What did we do... get the air out of my grease gun.

[rocketraider]

...before YouTube!

 

 

 

Yes, at 66 years old I couldn't remember how to get the air out of my grease gun.🤪

 

Hope I'm not the only one to get some benefit!😊 and the Ferguson tractor got greased!

[Andy J]

I've never given that a thought. I always just put a new grease cartridge in the gun and pumped away. I never had any problems with air in the thing.

[Mark Gregush]

I with a hand pump, I burp the hose.

[Frank DuVal]

After placing the cartridge in the cylinder (or after I suck grease out of the 5 pound pail), screw the cylinder back onto the pump section, then twist the spring rod so it goes back into the cylinder, I unscrew the cylinder until the grease comes out of the hole in the side of the pump section. Just like getting the air out of a cooling system with a bleed screw. 👍

[TAKerry]

.....before you tube?  The same thing I do now. I rarely partake.

[Steve_Mack_CT]

Amazing what is out there.  I wanted to remove console panels in a 20,000 mile wrecked 89 Mercedes 560 SL a long time ago when youtube was fairly new.  Pretty specific ask, right?  Yep, some guy felt need to post it, saving me some time and aggravation as well as ensuring delicate tabs holding wooden plate in place were not broken.  Thanks man! 👍😊

 

I do fear, as a father I am somewhat obsolete.  Adult son who was not really mechanically inclined prior to becoming a homeowner relies on the youtube and not the dad for most of that sort of advice. 😕

[R Walling]

HALLELUJAH!    HALLELUJAH!

 

 

Now I can use my grease gun after one year of no greasing my cars!

[JV Puleo]

Not to be a killjoy but my in limited acquaintance with youtube I've seen things attacked with the wrong tools in a ham-fisted manner by would-be "media" stars that shouldn't be allowed to own a screwdriver. I suppose there is some good advice in there somewhere but the viewer with no notion of how something works will have no notion of whether the person creating the video knows what they are talking about. I see no solution to this...it is what it is but I'd be very careful of following youtube directions in anything other than the most simple procedures.

 

That said, I have found the answer to one or two problems with domestic appliances but those were videos made by professionals who were doing so as a form of advertising...not a bad idea at all.

[Steve_Mack_CT]

Agree, but same applies to Internet forum advice.  Only as good as the source.  At least with forums you get the benefit of collective knowledge/vetting of replies.  

 

If one uses it as one of multiple resources it is probably best.  Now the challenge is convincing the boy of that...

[rocketraider]

That's why I went with the Lincoln video. There were others out there but I figured the Lincoln folks would have a really good handle on this. 

 

Of course, had I remembered in my decrepitude to unscrew the cylinder a couple turns to purge air I wouldn't have had to go in the magic box!

 

I think the last time I had to load the grease gun was before I retired 7 years ago. A shot of grease a couple times a year on 10 fittings on the tractor and four on the lawnmower doesn't empty a cartridge all that often. 

 

###

 

The first time I relied on YouTube to learn how to fix something was when I had to repair the steering column shift tube on the 93 F150. I have the Ford shop book which based the repair on the steering column being completely removed from the truck. That made no sense to me. The repair is common enough that several Ford dealer techs had posted how-to videos.

 

It's also common enough that the local Advance Auto had the improved design aftermarket part on the shelf.

 

Anyway, here's to "experienced" guys who sometimes can't remember what experience has taught them!

[60FlatTop]

I made it through 3 minutes. When I noticed the guy's name was Lucas I kept wondering if he had other videos. Distracted me.

 

 

My Go To gun has a little bleeder ball. I don't recall being taught to use it.

[rocketraider]

I have an ancient grease gun that has the bleeder ball. Easy to use, but the gun itself is just wore out. Needs to go to the dump. But it was my dad's.

 

The ones I have now have a bleeder screw that can be tricky. Fine line between purging out an air pocket and the whole screw popping out and emptying the tube while you're messing with it. And I was really trying to avoid that scenario...

[joe_padavano]

I guess I never even knew this was a problem. I always just screw the cartridge holder back onto the gun, release the spring-loaded piston and push the handle all the way in to lock it, then pump away. Usually takes 2-3 pumps before grease starts flowing.

[JACK M]

I sometimes use YouTube.

But usually watch a half dozen or so videos and glean a bit from each one.

Get the basics anyway.

