So I found these from lock and lube. Let’s the grease back into the gun. No mess, seem to work great so far. Pressure Return Valve For Use With Cordless Grease Guns No more pressure locks! Returns grease to the tube. Releases hose back pressure. The LockNLube Pressure Return Valve allows grease to flow from the hose back to the barrel with just the twist of a knob. No more pressure locks and messy, unsafe disconnections. Eliminates waste and extends coupler... locknlube.com
I have one I've not yet installed. The way that company stands behind their products leaves little desire to go anyplace else. I tore the high pressure grease seal in my coupler rocking it back and forth on a Zerk fitting after tensioning one of my tracks, (frozen track release unit at the time) and was pressure locked. I called expressing concern of how to preclude this in the future and they insisted to replace the coupler. In the package also was one of these relief valves. I called them back offering to pay for the items as it really wasn't their fault at all and was told directly they didn't want me to have the problem again and were happy to offer this solution. Told them I would spread the word of their good service and here we are. I personally know of five couplers they've sold based on my good service from them. Hopefully that number will grow.
May as well add to this scenario. Here is the original coupler they replaced; it was a father's day gift from my daughter earlier this year. Looking at the red urethane insert you can see where the side of the insert is blown out from the pressure: Unbeknownst to me at the time, the packages these are shipped in contain a rebuild, or insert kit to readily repair the couplers. At the time this was not aware of this as I didn't have the package and they didn't ask. Regardless I can't rave more favorably for them as they did me right and I have since purchased another short, and the extra length grease couplers. The longer one reaches right down into the crevasse where a zerk resides for the center spindle bearing on my rotary cutter so I no longer need to remove panels for access.
Neat but ill deal with a bit of grease on an occasional fitting vs spending $75.
They are for when the fitting will not take grease. when your coupler gets locked on to the fitting. If you keep ripping the coupler off under pressure it ruins its abillity to grab the fitting.
Huh. Oh well.
L&L has a pressure release feature on their foot pump grease gun unit. Works well and keeps me from damaging a locked-on coupler. I've wasted an untold number of conventional couplers due to high pressure lock-on situations. The release on the L&L lever style coupler usually prevents this with the exception of really high pressure locking. I normally get over a year or two use out of a L&L coupler before I need to do a rebuild. Compared to changing out conventional couplers and lost time, the lever style coupler paid for itself within the first 6 months. I used to get 1 day to 1 month out of a conventional grease coupler before they started leaking profusely. Next time I make an order, I'll be looking at these relief valves. Time saved is money saved. Why waste it on a damaged coupler if there is no need to?