Parts of a Skid Steer – Labeled Loader Diagram

All 20 parts on the diagram

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Arms and bucket 6

Bucket It is the standard attachment. It can be swapped for forks, an auger, a sweeper and many other tools.
Lift arm One runs along each side of the cab. It pivots at the back, behind the operator's shoulders.
Lift cylinder They join the frame to the lift arms. They raise and lower the arms.
Tilt cylinder They tilt the bucket, or whatever tool is fitted. Forward to dump and back to carry.
Quick coupler It lets the operator change the bucket for another attachment quickly. Makers also call it the attachment bracket or hitch.
Auxiliary hydraulic couplers They send hydraulic oil under pressure out to a powered attachment. They take it back again.

Cab and frame 7

Cab (ROPS) The cab is a rollover protective structure (ROPS). It also guards the operator against falling objects (FOPS).
Tires The wheels on each side turn together. The machine turns by driving one side faster than the other, so the tires skid.
Side screen It keeps the operator from being caught between lift arms and frame. It also keeps branches out.
Work lights Loaders carry front and rear work lights, switched from the instrument panel.
Handhold Used with the step to climb in over the front. The operator faces the machine.
Step Used with the handholds to climb in and out. Always facing the machine.
Frame It takes the twisting forces when the tires skid through a turn. A rigid steel frame.

Inside the cab and frame 7

Seat The seat belt and the restraint bar keep the operator in it. The operator stays inside the protection of the cab.
Seat belt It is a lap belt. The loader is driven with the belt fastened and the restraint bar lowered.
Restraint bar Also called the seat bar. While it is raised, the lift and tilt controls do not work.
Joystick One joystick sets speed and direction. The other raises the arms and tilts the bucket. Other loaders use hand levers with foot pedals.
Foot pedals On loaders with hand and foot controls, they raise the lift arms. They also tilt the bucket.
Engine At the back, reached through the rear of the machine. With an empty bucket a skid steer is heavier at the rear.
Drive chain A drive motor on each side turns two chains. One goes to the front axle and one to the rear. They run in an oil bath inside the frame.

How this list was compiled: Part names checked on 2026-09-30, a name kept only when two sources use it. (1) Wikipedia, Skid-steer loader and Quick coupler, text only (lift arms, bucket, cab as ROPS and FOPS, side screens, seat belt and seat-bar restraint, wheels fixed straight and turned by differential steering, rigid frame, joystick controls, quick-attach systems, quick couplers on skid-steer loaders, hydraulic couplings for attachments). (2) Skid Steer Safety, Ag Safety and Health Community of Practice (US Cooperative Extension), https://ag-safety.extension.org/skid-steer-safety/ (ROPS, FOPS, side screens, seat belt and seat-bar restraint, lift arms, frame, bucket, steps and handholds, pedals, operator seat). (3) A skid-steer loader maker's operator's manual, full text at https://archive.org/details/manualzilla-id-6035854 (lift arm, lift cylinder, tilt cylinders, tires, front work lights, handholds, auxiliary hydraulic couplers, attachment bracket, ROPS/FOPS, restraint bar, seat belt, foot pedals, steps, chaincase with drive sprockets and drive chains, engine). (4) A second maker's service training guide for skid steer loaders, full text at https://archive.org/details/manualzilla-id-6024649 (lift arms, lift cylinders, tilt cylinders, work tool coupler and quick coupler, auxiliary quick disconnect couplers, joysticks, cab with ROPS, operator's seat, front and rear work lights, drive motors and drive chains, frame, engine). Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry, a composite of no one maker or model. Licence: own work

How it works

A skid steer is a small loader whose wheels cannot steer: it turns by driving one side faster than the other. This drawing names its parts, first on the whole machine and then with the cab and frame cut open.

Read the full guide

Two drawings, one loader

Row 1 is the whole loader from the side, bucket to the left, with the lift arms half raised. Numbers 1 to 4 are the big parts; the rest follow the arm back from the bucket, then the cab. Row 2 cuts the same machine open: the operator's seat and controls, the engine behind the cab, and the drive chains inside the frame.

How the bucket moves

Hydraulic cylinders do the work. The lift cylinders (5) push the lift arms up from the back. The tilt cylinders (6) turn the quick coupler (7), and the bucket with it, forward to dump and back to carry.

Skid steer, skid loader and skid-steer loader are three names for the same machine.
With rubber tracks in place of wheels, the machine is called a compact track loader.

Questions and answers

What are the main parts of a skid steer?

The bucket, the lift arms that raise it, the lift and tilt cylinders that move them, the cab with its rollover protection, the frame and four tires. The engine sits at the back, and drive chains inside the frame turn the wheels.

What are the arms on a skid steer called?

They are the lift arms, also called loader arms. One runs along each side of the cab and pivots at the rear of the machine, behind the operator's shoulders. The lift cylinders raise and lower them.

Why is it called a skid steer?

Its wheels point straight ahead and cannot turn. To steer, the left and right pairs are driven at different speeds, so the tires skid across the ground. Driving one side forward and the other backward turns the loader within its own length.

What is the bar across the seat of a skid steer?

It is the restraint bar, also called the seat bar. It swings down across the operator's lap and, with the seat belt, keeps the operator in the seat. While it is raised, the lift and tilt controls do not work.