Removing grease zerk

musselmark · Mar 12, 2018

TN 75 and one of the grease zerks broke on the loader. It sits in a recess so I can't really grab what's left of it and it must be hardened steel because I can't drill it. Any ideas

Oldoak · Mar 12, 2018

I never ran into a zerk fitting that hard. I have removed broken zerk fittings using an "easy out". Most well stocked hardware stores carry them in the drill and tap section of the store. They come in various sizes.

If you try using one, be careful not to snap the "easy out" off in the zerk fitting. That would result in a major problem.

DwayneB · Mar 12, 2018

musselmark said:
TN 75 and one of the grease zerks broke on the loader. It sits in a recess so I can't really grab what's left of it and it must be hardened steel because I can't drill it. Any ideas

Some really good bits should drill it if you can get a small one down through the hole and just keep stepping up in bit size. I've never seen a zerk made from hard metal. I also have gotten them out by putting a screw in the hole. If you can't see the hole in the center of the zerk and a small bit won't touch it the next thing I'd try is a grinding wheel on a dremmel and, see if I could grind off enough to get the hole open. After that the right size ez out should back it right out.

Sittingbull2 · Mar 12, 2018

You have a old file with a sharp end on it? Normally they are square so you can put a handle on the file. Tap it in and unscrew it.

Captain Dirty · Mar 13, 2018

musselmark said:
TN 75 and one of the grease zerks broke on the loader. It sits in a recess so I can't really grab what's left of it and it must be hardened steel because I can't drill it. Any ideas

I find EZ-outs to be an oxymoron; I have much better luck with bolt extractors which are the female counterpart of an EZ-out. If there is enough of a stub left on the zerk to fit the extractor it may work. You did not mention the presence of a hex head that a socket might fit; the absence of a means to tighten the zerk may indicate a press fit like the zerks on the spindles of my JD mower. Nothing is ever easy.
An expedient solution to provide lubrication might be to grind a shallow cup into the remains of the zerk with a dremel and use an injector nozzle fitting on your grease gun (see Grainger 52ZV14 for a rubber tipped, conical nozzle). Grinding would probably remove the ball check valve present in zerks. Leaving a blob of grease in the depression and wiping the blob away before re-greasing may prevent contaminants from entering.

Coyote machine · Mar 13, 2018

Any pics of zerk location and accessibility?

frugalangler · Mar 13, 2018

I just removed one a few days ago that someone had broken, simply put a spiral easy-out in, it backed right out. I also have never seen a hardened zerk.

Oldoak · Mar 13, 2018

I never liked drilling or grinding a broken grease zerk fitting. There is no way to remove ALL the metal particles, some of which may be forced into the area that will be lubricated when a new zerk fitting is installed. I would only drill or grind as a LAST resort.

EZ-outs have been my weapon of choice for decades. They come in all sizes from the tiniest to those large enough to remove broken off threaded pipe ends.

musselmark · Mar 13, 2018

Well I just tried all the suggestion. It was hardened steel for sure. I ended up welding over the hole and filled the recess of the pin with weld then drilled and tapped for a new grease zerk. The new pilot hole was smaller than the hole left by the broken zerk so went in through it and the outer part I filled with weld was far enough away that it drilled and tapped without touching old zerk.

dougtrr2 · Mar 14, 2018

Glad you got it fixed. I wonder if maybe the check ball was left in the old one and that was the hardened part you were trying to drill.

Doug in SW IA

musselmark · Mar 14, 2018

No the head was gone, the threaded portion was the only part left with hole through it. I was trying to enlarge hole to allow easy out to fit but it just rounded over the bits cutting edge. Heated with torch to try and anneal it but still wouldn't drill. ( and these were not dollar store drill bits)

DwayneB · Mar 14, 2018

musselmark said:
No the head was gone, the threaded portion was the only part left with hole through it. I was trying to enlarge hole to allow easy out to fit but it just rounded over the bits cutting edge. Heated with torch to try and anneal it but still wouldn't drill. ( and these were not dollar store drill bits)

Sounds like a real PITA! That's usually how things work for me as well.

fried1765 · Mar 14, 2018

musselmark said:
Well I just tried all the suggestion. It was hardened steel for sure. I ended up welding over the hole and filled the recess of the pin with weld then drilled and tapped for a new grease zerk. The new pilot hole was smaller than the hole left by the broken zerk so went in through it and the outer part I filled with weld was far enough away that it drilled and tapped without touching old zerk.

Like others here I have never seen a hardened grease zerk.
That said: my go to fix for a typical situation like this, is my set of left hand drill bits.
It is often not necessary to drill very deep, before the broken zerk/bolt starts backing out.

Oldoak · Mar 14, 2018

"my go to fix for a typical situation like this, is my set of left hand drill bits." But he may have been right handed.......

There are also carbide tipped drill bits for drilling through hardened steel alloys. Although, using a drill bit that small in a hand held drill would most likely resulted in snapping off the carbide tip.

I just can't imagine a zerk fitting as hard as the O.P. had to fight.

Edit: Yes, I agree with what mykleh added below about using carbide tooling. Carbide tooling is best used in a machine shop environment where the speed and feed can be infinitely controlled. That is why I stated a carbide tipped drill bit in a hand held drill may not work so well.

mykleh · Mar 14, 2018

problem with carbide tooling is it likes uninterrupted cutting surfaces.. very prone to chipping or breaking on uneven surfaces then your REALLY have a mess on your hands...

Gary Fowler · Mar 14, 2018

I never saw a zerk that was that hard to remove. I have removed them by driving the handle end of a triangle file into the broken off zerk before I got my ease-out tools.
Glad you were able to get it fixed.

geo315 · Jun 26, 2019

Sittingbull2 said:
You have a old file with a sharp end on it? Normally they are square so you can put a handle on the file. Tap it in and unscrew it.

Geat idea. I just put your way to the test and it worked great. Thanks Geo.

Tractor Seabee · Jun 27, 2019

Oldoak said:
I never liked drilling or grinding a broken grease zerk fitting. There is no way to remove ALL the metal particles, some of which may be forced into the area that will be lubricated when a new zerk fitting is installed. I would only drill or grind as a LAST resort.

EZ-outs have been my weapon of choice for decades. They come in all sizes from the tiniest to those large enough to remove broken off threaded pipe ends.

Put some axle grease in the flutes of the drill bit. Same with taps. I saw this trick on another thread the other day.

Ron