grease guns

keh

Well-known Member

I have always had trouble with grease guns. They will get air locked, I suppose, and not pump. I have tried pulling the loading handle back and forth several times. When loading loose grease I try to push it down into the gun so as not to have air pockets. This has been the case for several grease guns, new and used. I wanted a gun that had the pistol grip handle and a flexible hose so I can use it one handed with the other handle holding the hose firmly on the grease fitting. I also started using cartridge refills. Worked fine. Then recently the gun did not work. Part of the cartridge had been used and I dumped the rest to put a new cartridge in. The gun still wouldn't work. Finally I thought, after examining the gun, that the plunger was not making pressure on the grease and there fore not forcing the grease into a slot in front of the piston that forces the grease out the hose. I thought the plunger may have hung up on the lip of the cartridge and it was not able to move enough to provide pressure. After a little rotating the charging handle and tapping the gun, I got it to work. Hope it keeps working and if not I can make it work again.

KEH
 
Sounds like you where getting an air lock. I usually loosen the head( don't take it off) on barrel and pump handle as I retighten it and some times have to do this several times to get air out.
 

The last time I had trouble with a grease gun, it was just after I installed a new cartridge. The gun had always worked before that cartridge. I tried every thing to vent it - grease just would not get up to the pump.

Finally, decided to try another cartridge.....it was then I discovered the pop top seal was still on the end of cartridge.
 
I had trouble with a grease gun once; in 1969, i bought a new one. then 10yrs later i cleaned to old one and now i have 2. unscrew the head about half-way while priming the gun. if that don't work clean all the old hard grease from the vent.
 
I have the same problem. I've seen little air purge valves at the store, do they work?
But on a related topic, I got one of those lock n lube ends (do a web search with a hypen on both sides of the n) and it works pretty good.
 
Some grease guns have a little trigger that stops the lever from entering. About four pumps and you have to rotate the plunger or the gun will stop. I don't like those grease guns.
 
A friend and I had this conversation last week. He said he hangs his with the hose down and has much less trouble. I have been bumping mine on a tractor tire for years to get them going.
Richard
 
What I do is this. I put in a new tube. Tread the end on just enough to hold well then let the pull back handle loss then screw it the end tight. Never have an air lock when I d it that way and been doing it that way for decades
 
Plan ahead. When a tube of grease runs out, unscrew the gun tube BEFORE you pull the plunger. Get rid of the empty, put in the new one. Then leave the tube about one thread loose until the gun starts pumping again. Works for me.
 
I consider a grease gun a necessary evil. I just think about or look at a grease gun and suddenly I've got grease on me somewhere. I taken to using nitrile gloves now when I grease something, afterall the gun seems to have as much grease on the outside as on the inside and I just toss the gloves. Oh well if I didn't like it, I could just get rid of all my rusty junk and the grease guns. Must be a glutton for punishment. lol gobble
 
That is just the nature of the beast, they get an air pocket and quit pumping.

Very easy fix! Take the hose or tube off where it screws into the gun. Hold your finger lightly over the hole using it as a check valve. Pump the gun until it burps out the air, reinstall the hose!

I always leave the hose hand tight so it is easy to get off when it quits pumping.
 
Used to have trouble like that until I found better grease guns. Now I just screw the end on loose, release the piston, pump and tighten. Pumps until cartridge is empty. Two guns are old ones from yard sales.
 
With McNaught guns you can pull the plunger rod back and then turn it so it locks in the plunger. Then lean on it as you work the pump to get the air out.

Not sure of other brands.
 
Most grease guns have little hole on the outlet head that is made to bleed air out as the plunger is squeezing the grease. You have to have a couple of threads loose before tightening and you'll see the grease come out of the little hole, then finish tightening the head. bjr
 

How complicated can a grease gun be. I have a old lincoln that has served me well I could trash it it owes me nuttin. Every now and again I need it and have to fight it to get it to work so after reading your post I took it apart to see what was up with it.

It has a check valve that had about unscrew from the head, under the check valve is a cone spring to keep the ball seated on the pump stroke. The valve assy had got so loose the spring had fell into a hole. The spring had got smashed up buy the piston so I did the best I could do to reshape it. Put it back together with a tube that was 1/3 full it picked up the prime fast and works again. :D

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My go to guns.

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That same procedure has worked well for me as well,on any brand of grease gun that my employer provides.
 
By far the biggest mistake people make is failing to pay attention to the little arrow on every case of grease that says "THIS END UP" When stored correctly all the air ends up in the end of the tube, when stored on the side you have air the entire length of the tube and have continuous troubles.
When the grease tubes are properly stored you place one in the gun and then screw the head on the gun snug then back it off a turn or two. Now here is the trick that few seem to know. Pull the rod out and turn it until it is in the position where it cannot be easily pushed back in (locked to the follower) Then while pumping the lever push the rod against your leg which forces the air out. When grease pumps tighten the head then turn the rod until it can easily be pushed in, done until the tube is empty.
 

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