Tractors and Grease . . how to make it less messy.

[AxleHub]

Wow have we no faith in ourselves to teach the young?

I remember well being a youngster and having an interest in almost anything mechanical. I also remember very well all the time all the older Men in the family took teaching me the right way to do things. I also remember well all the extra money I made when word got out that I could actually fix things and did things right. By the time I started high school I was doing engine and trans rebuilds under the table for the local garage and eventually became the owner of it. Here we are Many years later and I think I can take a little time to give someone else a chance at something just the same as I was given a chance many years ago.

Ronald Reagan said "trust but verify". Regardless of his political efforts, Reagan was a natural teacher.

I believe we lack "natural teachers" in far too many cases and as a result our generational youth have not become the students of learning and work. If you are doing more than showing a neighbor kid what to do . . actually training a mind and hands . . then you are part of a heritage each generation handed down in this country . . that the "flower power" generation forgot was their obligation.

 

[woody]

I like the sock idea and also I use the latex gloves and when I am done I slid the grease hose down in one of the fingers helps keep things clean.

 

[SPYDERLK]

I like the sock idea and also I use the latex gloves and when I am done I slid the grease hose down in one of the fingers helps keep things clean.

FWIW I have found, and noticed in others, that wearing gloves will make a bigger mess. The cause is losing the tactile feel of the mess as it occurs -- as well as the dexterity. ... A finger wiped off immediately on a 3ph pin or ball etc - or even the grass, is no longer messy. IF you can stand a little grease on your fingertips many spots on the tractor will benefit. The sock will keep the goo from your hands and take any excess on fingers. ... Then 1 paper towel when youre finished.

 

[masscity]

You know the cheap thermometers with the aluminum bracket that you mount on the outside of your window or where ever. I take the bracket and cut it to 6 inches or so and bend the end to about 1/2" to 3/4". I round off the edges and I use it to clean off the excess grease on my BH and FEL.

 

[PhysAssist]

Rubber gloves and a roll of paper towels help me a lot. I carry a trash can right by the machine I am greasing, put on the gloves and use a lot of paper towels. I wipe things off as I go and throw the towels away before they get so much grease on them that they themselves are making a mess. We often go through multiple tubes of grease a day with our various machines and it seems to work well.

We keep a [plastic] grocery bag hanging from the FEL post and just jam the too-soiled-to-use-again paper towels in there- then it gets emptied into the burn pile.

 

[PhysAssist]

Rubber gloves from Costco help a lot.

I bring an empty cardboard box and a roll of paper towels with me, when the towels get greasy, put them in the box.

Another tool I use is a 16d nail. It has two purposes. First it allows me to force a paper towel into the areas around a recessed zerk. Second use is that when the little ball in a zerk gets stuck, I put the point of the nail on it and push hard on the head. Usually frees it right up.

Hi CurlyD,

Get idea- and brings up something nobody specifically mentioned- but I'm sure we all do- that is pre-cleaning the Zerks and outflow areas before greasing.

To me, that's so much more important than afterwards- I think that the benefits of cleaning the Zerks is mostly obvious, but cleaning the outflow makes seeing and hearing the signs of adequate grease replacement so much easier appreciate.

We also have a Zerk clearing tool which gets filled with light mineral oil, clicked onto the Zerk, and then smacked with a hammer to free up the really jammed up ones.

I think we'll be using the nail more and the tool less from now on.

Thanks,
Thomas

 

[PhysAssist]

Ronald Reagan said "trust but verify". Regardless of his political efforts, Reagan was a natural teacher.

I believe we lack "natural teachers" in far too many cases and as a result our generational youth have not become the students of learning and work. If you are doing more than showing a neighbor kid what to do . . actually training a mind and hands . . then you are part of a heritage each generation handed down in this country . . that the "flower power" generation forgot was their obligation.

Over the years, we have co-opted a number of neighbor kids [with their parents blessings] to do yard work etc, and it seems like even with us there to set the example, guide, and motivate them to responsible work habits, only a few ever seemed to have any concept of work ethic, personal honor, or the value of earning money.

In my opinion, the ones who "worked out" were the ones who had parents who had already instilled those same values at a much earlier age- and as the years have passed, we are finding less and less of them- but we also find that it's worth seeking them out- and not just for what work they can do...

I was a lot like PaulFun9, except not really mechanically inclined, but my dad kept trying, and my inborn [?Germanic] doggedness and just general stubbornness made me keep trying, and so I keep learning.

 

[PhysAssist]

I like the sock idea and also I use the latex gloves and when I am done I slid the grease hose down in one of the fingers helps keep things clean.

That there is another excellent tip

 

[drizler]

I leave it on as a rust inhibitor..........

Gloves and wipe off any large globs with whatever is available.

That's what I do. I care a lot more about having it on there than having it getting on the paint. I just wipe off the big gobs if any and leave the rest be. As for nice clothes on a tractor........that's a mistake right from the start. You can't work well if you are always sweating getting dirty.

 

[SteveM70]

Where I worked all equipment operators were required to grease there equipment before starting there shift. A similar question came up one day about getting the grease off of hands. One guy said, "I just eat a sandwich once I'm done greasing."

Pretty sure it was a joke....mostly.