Grease gun

[deere5105]

I have reviewed some of the previous posts on the topic and have the following questions: 1. Has anyone purchased a pistol type grease gun and wished they would have went with the lever type? 2. Based on experience, how many times has anyone found a grease fitting would not take grease from a pistol type gun and would from a lever type?

My situation is I donated my lever type Lincoln grease gun to a friend whose grease gun fell apart and now I need to replace it. I, like many others, have had difficulty trying to operate the lever type with a whip hose. I prefer the whip hose for it's ability to reach hard to access fittings, but do not like the operation of the lever gun in that you need three hands to operate it if you need to hold the hose on the fitting. I am currently looking at a Lincoln #1134 for $50 and a John Deere #TY26517 for $30. The Lincoln has a rated 7500 psi and the John Deere 5000 psi. I like the Lincoln tools, but question if I will actually realize a benefit of having 2500 psi more pressure. The $20 difference in price is not a deal breaker. Not that it will matter, but the primary purpose of this gun will be to lube my tractor and various implements using John Deere SD Polyurea grease. A manual gun is what I am looking for.

This is my first post to the site, but have been following along as a guest for quite awhile. I always look forward to seeing the opinions and advice given on other peoples issues. I would appreciate any advice or recommendations you may have. Thanks.

 

[FN in MT]

I'm not at home where I can check...but I believe I recently purchased the LINCOLN gun you mentioned. Paid $43 w/discount at a Tractor Supply. It seems to hold on to the zerk's almost too well. I'm guessing as it wears IN a bit it will loosen it's grip.
I went on a greasing SPREE a few weeks ago and it worked on EVERYHING I lubed. It seems to keep it's grasp on the fittings allowing one hand to hold the gun and the other to pump the handle.

I've also got a small pistol grip gun but if the fitting is plugged even a bit it can't get the grease IN. I surely like the new gun!

FN in MT

 

[kthompson]

All possibly but at least some tips on grease guns are adjustable for the Zerk fitting. You may find you can tighten your's if it has problem remaining on the fitting while greasing it. It also can be due to damaged fitting. I have found on some fittings where the grease is going into a seal area if you pump enough grease to build up pressure the gun can be very hard to remove from the Zerk fitting. This can even be a shaft if there is load against it creating a sealed area. There is also the option of a extra long flexible hose where you almost certainly can lay the gun on a stable surface while you pump it with one hand and hold the hose with another.

 

[Scooby074]

I have a 1134. Its a VERY good gun. Using it i can get grease into all fittings, ones that my old crappy Plews couldnt. Yes its a bit of money, but the extra PSI is worth it, plus its of alot heaver construction.

I love pistol types. I dont think id ever go back to lever. The only upgrade i might consider, would be going to one of Lincoln's Power Lubers but their $$$.

The 1134 comes with a adjustable zerk fitting. You need to loosen it up and sdjust it to your zerks,. You may need pliers as its quite tight from the factory.

 

[funkydaddy59]

My favourite grease gun is a pistol type, air tool and works great. I have a lever one also but lent it to a relative and haven't seen it since. I don't miss the lever one at all.

 

[deere5105]

So it seems no one has any negative feed back on the pistol type. The more I have thought on the matter the more I find myself leaning toward the Lincoln. My thoughts seem to be that the pistol type with 7500 psi compared to the lever type at 10000 psi is not much of a comprimise and the pistol type should allow one hand to be free to hold the hose on the zerk if needed. Is the pistol type very hard to pump with one hand?

 

[Hematite]

I just got so mad at my old lever grease guns that I went out and bought a new Lincoln 1133 pistol grip and a Lincoln 1162 pneumatic pistol grip. I will NEVER buy another or have another lever type gun because I will never have 3 arms.

You can actually control how hard it is to squeeze the manual pistol grip by using an NLGI #1 grease rather than #2. The NLGI #1 grease is sometimes 3x easier to dispense and is particularly good for tight joints.

 

[whistlepig]

About two months ago one of my many countless grease guns failed again. For sure I don't have time for a tool so simple to fail. So I got totally fed up with grease guns. I researched TBN and many suggested a Lincoln 1442 cordless. I got a Lincoln 1442 about three weeks ago. It's by far the best grease gun I have ever used. Cordless or anything else. It's a bit expensive. $204.00 from Northern Tool including S&H. We will see how well it holds up.

