Here are a few more "helpful hints" from my experience with this process.
Mini-grease gun:
1. The mini gun works pretty well. I have used it for years. But I have recently found that a full-size gun is much faster, and I now use that exclusively. A full-size gun is not expensive - maybe $15 from NAPA.
2. I no longer even try to bulk-pack the gun. It is an exercise in frustration. Use the cartridges.
3. The instructions for the gun say to simply remove the plastic cap from the cartridge (1st pic), and then slide that end all the way into the barrel. On some cartridges, this leaves a foil seal (2nd pic) facing the pump head. The idea is that the pressure from the plunger will burst the foil seal, allowing grease to be pushed into the pump head. Sounds nice and clean, but on a couple occasions, a stray piece of the foil was pushed into the pump, blocking the passage. Better idea? After inserting the cartridge into the barrel, remove the foil seal with a sharp knife.
4. I have had a couple instances when the grease gun refused to pump. The handle simply flops back and forth uselessly. I tried pushing the plunger rod, with the idea of forcing grease into the pump head, but that doesn't work. I finally discovered the problem - there is a pocket of air trapped inside the pump, between the top of the cartridge and the pump head. To cure this, pull the plunger all the way out and latch it. Pull the pump lever outward away from the pump body (3rd pic). Unscrew the barrel and pull out the cartridge. Now with your finger, pick up a glob of grease from the back end of the cartridge, and pack it into the pump head, humping it up slightly. Pack it firmly to eliminate air pockets, and be sure to force a bit into the grease port (the small circular opening inside the pump head, 4th pic). Replace the cartridge in the barrel. Now when you screw the pump head onto the barrel, the grease that you added will contact the grease in the top of the cartridge, displacing the air between them. After screwing the barrel back into the head, release the plunger, and stroke the handle few times to confirm that the mechanism is loaded.
Bill
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Hybrid Mode
