Grease - is there no better way? Can we talk about this?

[jrsavoie]

I;m still using an Alemite about the same age. Kids gifted me a Lincoln cordless about ten years back that quit working after about the third tube. I will get around to fixing it when I find the time.

I tried 3 Licolns and got my money back after the third

 

[just_Dave]

Not an expert but was in another thread reading the type aka makeup of the grese needs to be compatible with what is already in the machine, so avoiding mixing of different brands and staying with what is recommend by the manufacture is and can be a good thing. this is related to the quality or brand wise.

in terms of using it assuming the part isn't past it's prime is epic important, pins on a bucket depending on the environment could need to be lubed every few hrs. drivelines on a tractor every day to few days might be way more then needed but not enough in wet muddy areas..

In terms of staying clean... hot pressure washer is great in getting the device clean and then being reasonable on keeping it clean with a rag, towl, etc and yes dirt on the hands is handy way to clean up.

 

[eKretz]

I have a DeWalt electric grease gun and it has been great. I'm not sure why some guys make a big deal about whether a gun is manual or electric. I can pump just as slowly with the electric as I can with the manual. The electric is nicer for quickly running through a machine with a lot of zerks. One hand connects the line to the fitting, the other hits the trigger. Pop it off, move to the next and do it again. No hand repositioning. With a manual gun you have to remove that hand from the fitting and use two hands to pump. On a machine with 30+ fittings that can add a bit of time and even more mess.

 

[Merck]

One of the things I hate most about working with equipment is grease. I recently decided I was going to make it easier by getting a battery powered grease gun. Then I opted to put a lube lock fitting nozzle thingy to try to reduce the mess.

It helps but the grease and mess still gets everywhere.

All over my hands. Ruined countless numbers of rags. All over the tractor in places I'd rather not have it. All over the grease gun and even some of my other tools.

Is there a better way? Are there any products I should look into?
Is there no newfangled alternate to grease that isn't quite so messy?

Grease makes the already unpleasant task of maintaining equipment even less pleasant.

You should be glad they still put grease fittings on them. Within the next few years I expect to see them disappear just like they did on cars and pickups. Of course in the case of cars and pickups most people never greased them anyway. I hope it isn't the same for tractor owners.

 

[ning]

I have a cheapazz grease gun I got from the local napa auto parts, or maybe HF idk, and I don't have a problem using it with one hand. Lock n' Lube at the end of a short flexible hose and I manage just fine.
The gun does get messy in storage, so it sits in an ancient coffee can.

 

[dodge man]

I just greased my tractor today and ran out on the last zerk. I don’t usually have to bleed air out but today I did. I circled the bleed screw in red and it took me a few minutes to get it going. I use about 5 to 6 clicks of the gun when I grease. It doesn’t put out a lot with a click, about how much toothpaste I would squeeze out.

 

[Squirrel's242]

I have a DeWalt electric grease gun and it has been great. I'm not sure why some guys make a big deal about whether a gun is manual or electric. I can pump just as slowly with the electric as I can with the manual. The electric is nicer for quickly running through a machine with a lot of zerks. One hand connects the line to the fitting, the other hits the trigger. Pop it off, move to the next and do it again. No hand repositioning. With a manual gun you have to remove that hand from the fitting and use two hands to pump. On a machine with 30+ fittings that can add a bit of time and even more mess.

Not necessarily. The pistol grip manual models allow one handed pumping. I'm one handed and aint got a choice to use two. But point taken on the quickness of an electric model, especially with a large number of zerks to get to.

 

[ultrarunner]

I had to buy a pistol grip because some are too awkward to grease with one hand holding the fitting.

As a kid my uncle greased his sickle bar mower every morning as he let the diesel warm up…

Later I greased all the fittings in my Model A’s… even the brake and clutch pedals have grease fittings… water pump has a grease cup.

My Bridgeport has a single pump to grease all… works well.

The large back gate at the farm wouldn’t budge with the opener… seller said she could not open it… it’s was very difficult but once I did grade it no more problem.

 

[gckshea]

One of the things I hate most about working with equipment is grease. I recently decided I was going to make it easier by getting a battery powered grease gun. Then I opted to put a lube lock fitting nozzle thingy to try to reduce the mess.

It helps but the grease and mess still gets everywhere.

All over my hands. Ruined countless numbers of rags. All over the tractor in places I'd rather not have it. All over the grease gun and even some of my other tools.

Is there a better way? Are there any products I should look into?
Is there no newfangled alternate to grease that isn't quite so messy?

Grease makes the already unpleasant task of maintaining equipment even less pleasant.

Buck up, Buttercup. Not really anything but a First World problem.

 

[NUTTERDW]

If my hands are greasy I just pick up a handful of dry dirt and scrub them like washing my hands. The dirt absorbs the grease and the dirt wipes off my hands easily. If one handful isn’t enough I do a second round. Dad always said that grease is cheaper than parts.

