400lbs of Lucas red n tacky?

   / 400lbs of Lucas red n tacky? #1  
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Fixastuff

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I can get one of these on sale from a supplier for $980. It’s a heck of a deal but what do I do once I have it? I mainly grease machinery and have only used cartridges. I almost always grease on job sites, machines are not home often enough to grease from big tub in garage.

I’m not the “best” when it comes to keeping a shop clean and I’m picturing my self getting crap in the barrel of grease and ruining it.

What grease guns/system do y’all recommend for getting grease out of this barrel cleanly?

Thanks

Also I use red n tacky because basically that what I started with and stuck with. Not married to it or anything.
 
   / 400lbs of Lucas red n tacky? #3  
This is the same conundrum shoppers at Cosco or warehouse clubs have. One can get a vast quantity of something... BUT most will go to waste.

In your case since the machines are away from the home site, you'll have to refill grease guns at home. Look for bulk grease dispensers or gun fillers. Do not take the grease supply to the field. Contaminated grease is worse than no grease since you'll be injecting grit deep into bearings..
 
   / 400lbs of Lucas red n tacky? #4  
If you can't keep it clean or not willing to deal with refilling guns, you should not buy it. Look for a pallet of refill tubes?
 
   / 400lbs of Lucas red n tacky? #5  
Been doing just that for years. I buy my grease from Lubrication Engineers in 150 pound 'open head' drums which means you can remove the top easily. I have an ARO air powered grease pump and the end of the hose terminates in a normal female grease coupler and I bulk fill my lever grease guns from the bulk greaser. I also have a 150 foot grease hose that I can take out of the shop and grease equipment on the pad out front f the shop.

The drum grease never gets contaminated because the ARO air grease pump covers the entire top of the grease drum and it comes with a follower plate that fits inside the drum and 'wipes' the excess grease from the sides of the drum as I use it. Typically, a 150 pound open head drum lasts me about 2-3 years and nice thing about bulk loading my lever grease guns is I never get grease on my hands, unlike cartridges where removal of a spent cartridge is always messy.

I also run clear polycarbonate barrels on all my grease guns so I can easily see how much or how little grease is left in the guns and when they need refilled. Because I pressure pump the grease from the bulk greaser into the guns, I don't use a bulk grease fitting, but rather a normal Alemite fitting on the top of the gun barrel. The grease I use isn't cheap and it's very tacky as well so it's a PITA to get off your hands and no amount of washing will get it out of your clothes either so I try to always mitigate any grease on me or my clothes.

I have not bought a single tube of grease in the last 10 years.
 
   / 400lbs of Lucas red n tacky? #7  
Wow a 55 gallon drum of grease that will last you a lifetime...
 
   / 400lbs of Lucas red n tacky? #9  
I'd say that if you have to ask what you'd do with a 55 gallon barrel of grease the answer is probably that you don't need it. But who knows... Maybe make a slip-n-slide for the kids on the backyard hill??
 
   / 400lbs of Lucas red n tacky? #10  
That is a lot of grease. Is there a shelf life on the grease? There is a gallon sized can at Mom & Dad's place that has been moderately separated for years.

Hmmm... Lucas says "This grease demonstrates excellent mechanical stability and has a prolonged storage life."

Other brands say somewhere around 5 years.
 
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