Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Ray White]

I have been struggling for years with my Dad's old grease gun. It leaks at the lever and gets pretty disgusting. In other words; it is knackered!

I have decided, therefore, to buy a new grease gun but it seems things have moved on. The thing these days is for cartridges ...which is annoying because I have a quantity of good quality lithium based grease.

Can a cartridge type gun be used without the cartridge; ie, fill with grease from a tin?

I definitely don't want anything that is too big or bulky. I have one of those and have found very little use for it. Besides, they hold too much grease for my needs.

I also don't want a battery/power type. Just the simple manual lever type would be fine.

Any suggestions which one I should go for?

[norustplease]

You can try and use it with grease from a can, but I find that the plunger usually doesn't seal as well. Suggest that you buy a cartridge and then when it is empty, refill that from the can and re-use it.
_________________
1953 Citroen Traction
1964 Volvo PV544
1957 Austin A55 Mk 1
Boring Tucson SUV

[Crashbox]

How about buying a good old-fashioned grease gun from eBay?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_nkw=old+grease+gun&_sacat=13849&_from=R40&_trksid=p4432023.m570.l2632
_________________
1989 2CV

1932 Morris Minor S.V. Two-Seater

[Ray White]

[Ray White]

[Rusty]

We tried a good quality grease gun at the farm that was "advertised" as being suitable for both bulk and cartridge use, but it used to bypass the plunger and leak the grease into the cavity behind the plunger. (pain in the neck) What I did to use up the grease we had in pails at the time was to load used plastic cartridges with grease and just use them, (I scabbed up some off the neighbours) it's no harder than loading the actual gun. If you wanted to do that any local business you know would probably give you a few used cartridges when empty, because most only consider them rubbish and bin them. We did have a "Teckalamit" bucket pump that made doing the top half of the pail easier, but it was designed for metal pails and plastic pails have a larger taper and could only be half emptied, and when you are filling 25 cartridges by hand it makes for a very slippery situation!!
The boys up at the farm now have a battery powered gun, and I used one where I used to work down here and they are actually very good and reliable but also ridiculously expensive.

[badhuis]

I bought an air-powered grease gun and never looked back. So much easier to use than the old hand lever pump.
These are not too expensive either and no running out of batteries.
_________________
a car stops being fun when it becomes an investment

[Ray White]

[alastairq]

The [REME-staffed by civilians] workshops where-I-used-to-work, had huge air powered greasing stations....

About the size of an industrial ''Henry,'' H&S warned not to try squirting grease onto the palm of one's hand....as the pressure was such it would actually inject one's hand full of grease, through the skin.

My main problem with all the 'grease' guns I have on site is, the loss of 'shove' from the piston, or lever.

Much time is wasted [by me!] pumping away, only to find nothing is actually happening.

I usually end up spooning the grease from the tin into the barrel/tube of the grease gun...never ever really truly getting all the trapped air out, of course. Not without getting myself greased up to Sunday, that is.

I firstly try inserting the barrel [tube] into the large can of grease I have...deep down inside the grease itself, then pulling back on the piston to draw grease up into the barrel of the gun.
Oddly...and perhaps indicative of a poor piston seal.....I never manage to get a ''full charge!''

Many have suggested I BUY cartridges of grease.

The emphasis on the word BUY being my biggest drawback.

I used to manage to refill my big grease tins from where-I-once-worked...as there were many brand new old stock large cans of grease sitting around our training areas.....

I now also use grease on my nealy-modern.....finding many so-called 'sealed-for-life' ball joints have a very short life span.....Shorter than mine, at any rate!

I invested a couple of pension-quids into a small set of hypodermic syringe-type fittings with grease nipples screwed on.....so now,when I fit something like a suspension ball joint...which may seem stiff to twiddle, from new, I use one of those grease needles to squirt small quantities [takes forever for a large quantity!] into the rubber boots...Same with anti roll bar drop links!. Frees them up nicely...and the resultant hole is too small to be investigated by dirt, etc.

It's one of my routine bits of servicing too...even though apparently not required.....cos I can lay on my back for an hour or two squirting grease in small quantities into track rod ends, ball joints, etc through the rubbers.

Whether that works or not, I know not.....Seeing as I have no idea how long they would have lasted if simply left alone, as the vendors want me to?
_________________
Dellow Mk2, 1951 built, reg 1952.
Fiat 126 BIS
Cannon special [1996 registered. Built in 1950's]
----------------------------------------------
Ford Pop chassis, Ashley 1172 bodyshell, in pieces.

[Rusty]

Alistair, "you should have been a farmer" (compliment)!!

[bjacko]

I bought an air powered grease gun. I was warned my a mechanic to be careful greasing the universal joints if I used too much air pressure it can blow out the seals.
I have lever type and old fashioned units that push to pump and even an oil gun. Non as easy as the air powered unit and it was not very expensive. I also use the grease farmers use on farm machinery it does not seem to pick up as much dust and dirt.
_________________
1938 Morris 8 Ser II Coupe Utility (Pickup)
1985 Rover SD1 VDP

[Ray White]