How to prime a grease gun?

It is very important to possess a grease gun while you own a mechanical workshop. It is essential hand tools power to lubricate the equipment for the smooth running of the machinery and to prevent friction. To keep the grease gun clear from airlocks and get them primed, a few simple suggestions can help. This article will discuss how to prime a grease gun. At the time of purchasing a new grease gun, the hose does not have any grease in it. To clear the air, you must prime the grease gun. To keep the things going, you must push the grease out of the cartridge because the piston is pumping the air without the grease in the tip of the grease gun. Let us dig deeper into three simple tricks to clear the airlocks from the grease gun.

After you have loaded a new tube of grease, screwing on the barrel will give it a full turn so that the air goes out. All the air bubbles collected above the grease will flow out.
If the above loosening the barrel is not successful, switch to another method. Use the air bleeder valve if the grease gun contains it. Continue to keep on pumping.
After trying both the above methods and still you are not able to get your gun primed, use all your manual pressure. Try to pull out the t-pull, the follower rod needs to come out from the barrel. As you pull, twist it into quarter or half turn. You will notice it popping down and getting locked in its place. As you push the t-pull, the pressure will be applied on the follower plate and it lets the grease to come out. At this time, you can either leave the bleeder valve partly unscrewed or you could even push it downwards. When the air is forcefully sent out, the grease is pushed into the chamber and it will enable the piston to complete its work of pushing the grease downwards into the hose.

The manual priming of grease guns

Unscrew the bleed screw to detect the flow of the grease gun by pumping it multiple times. Once the grease begins to flow, the screw must be tightened. Let the grease in the tube cool first, before you start this process. The t-handle and the rod must be placed in their original position. When you apply the grease if the grease gun wastes its prime, you must push the t-handle and rod several times. Now the grease gun is ready to use when the rod is positioned at the right spot.

Step — 1

Tug in the t-handle to pull off the grease gun. When you press on the handle downwards, it will get locked. The handle fits with the mini groove to keep it open while the grease gun is filled with grease.

Step — 2

Usually, the gun is screwed by the cylinder. The empty grease cartridge needs to be removed from the metal cylinder after unscrewing it.

Step — 3

The tube will receive the cartridge when you push the metal tab from one end and push the rubber or plastic from the other end. Check if there are any dents or broken ends. If you find any such common issues, don’t use such tubes to avoid the trouble. You need to move the new grease tube into the cylinder and place it back to its original position by screwing it to the grease gun.

Step — 4

From the new grease tube, you must pump out the air to free and allow the grease to move out. At this point, you certainly need to apply more pressure to build a force to get rid of the air out from the duct.

Step — 5

The handle of the grease gun needs to be pressed many times for the grease to flow outside. Use a cloth or wastebasket to avoid spoiling the floor of your workshop.

Step — 6

While operating your grease gun, if the lubricant is thick, the above procedure might take a bit longer. In cool climate certain grease flows slower than the normal ones, thereby heading towards loss of prime. Therefore, in such cases, you must cycle your gun gently to get the full strokes of the handle manually. The air pressure must be reduced if you are using electronic pyro lubbers or pneumatic gun to give more time for the grease to flow. Proceed by following the final steps to re-prime your grease gun.

Maintaining a grease gun primed permanently

The most common mistake done by many people is that they pump the grease till the cartridge becomes fully empty, this can lead to the air being filled in the hose and the grease gun must be primed again. You need to pump until the grease fully comes out. There are still chances of grease remaining in the hose and the tip of the gun. If you pull the follower rod downwards, you will be able to check how much grease is remaining. It shows you exactly the amount of grease left while stopping when reaching the follower plate at the bottom.

Tips for loading and priming the grease gun

Choose the correct and the right grease gun, for lubricating the machinery.
Never use different kinds of lubricants at different times. Apply the same kind of lubricant every time.
The nozzle and fitting must be kept clean before the grease is being pumped. Use a clean washcloth and some quantity of lubricant to clean the nozzle fitting.
Once the work is completed, loosen up your grease gun. Store it in a cool and dry place in an upright position.

Check this Article – How to Refill a Grease Gun

Final Words

Grease guns are the power tools used in the workshops for lubricating heavy automobiles, vehicles, and performing a mechanical job. The above article has touched on the topic of how to prime your grease gun. Before you could fill- in the grease, the grease gun must be exempt from the air inside the barrel. It is important to prime a newly purchased grease gun.

FAQ

How do you get air out of a grease gun?

An airlock is a common issue found in the Grease guns, to fix this problem turn the grease gun body Anti-clockwise for three to four times and pump the grease gun continuously until the grease comes out from the valve. This will release the Air to the top of the tube pump’s head. Now the Air will get released, and you can use the Grease gun usually.

Why is my grease gun not working?

There may be several reasons a grease gun may not work, but the most common issue is Air Lock. Just release the Air stuck from your Grease gun body try it.

How to put a cartridge in a grease gun

Unscrew and open the cartridge cap and pull out the metal rod handle outside, now remove the cartridge outside from the barrel and insert the new grease cartridge into the barrel to the head of the grease gun.