up. You could just barely snake your arm past the end of the engine and wiggle it. Never very handy but it did work.