Well it was time for some new socks and shoes for the 953. Cat house had a special 25% off on HD UC and discounted labor rates. That and we were on borrowed time as the master link pin was bouncing around the links like a pin ball.
With winter coming I could see the master pin breaking in 1.5' of mud, on the side of a hill, on a Friday afternoon with 3" of rain coming over the weekend..
What's new:
Track groups
All bottom rollers
1 top roller, we changed one a couple of months ago
Sprocket segments
Resealed both track tensioners
Track guides and misc. odds and ends
Left idler was replace a few years ago and the right idler was replaced this year, those aren't new.
I think the loader gained 3" in height - no joke.
You can really see the difference up on the trailer.
Shop mechanic said ours was one of the nicest 953C's he's seen come through the shop for it's age (2004). There was another 953C in the bay across from mine getting a new final drive. The loader was brought to the shop to check out the final drives. Mechanic said the left final drive oil was like sludge barely coming out the drain plug, right final drive was "dust" - mechanic's on words.
Rebuild on their right final drive is in the $25K range plus R&R labor - Preventive maintenance is cheap folks!!