Plugged grease passageway

[Brad_Blazer]

How about a pressure washer? Hit the seams in the joint then go for the grease hole with the zerk removed. It should have enough volume to build some pressure on the near end.

 

[sixdogs]

Good ideas so far. Heat has worked for me as has spraying penetrating oil in and then hitting with a blast of high pressure--170 psi-- air from an air hose. Take the fitting out. Lots of crap comes back at you from the air hose thing so wear goggles. Sometimes it takes a while but both methods have solved the grease issue for me.

 

[bindian]

I like the torch idea. Too bad welding and cutting equipment is not available to us mechanics (too many regulations) in the hangar, so I have never thought to use it at home on fittings that won't take grease.
hugs, Brandi

 

[Sprinklerman]

Another torch guy here , I have a burkeen vibratory plow ( irrigation installation) And I have had to heat up some pins this year to get the grease flowing .

 

[CDN Farm Boy]

I wonder how hard it would be to drill into the center, and thread it (where the bolt plugs the passageway). Then I could try "pressure methods". And then replace the bolt with a smaller setscrew that doesn't plug it.

That's an idea. I imagine the pin is hardened so it would be a beast to tap but in theory if you could tap in past the the plugged side tube and screw in a allen head set screw, that would stop the flow to the further one and allow the pressure to build against the first passage. Use a tap/set screw that you can get in a zerk also. If it is successful, just remove the set screw and install the zerk in the end and you are good to go. Getting all the chips from the tap out might pose a problem though.

I'd still be trying to melt it out first.

 

[2458n]

Poor design. As long as one path offers no resistance ,you know where the grease is going to go. Torch and wire seem to be best bet. Heat and pressure washer next. Large volume of water might flush some old grease out. Brake cleaner with a bend on the tip of the tube. Loading up the open side by positioning the boom will certainly help. Ran heavy equipment for a long time but a good trick evades me right now.

 

[PILOON]

Well I will jump in as well.
Heat has been my friend in these cases. Heat usually cures bad zerks as well.
With a plumbers torch you won't have enough heat to change the temper of the pins either but that dry caked up grease will turn to burning oil and all will be good again. Maybe just wrap close hoses with a wet rag as a precaution.

 

[truckdiagnostics]

Went through this with my hoe attachment for my skid steer. Didn't have a lot of luck with what was mentioned here. Pressure wash off all the extra grease then see if you can get it hot with a tourch, worth a shot. If you want it to take grease right going to end up taking it apart, know that is not what you wanted to hear. I have one still not taking grease and for the life of me don't know how I am going to get it apart. Some of them I had to put a cut off wheel on L head grinder, cut on either side of the pin, then press it out and still heat to get them out. This one I can't get blade on either side of pin. Bought it used....

 

[bindian]

Is the KX41 mini-excavator a Kubota?
hugs, Brandi

 

[dieselbeef]

heat it close to the plugged passage and pump it til its cool