 

[northcreek2624]

I also agree and the Lincoln cordless is the best grease gun that I have ever owned.The only negative is the short lifespan of the batteries and they are pricey when you need a replacement,I finally ran a cord off of mine and hook it to the tractor battery.It's a bit of a pain but,beats buying over priced portables.
I will say this, the grease gun is probably the least improved tool in a 100 years.I can't believe that we're still doing it like Henry Ford.
The Lincoln power luber is good but,I don't really like any of them.
IMHO of course....Mike.

 

[jmfox]

I have been using the harbor freight battery powered grease gun (about $50) and have been quite impressed with the battery life. It keeps throwing grease for as long as the trigger is pressed.

jmf

 

[Bedlam]

I have used the pistol grip type from sears for years untill I had a stuck zerk, and gave to much squeeze and distorted the handle beyond straightning.(carpel tunnel didnt kick in that day)
I would highly recomend them over the standard lever type.

 

[PILOON]

OK, make you all envious.
My buddy just bought a Lincoln at a yard sale for $8.00!
Battery was good but seller had 'lost' the charger, however being 12V we hooked it up to the tractor battery and it works A1!
New charger cost him $80.00

 

[WH401]

Last year I bought a pistol type grease gun from Advance Auto on wim. It turned out to be a piece of crap because it was always loosing it's prime and I would have to unscrew the grease canister to get it to prime again. Never had this problem with my NAPA lever grease gun. A few weeks ago I bought a Lincoln 1134 off Amazon for $31 w/ free shipping. Took about a week to get here and they still have them for that price if your interested. I could tell right away when I was using the Lincoln that it is a much, much better built gun and so far I have been very pleased with it.

 

[Hugenpoet]

The Lincoln 1134 is $31.08 at Amazon with free two day shipping. Just ordered one after reading this thread.

 

[deere5105]

Last year I bought a pistol type grease gun from Advance Auto on wim. It turned out to be a piece of crap because it was always loosing it's prime and I would have to unscrew the grease canister to get it to prime again. Never had this problem with my NAPA lever grease gun. A few weeks ago I bought a Lincoln 1134 off Amazon for $31 w/ free shipping. Took about a week to get here and they still have them for that price if your interested. I could tell right away when I was using the Lincoln that it is a much, much better built gun and so far I have been very pleased with it.

Did the 1134 you purchased from Amazon come with the flexible hose and the rigid extension?

 

[deere5105]

To WH401 and Hugenpoet, much thanks for the Amazon.com tip. I looked it up and found it for the same price and placed the order. Looks like the advice saved over $20, getting the better gun and it will be delivered to me. Thanks again for all the tips and advice.

 

[WH401]

Did the 1134 you purchased from Amazon come with the flexible hose and the rigid extension?

Yep, it came with both the flexible hose and the rigid extension. Glad I could help, saving a few bucks is an important thing these days.

 

[CurlyDave]

I have been using the harbor freight battery powered grease gun (about $50) and have been quite impressed with the battery life. It keeps throwing grease for as long as the trigger is pressed.

When my HF gun died, I took the battery out, put the gun and all the grease it had spewed all over itself in a clear garbage bag & took it back to HF. My though was that they would give me a new body and keep the batteries & charger from the new one, but they gave me a whole new gun, batteries, charger and all.

The girl behind the counter looked at all the grease in the bag and just didn't want to touch anything.

Now have 4 batteries & 2 chargers which is more than enough for 1 tractor.

 

[northcreek2624]

I have been using the harbor freight battery powered grease gun (about $50) and have been quite impressed with the battery life. It keeps throwing grease for as long as the trigger is pressed.

jmf

JMF, Not talking about daily use life,what I was refering to was overall life....Mike.

 

[jmfox]

JMF, Not talking about daily use life,what I was refering to was overall life....Mike.

What impressed me was the fact that the battery could be used daily and sit for weeks and then intermittently and still strong. I never really get to use the backup pack. Maybe it's because I only have a couple machines and not a fleet. I also use the pneumatic gun to put moly in the bucket pins.

jmf