[rocketraider]

39 minutes ago, joe_padavano said:

I guess I never even knew this was a problem. I always just screw the cartridge holder back onto the gun, release the spring-loaded piston and push the handle all the way in to lock it, then pump away. Usually takes 2-3 pumps before grease starts flowing.

That didn't work yesterday.🙃

[charlier]

I agree with others here that one needs to look at multiple sources when it comes to YouTube or Internet Forums for at least certain types of auto repair advice. 

 

A few years ago I had to replace the shifter bushings in one of my old cars. It had been a number of years since I did that so I watched a few YouTube videos on the subject. These videos gave step-by-step instructions and more than one said it was necessary to do it that way because that was the only way to get the long shift rod out to replace the bushings. I did the work one night at a friends auto repair garage after they closed (so I could use a lift). During the job I started laughing very loudly and my friend asked me what I was laughing about. I told him I had watched a few YouTube Videos that all said that all these parts of the shifter mechanism had to be removed to get the shift rod out. I found all I had to do was loosen the shift rod at both ends and turn it a certain way and move it at a certain angle and it came right out. That easily saved me 30+  minutes.

 

I used to post one of the largest on-line forums for a specific manufacturer's vehicles. There was another gentleman I knew that posted "How To" information on various topics. One thread was a discussion on what modifications can be done to the front suspension of a particular 20+ year old model car to improve it's handling. He posted a detailed response as to how to do it and pointed out (in a very respectful way) why other suggestions would not work. The teenage and early 20 somethings on that forum attack him viciously saying he didn't know what he was talking about and some other very nasty things.  I laughed SO HARD and SO LONG when I read their attacks. What all these "Internet Experts" did not know was that person they belittled and demeaned was actually an automotive engineer that designed and engineered that very vehicle who also raced that vehicle on a racing team. He never told them who he was or what he did for a living or for fun as he wanted to keep his professional and automotive enthusiast lives separate. I was one of  very few people that knew his identity and what he did for a living. Great guy, always giving back to the automotive enthusiast community.

[gungeey]

There are a lot of you tube videos that clearly show that not to do. 

[JACK M]

23 hours ago, charlier said:

I agree with others here that one needs to look at multiple sources when it comes to YouTube or Internet Forums for at least certain types of auto repair advice. 

 

A few years ago I had to replace the shifter bushings in one of my old cars. It had been a number of years since I did that so I watched a few YouTube videos on the subject. These videos gave step-by-step instructions and more than one said it was necessary to do it that way because that was the only way to get the long shift rod out to replace the bushings. I did the work one night at a friends auto repair garage after they closed (so I could use a lift). During the job I started laughing very loudly and my friend asked me what I was laughing about. I told him I had watched a few YouTube Videos that all said that all these parts of the shifter mechanism had to be removed to get the shift rod out. I found all I had to do was loosen the shift rod at both ends and turn it a certain way and move it at a certain angle and it came right out. That easily saved me 30+  minutes.

 

I used to post one of the largest on-line forums for a specific manufacturer's vehicles. There was another gentleman I knew that posted "How To" information on various topics. One thread was a discussion on what modifications can be done to the front suspension of a particular 20+ year old model car to improve it's handling. He posted a detailed response as to how to do it and pointed out (in a very respectful way) why other suggestions would not work. The teenage and early 20 somethings on that forum attack him viciously saying he didn't know what he was talking about and some other very nasty things.  I laughed SO HARD and SO LONG when I read their attacks. What all these "Internet Experts" did not know was that person they belittled and demeaned was actually an automotive engineer that designed and engineered that very vehicle who also raced that vehicle on a racing team. He never told them who he was or what he did for a living or for fun as he wanted to keep his professional and automotive enthusiast lives separate. I was one of  very few people that knew his identity and what he did for a living. Great guy, always giving back to the automotive enthusiast community.

I was in the boat business.

I learned early on that most boat owners know way more than me about what I did for a living.

Then there are the guys that call up wanting to talk to a mechanic. "Sir, could you maybe hold it closer to the phone?" or "Hold on, I need to start a work order".

I often had to explain to customers that I needed to charge for what I know as well as for what I do.

I was required to attend service seminars and classes to keep my franchise good. Not to mention the manuals and special tools. I don't share any of that with the do it yourselfers.

And I do not recall having much trouble figuring out a grease gun.