Bobcat 825, Weak forward on left side.

[soupsandwhich]

Just bought this a few months ago just as something to help with a few projects around the property. Bought it with the knowledge that it had some issues and I have been able to work through the easy ones, bad fuel lines, new battery etc...

However its doesnt really want to move forward with the left joystick it will go in reverse on the left side pretty easily. I have to push it all the way or rock it in order to get anywhere with it and even then best I get is a crawl. And the right side works great.

Im hoping someone here has encountered this before and can give me some pointers.
What I have already done to address this was replace both exterior hydraulic filters and oil.
Took a look at the accelerator linkage inside the housing
Replaced a broken hose clamp that looked like it was to a pickup hose?
I pulled the high pressure relief valves and swapped them from front to rear to see if the fault follows, it didnt. But I did notice that the relief valves were rated for 5000psi, which is much higher than the 3750 that is suggested. Can you adjust them? Or am I just playing roulette.

Anyhow, any advice or direction that is helpful is appreciated!

 

[Welder Dave]

Check the linkage and see how far the arm on the hydrostat is moving. My guess is the pivots could be worn out and not allowing the arm to move forward enough. Not sure if the pivots have rubber bushings or not but I'd compare how far the left arm on the hydrostat pump moves to the right side.

 

[soupsandwhich]

Thankyou for the pointer, the pivots seemed to look good to me, they both seemed to have about the same travel on both the left and right of the bobcat.
One thing I noticed, had the cover off and had it running. There are two 90s on the right side of the hydrostatic, the one in the rear had a pretty consistent flow of hydraulic fluid coming out of it while running. The one toward the front had a putter to it, an inconsistent interrupted flow. Could that be a clue? And what do I chase?

 

[Simon C]

Thankyou for the pointer, the pivots seemed to look good to me, they both seemed to have about the same travel on both the left and right of the bobcat.
One thing I noticed, had the cover off and had it running. There are two 90s on the right side of the hydrostatic, the one in the rear had a pretty consistent flow of hydraulic fluid coming out of it while running. The one toward the front had a putter to it, an inconsistent interrupted flow. Could that be a clue? And what do I chase?

Post some pictures to get more information from the experienced people out there.
Simon C

 

[soupsandwhich]

 

[reganj]

I, in my limited experience, have never seen hydraulic oil that is white in color unless it has water, air, or some other contaminant mixed with it. I am not saying this will solve your problem but it can be a contributing factor.
Some one else smarter than I will chime in and point you in a better direction.

 

[soupsandwhich]

Thanks for the input, I have changed out the oil once and after filling it back uo this is the result, I changed it because it was white. But I have also had people tell me its pretty common for Bobcats and not that big of a deal.‍♂️ but what do I know.

 

[HarleyHappy]

Those leaking elbows need to be capped or you’re missing a line.
The water in the hydraulic fluid, will bite your machine in the ass, sooner or later.