Can't get the grease gun off the grease fitting..am I retarded?

[cgraham]

I am having greasing problems too!

It all started with the backhoe pivot pins, which were not taking grease adequately (the others were fine).

Now I can't get grease into any unsealed grease fittings. Pressure seems to build up in the grease gun hose, and then I can't get the gun off the grease fittings. Fortunately, I learned the trick to releasing pressure at the nozzle from you guys.

Logically, the problem must be with the grease gun head. It has to be tightened all the way to lock on to a nipple, new or old, and unscrewed every time. It used to pop on and off without trouble.

I will get a new head/nozzle today, if not a whole new gun.

What is the proper way to adjust the GG nozzle so that it snaps on and pulls off normally?

Charlie

 

[Eagleview]

The most common problem with pins not accepting grease is the old grease goes hard and clogs the hole . Try a hot piece of fencing wire poked into the hole after removing the nipple . It melts the old grease and if you put downward pressure on your loader to take a little weight off your front tyres and then try to grease the pins it may clear them . What this does is increases the gap between the pin and the bush on the woking side and allows the plug to be forced out . As for the grease gun just leave the grease gun chuck one turn loose , if it leaks a little turn it clockwise to tighten , nipple size and condition varies so one setting is not allways possible .

 

[LOOPHOLE]

Well, I've learned something else today. I sure didn't know a GG had an adjustment on end. [ I assumed it screwed off for replacement ].I also have some BH & FEL fittings that will not take grease. I even took the fitting out and stuck a small blade knife into hole,replaced w/new zerk and it still will not take grease. I have no clue on that one.Guess on those I'll use a pinpoint adapter and get grease to pins as close as I can.

 

[Sniggle]

Well, I've learned something else today. I sure didn't know a GG had an adjustment on end. [ I assumed it screwed off for replacement ].I also have some BH & FEL fittings that will not take grease. I even took the fitting out and stuck a small blade knife into hole,replaced w/new zerk and it still will not take grease. I have no clue on that one.Guess on those I'll use a pinpoint adapter and get grease to pins as close as I can.

If the pin is not taking grease, the pin must be clogged as Iron Horse described. You will not be able to get adequate grease to the pin/bearing sleeve with a pinpoint adapter, and will likely experience premature failure of the bearing sleeve.

Seems to me the best course of action would be to remove the blocked pins (if they are pins) and try to clear them with the hot wire or warming them with a torch to melt the impacted grease or replace the pins.

For other fittings the hot wire on a hot day or even gently heating the area of the grease fitting should get the grease moving again. Then routine greasing should keep fresh grease in the pathway.

 

[LOOPHOLE]

You're probably right,better to get those pins out and get some grease into sleeves and bushings/ My labor should be cheaper than those pins/bushings.

 

[Eagleview]

Well, I've learned something else today. I sure didn't know a GG had an adjustment on end. [ I assumed it screwed off for replacement ].I also have some BH & FEL fittings that will not take grease. I even took the fitting out and stuck a small blade knife into hole,replaced w/new zerk and it still will not take grease. I have no clue on that one.Guess on those I'll use a pinpoint adapter and get grease to pins as close as I can.

If you unscrew the hex part it WILL remove the chuck . If you hold the hex part and unscrew the cylindrical part with a pair of multigrips you will find this adjusts the jaws . Leave this part 1 turn loose and simply screw/unsrew with your fingers as the need arises . The plug that forms is usually in the hole in the side of the pin not usually in the lengthwise hole . Its a mixture of grease/metal dust/oxidization etc . I have found that sometimes as Sniggle has said you have to remove the pin to clean it out but i have had good results using the red hot wire . But you need a source of heat , gas flame/kero blowtourch etc . Obviously you can't get the wire into the right angle hole but the hot wire up its butt usually melts it .

 

[canoetrpr]

I finally replaced the loader pin with the re-conditioned one today. I followed with probably my most successful greasing session with some of the tips I picked up here.

- Loosening the grease coupler on the gun works like a CHARM!. No more wrestling the grease gun off the zerk!.

- I changed to use a straight pipe on the gun instead of the flexible hose and I found that helped quite a bit. I had to move the loader in some cases so there was enough room to manouvere.

Overall - all the suggestions have been super useful. Thanks!

 

[denmansoft]

I broke a zerk off my loader pin on first greasing. The recessed zerks on these pins are not easy to get off.
I didn't know the coupler was adjustable!
On drilling mine out we found the zerk is very soft steel and the pin is very hard.
Drill the zerk and then clean out the threads with a tap.
We would never have got the pin drilled and tapped oversize....

 

[randy Wright]

I just bought a new Made in India (chinese one looked even worse) grease gun. Brand new grease. Broke off the first two fittings. The weight of the gun alone snaps them right off. Couldn't get the fitting out of the gun with vise-grips and prying. Took apart end of gun and it fell out.

There are lost of ideas on this problem in the discussion. I still have questions. Is the grease gun not made for Metric? Is it just vacumn holding it on?

Thanks
Another ****** doc

 

[Eagleview]

Its purely a mechanical hookup . The bottom of the rounded head of the grease nipple is what the jaws on the chuck grip onto . You must loosen the knurled section of the chuck at least 1 full turn and then adjust with your fingers as required . I dropped mine in the dirt the other day and was in a hurry and did'nt have time to pull it apart and wash it so i pulled the one off the Chinese gun that came with my new excavator and used it . What a mongrel of a thing that is , it needs to be at least 3 turns loose so i can get it off and while it is that loose it leaks around the thread . I think now , the angle of the teeth on the chuck jaws are more agressive on some than others . By the sounds of it you have a solid tube on your gun and the movement of pumping is levering on the nipples and causing breakage . You may want to use a flexible tube to prevent this or buy a good quality gun such as a McNaught .