Grease around fittings. . .

[LHF2019]

The reason is, is because I don't know any better. This is my first tractor, and I just don't know any better. I've asked numerous people how often I need to grease, but I never asked how much. I just assumed that it was full when I could see the grease just oozing out around the pivot pins.

I appreciate the info. I'm just learning as I go.

Your owners manual tells you how many hours the grease fittings are. So for my tractor the tractor grease fittings are 50hr so every 25 hours on the meter it gets grease. The MFWD universals gets pumps until I see the slightest movement. Same with the steering. The pivots get 3, drive shaft 3. The loader which is 10hr may or may not get greased depending what I have been doing with it recently. When I do grease it it gets 1-3 pumps.

By going with the hour meter you don't have to remember to grease. Allows you to grease enough that your not over doing it or under doing it and for me makes it easier to know when it needs greased. Same tractor has 600hr fittings that get 2 pumps every oil change 200-250 hrs.

 

[workinonit]

Without a Loc N Lube, some grease gun tips are messy

All I ever heard about was Lock and Lube so I bought one. Tried to use that thing several times. It doesn't work for me. I saw it laying somewhere when I cleaned the shop the other day. One thing is it is way to big. It won't fit in half the places I have to grease.

 

[rScotty]

The reason is, is because I don't know any better. This is my first tractor, and I just don't know any better. I've asked numerous people how often I need to grease, but I never asked how much. I just assumed that it was full when I could see the grease just oozing out around the pivot pins.

I appreciate the info. I'm just learning as I go.

OK. Learning makes sense to me. He is my contribution.

The most common measure is to grease the joint until you see grease emerging. I don't think anything is gained by pumping until new grease emerges, just until old grease does. Wiping involves a container of shop rags. Greasy rags are a fire hazard, so dispose of them immediately once greasy.

Dman (#16) brought up a good point about unloading the pressure on a joint before greasing it. Like he says, I do that for the front axle pivot too. And I suspect that for the absolute best grease job we should be doing every joint that way - and sometimes I do. Especially on the backhoe.

Not all greases are compatible. The simplest grease is basically a fine clay with oil suspended in it. Many are still made like that. But there are lots of different types of clays, and two incompatible greases will combine in the joint to form a hard solid that does not lubricate & has to be scraped out. So it pays to either study up on the subject or choose one grease chemistry and stay with it. I use Deere's improved poly urea "green" grease - TY6341. Available everywhere & not too messy.

We do keep one grease gun loaded with that nasty staining ugly Molybdenum black grease because messy as it is, Moly is noticibly better for the 2 or 3 really heavily loaded joints on the TLB - like the main swing table pivot on the backhoe. No other joint on the FEL or tractor is loaded nearly that heavily, so they all just get the green grease.

luck, rScotty

 

[Vigo327]

Not enough is not enough.
Enough is enough.
Too much is also enough, just messier.

I will pressure wash a greased fitting with abandon.. but i regrease it afterward.

In my opinion service intervals for grease fittings are just a reminder to grease them at all. Just like oil changes on your engine, it would technically benefit the engine or a greased joint to do them as often as you can stand to, but as long as you do them often enough youll be ok.


Also, a loose joint needs greased more often than a tight joint. Loose joint will pound out the grease quicker and has more chance for intrusion of outside particles/debris.

Cleaning the outside of a greased joint is PURELY by preference. The grease won’t hurt paint and about the worst that will happen is if a big glob of grease falls off the tractor and then you step on it

 

[Hoobie]

I put on fresh clean clothes and walk anywhere within 20 feet of the tractor. Polishes off excess grease beautifully.

 

[Michiganguy]

This is what I use to wipe up the excess grease. Works great for grease on the tractor or hands. Wipe and toss.

 

[SARG]

Tub O' Towels ...Now that looks like a good idea ...... gonna buy some.

 

[SmallChange]

I've mostly heard, "pump until you see grease coming out", but if the grease comes out someplace you can't see this is way too much. I pump until I see grease coming out or until 3 pumps, whichever is first.
I don't worry about cleaning it much. Sometimes I wipe up, as I do like it clean. Sometimes I just go around with something like a wooden popsicle stick to spoon heavy accumulations out of whatever space they're hiding in. I think some excess grease around the outside of a bearing seal provides additional protection.
I buy the recommended grease from the tractor dealer. I only have one tractor, only 25 hp, and it's relaxing to tinker around on it, so I think I can easily do more than the necessary and feel satisfied with the state of things.
I do avoid dropping clumps of grease, because the tractor lives in a bay of my pole barn that I had paved with asphalt. Grease attacks asphalt, or so I was warned by the paving company.

 

[Fallon]

The loader & most all the other greaseable joints on our tractors don't have any seals. Only some of the U joints or drivetrain components, possibly steering parts have seals. You can overgrease things with seals & blow out the seals. But if you overgrease open joints it just drives dirt & old grease out. Messy, but not problematic.

I scrape the piles of grease off every so often so it's less messy. I pressure wash the machine occasionally, but always re-grease afterwards. It splatters a bit of grease around.

I'm looking at getting getting a hot water pressure washer. Heat breaks up the grease & oil way faster as well as helping it not letting it stick elsewhere. I end up needing to clean off mud & snow residue as often as grease or oil.

I just picked up a 65 year old JD 420c crawler loader. Leaky cylinders & hoses so it's caked in hydraulic oil, dirt & the usual grease. So I've got an increased need beyond keeping things tidy or cleaning up after a leak.