One thing I have learned to do is grease what ever I am using when I finish while I am dusty or dirty from the days work, then it is ready to go the next time I use it. If it has been a period of time I usually hit it with a few pumps of new grease before I start work.

 

[tomplum]

I quit greasing my tractor in the living room at my wife's request. This could be why...

 

[HamishMacCheap]

I have only used manual grease guns in my lifetime and never saw the need for a cordless grease gun until I saw a local farmer use a forestry mulcher to enlarge a couple of food plots of mine. The mulcher was a hydraulic powered rotating drum mounted on a large Kubota skid steer and he had to stop mulching at one point to grease the mulcher. He used a Dewalt cordless grease unit and he used probably almost all of a tube of grease. I think he would have been greasing for some time if he used only a manual grease gun. It impressed me.

 

[RayIN]

what techniques do you have for purging air in newly replaced cartridge manual grease gun? that's my only issue & don't mind getting messy when gun works properly. regards`
do pneumatic guns work better in that regard? my experience is no

To purge air from my grease guns, I open the lever all the way, firmly hold the end of the barrel, then swing downward like I'm hitting a golf ball as far as I can, but in both directions; this forces grease towards the pump and squeezes the air bubble to the rear-end of the tube.
I've used that technique ever since dad taught it to me when I was old enough to use a grease gun, it has never failed.
There is a distinct advantage to using a battery-powered grease gun, especially when greasing hard to reach zerks. Nearly all hard to reach zerks require 3 hands, especially when you have a flexible hose on the a manual gun.
I use my battery gun so infrequently the battery is always run-down, so I have to anticipate and put the battery in the charger the night before I need the gun.

Anyone else have a designated charging station in your garage?

 

[dieselscout80]

I use Dawn dishwashing liquid and some water to clean my greasy hands. Works great, better than some mechanic's hand cleaner I've tried. I figure if they can use it to clean birds after an oild spill, it ought to be good enough for me.

If you add baking soda to it it’s gritty like fast orange hand cleaner.

 

[solo machine]

Explain, please.

I'm a machinist also. I see a lot of equipment come in the shop to be reworked that looks like it was greased when put in new, then never again. Just came in, a 1 3/4" shaft that is near worn in half.

 

[RayIN]

I still have my old compressed-air grease gun that fits a 5G pail of grease. No need for it now the haying equipment and feed grinder is gone, so it just sits collecting dust.

 

[number two]

Wow!
Another one of those threads that bring seldom posters to the surface.
Good Luck!

 

[flyingace43]

I picked up one of these guns from HF. It is awesome! I have zero mess, it purges itself very quickly on cartridge changes and those changes are very simple. There is a little rubber housing that the nozzle fits into for storage that prevents a mess from occuring. I have had zero leaks of any kind, couldn't be happier. The battery lasts forever, couldn't even tell you the last time it was charged.

https://www.harborfreight.com/20v-cordless-variable-speed-grease-gun-tool-only-58607.html

I have the same one and agree it is great never have to purge air just put in a new cartridge and go and I have probably put 25 tubes through it as I don't need much for the tractor but I have a stump grinder which use a lot of grease for the grinder wheel so this time of year I may use a tube a week. Best $120 I ever spent. I think I charged the battery a year or so ago? It is about half the cost of the other top brands and I was a little hesitant about a harbor freight gun but it has been really good for what I paid. I also have a lock and lube which works well.

 

[jrsavoie]

KTo purge air from my grease guns, I open the lever all the way, firmly hold the end of the barrel, then swing downward like I'm hitting a golf ball as far as I can, but in both directions; this forces grease towards the pump and squeezes the air bubble to the rear-end of the tube.
I've used that technique ever since dad taught it to me when I was old enough to use a grease gun, it has never failed.
There is a distinct advantage to using a battery-powered grease gun, especially when greasing hard to reach zerks. Nearly all hard to reach zerks require 3 hands, especially when you have a flexible hose on the a manual gun.
I use my battery gun so infrequently the battery is always run-down, so I have to anticipate and put the battery in the charger the night before I need the gun.

Anyone else have a designated charging station in your garage?

Everyone should have a designated charging station somewhere.

There's been a few fires.
I had 2
Both were on a concrete floor.

 

[jrsavoie]

I still have my old compressed-air grease gun that fits a 5G pail of grease. No need for it now the haying equipment and feed grinder is gone, so it just sits collecting dust.

I used to think about getting new grease in my 5 gallon grease bucket that refilled hand grease guns. Wish I had done it years ago.
Easier and faster than changing a tube of grease. Best used with a grease gun that the rod comes out as the grease gun is filled
Never have an air problem.

Does anybody have a recommendation for a good quality pistol grip grease gun?

Mine are old and failing
I had 4. One for each shed. I'm down to one. And it's leaking past the plunger. I'm wishing I had looked into fixing the others.

The guns I have bought since, suck
A lot of squeezing and not much grease pumping.

Sad to say, my wife had done all of the greasing this year.