Ive got grease fittings on various pieces of equipment. Do i just unscrew old and scerew in new fittings to fix this or could it be more that just the grease fitting?
Something I have used in the past is what's called a "grease buster" add a light weight oil "10w hydraulic" put on zerk and smack with a hammer. Forces oil through hole. Might have to do it a few times but generally works good.
removing the old grease fitting is step number one...clean out the hole, make sure the bearing or bushing is properly aligned, remove the old, caked grease is loosened. It can be a process... Howard
like said above, on bushings that are not lined up i drill a new hole in the bushing
Here is another thread on the subject that may help you. HeavyEquipmentForums I have replied to it too.I have found that soaking the joint with motor oil will often free it up after running the machine a while,it may work by lunch time or it may take a day or two but is worth a shot.Ron G
Lots of discussion on this, through the years... A few thoughts, moving a joint that is being greased, sometimes works, heating, ditto, kroil, ditto. One that has not been mentioned here, Lock-n-lube grease gun tip works well, about 95% of the time I've tried it. One that has never worked, other than to break grease fittings, is that rejuvinater tool...
Another idea, I'm sure it's in the link Ron posted, is to take another grease gun and empty the grease out(or start with a new gun) and in place of the grease fill it with a light oil like 10 weight hydraulic oil. Then use this to try to lube the fitting. The light oil will sometimes soften the dried grease and push it through. Then once it is free grease it several times a day while working machine to flush out the old stuff. Sometimes you have to remove the pin to get them to take grease or even in extreme cases press the bushing out to be able to clean out the passages. All this work because someone was too lazy to keep up on the greasing!
Porta power with penetrating fluid was the only thing that worked for me last time I had a zerk that wouldn't take grease. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
And to support THIS concept, I ordered a new grease gun last night, with a 8,000 psi working pressure and a 10k maximum pressure. I think I last bought a new grease gun, an Alemite, about 20 years ago and it is still going strong. I got that to free up some greasable spring pins on a old dodge panel truck I was tinkering with. Anyhow, looked on Amazon and this is what I ordered: http://www.amazon.com/Lucas-Variabl...&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00 Lucas King Kong Variable Pressure Aluminum Grease Gun Working pressure high-8,000 PSI, low-1000 PSI, max pressure high-10,000 PSI, low-2,000 PSI • Lightweight rust free anodized aluminum barrel and aluminum die-cast head and T handle • Variable pressure and volume and air pocket release valve • Uses standard 14 ounce cartridge I think filling this with generic tractor fluid might convince some stuck fitting to break free...and certainly cheaper than ONE pin and bushings set. Howard
I have seen this posted a few times on this issue and believe it would be the best(if one owns a porta power) I have not needed to use this method yet, I've had fair luck by just working it and using oil, but if I ever run into a tough one this is the route I'd take.
Normal hydraulic systems run at around 3k psi, I don't know a porta-power uses, but I don't own one or have access to one. If I can get 8k psi out of a $50 grease gun, I will try that first before dismantling a joint and rebuilding it. I once got involved in some HIGH pressure systems, we had presses that used 40k psi fluid and know of some Navy systems that ran at 10k psi. Howard
Squirting light oil (motor oil) on the pins and running them in their normal environment will often allow you to free them up using the greasing hardware you already have.It has worked for me for many years.Ron G
I have done this before, but if you try it, be aware that hydraulic oil under pressure can cut human skin, like a plasma cutter... I had a backhoe joint, that wouldn't take grease, and plumbed up a hydraulic line, from another machine, to the grease fitting in question. I covered the joint with burlap sacks and shop rags, had an operator move the joint, while I applied hyd pressure. It worked beautifully, bit don't let osha catcha ...
Modern (larger) equipment that uses 6-wire hoses (such as excavators, etc.) normally run in the 4-5K range, and I believe some run higher. Most Porta-Power type pumps use 10k psi, and my old Alemite grease guns (I agree about them being good), and the new Milwaukee electric I just bought both claim a 10k working pressure, but I don't know if they'd do it with light oil or not.
I agree with all previously mentioned techniques, but would add that Ive repeatedly used a porta power to clear grease ports. I learnt the trick from someone here after they suggested it. So to who ever it was, thanks, owe ya a beer. It works a treat.
The nice part if you don't have a Porta-Power etc is that the joint in question gets lubrication right away which is the object of getting the greasing circuit opened up using the squirt can to let the oil hydrate the dried,packed grease so that you can grease it again using the equipment you already have.Ron G
Ron, the problem with the method you are suggesting is that it assumes that the greaseway is only packed with "hardened" grease as a result of neglecting to grease regularly. In my experience generally the type of blockage we are referring to here is a mixture of old lubricant and dirt (that has entered via the pin side) and the resulting mixture has set to the consistency of concrete that even a drill bit would have trouble getting through. In this type of situation usually only very high pressure (if you're lucky) or disassembly (if you're not) will work. To quote lantraxco - YMMV .....
The reason that I am pushing this Nige is because it is a very simple and cheap solution and if it works you can go about your day with a smile.If it does not then you are really no worse off than you were before.I don't recall when it did not work however.I will shut up now and thanks for your reply.Ron G