 

[Gregster613]

The loader & most all the other greaseable joints on our tractors don't have any seals. Only some of the U joints or drivetrain components, possibly steering parts have seals. You can overgrease things with seals & blow out the seals. But if you overgrease open joints it just drives dirt & old grease out. Messy, but not problematic.

I scrape the piles of grease off every so often so it's less messy. I pressure wash the machine occasionally, but always re-grease afterwards. It splatters a bit of grease around.

I'm looking at getting getting a hot water pressure washer. Heat breaks up the grease & oil way faster as well as helping it not letting it stick elsewhere. I end up needing to clean off mud & snow residue as often as grease or oil.

I just picked up a 65 year old JD 420c crawler loader. Leaky cylinders & hoses so it's caked in hydraulic oil, dirt & the usual grease. So I've got an increased need beyond keeping things tidy or cleaning up after a leak.

Fallon, I've also been wanting to get a hot water pressure washer. Been looking at a lot of different brands but haven't yet purchased. There are lots of different choices and prices, but I think I'm mainly going to focus on the type of pump. If you do get one please inform us of what brand and how you like it.
Thanks, Greg

 

[Fallon]

Fallon, I've also been wanting to get a hot water pressure washer. Been looking at a lot of different brands but haven't yet purchased. There are lots of different choices and prices, but I think I'm mainly going to focus on the type of pump. If you do get one please inform us of what brand and how you like it.
Thanks, Greg

Will do. I'm likely to get whatever good deal I can find on Craigslist.

So far I'm mostly looking for a self contained one, which means gas engine. I've got 240 50@ outlets readily avalible in the shop. But would like to be able to use it elsewhere. Wash the deck & what not. But I haven't moved my old cheap gas cold pressures washer out of the shop in years. It might make sense to avoid another carb & engine to maintain. I've happily gone electric for weed eaters, chainsaw, non-tractor snowblower & what not to getvaway from ethanol gas & engine maintnance.

 

[Martin Roper]

Pressure wash, then grease.

 

[Rockbadchild]

I never clean it, other then being visually appealing there is not benefit and there is no harm by leaving it there ... if there is dirt on the nipple I will wipe off the top with my glove or what ever so it doesn't get pump in but that it... and I also pump it until its start to overflow unless seal joints so I know there is no water in it... grease is cheep bushing are expensive.

 

[LoudonNH]

I simply wipe off excess grease with paper towels and WD40, which I buy in gallon cans and dispense in a plastic spray bottle. The WD40 leaves a layer of protection and feeds the paint.
The tractor in this photo is 7 years old with more than 2000 hours.

 

[jetdriver]

Okey Doke. . . So I naively asked about 6 months after owning the tractor, "Where does all the grease go?" Well, I now know, as many folks replied, it goes everywhere. Mostly, onto the tractor around the grease fittings. My question is, do y'all clean up all this grease from around the fittings? If so, how? I just washed my tractor with the power sprayer, and that helps, but it just shoots the grease to other places, and it doesn't all of it.

How do y'all deal with this? And I am sure many just leave it on the tractor. Tell me your thoughts.

Thanks. . .

jp

Microfibre cloth sprayed with WD40

 

[S854]

Why so much grease
Only takes a squeeze or two wipe off nipple before and after and make sure loader or backhoe is in position so grease goes in pressure side
Just like front axle pivot needs
To be off ground so grease gets where pressure is.

What is the correct position for a FEL to get grease in The pressure side?

Setting the bucket on the ground, then moving the joystick through all its various positions (engine off) to relieve pressure?

I haven’t considered this… I have been using the hydraulics to get the zerks up to “eye-level”… high enough so I don’t have to crawl around on the garage floor to grease ‘em… then running all the cylinders through their complete range before actually using the FEL…

looks like I’ll be changing my approach…

 

[jca1952]

Diesel in a spray bottle and a rag does a nice job removing the excess grease.

 

[Arthur Douglas]

I like to keep my tractor nice and clean, but I draw the line at going crazy with keeping the grease points real clean. I generally wipe off the zerk, and remove excess grease with a finger swipe.
The stuff that migrates to the paint, which I believe what the op is concerned about, I wipe off with degreaser and a shop towel.

On a positive note, good that you see the boot expanding or the old grease being pushed out of the joints. I’ve had several bad zerks fail in tough-to-reach/see areas. They’re easy to change, messy (and self-defeating) if you don’t. US cleaning of the malfunctioning zerk may also help. (They’re a special order aka expensive on my Bobcat/Kioti!) Cheaper to buy protective caps for zerks those areas.

 

[sixdogs]

I use paper towels from a roll to wipe the fitting clean of dirt before I grease. Then I wipe the fitting when I'm done so it doesn't attract dirt. Once I year I might wipe excess grease from the surrounding areas but it's not something I dwell on. It's not possible to keep a tractor clean but I do admire those who try.

 

[kneedeep]

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Don’t over grease. Most greasable fittings are pumped full till they overflow.
Once movement starts (FEL, Ball joints, etc) will push out the excess grease.
Those fittings get about 5 pumps max.
Joints that don’t move a lot get about 3, others that are large capacity May get 7 or 8.
Even being careful I tend to add a couple extra stokes for good luck.
Nasty grease joints are much better than dry joints, it’s just a problem for the guys that want equipment showroom clean.