| Pneumatic Grease Gun [message #204476] |
Fri, 12 April 2013 18:01  |
Luvn737s
Messages: 1106
Registered: June 2007
Karma: 2
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I bought a Craftsman Pneumatic Grease Gun with the thought that I could shoot the grease in farther since my old coach cannot be adapted to bogie greasers.
Does anyone have any advice on how to prevent them from air-locking? The little amount of grease that did come out was disappointingly low pressure for 100PSI input.
Randy
1973 26' Painted Desert
Ahwatukee (Phoenix) AZ
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| Re: Pneumatic Grease Gun [message #204479 is a reply to message #204476] |
Fri, 12 April 2013 18:54  |
JohnL455
Messages: 4447
Registered: October 2006
Location: Woodstock, IL
Karma: 12
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I have a Lincoln pnunatic with a burp valve you can press to let air out. Not sure if yours has that. Overall grease guns are a PITA and never seem up to the quality of other tools. I figured I'd buy the best and be done and get a Snap-on. They only have the cheaper Bluepoint series which has been prettty good for a single hand unit. The air ones are heavy and clumsy and I rarely use it. I guess the only pro one are the big pot type pnumatic where you only drag the hose.
John Lebetski
Woodstock, IL
77 Eleganza II
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| Re: [GMCnet] Pneumatic Grease Gun [message #204595 is a reply to message #204592] |
Sat, 13 April 2013 22:19 |
Dennis S
Messages: 3046
Registered: November 2005
Karma: 2
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Senior Member |
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Matt,
How are you measuring the lash? What is "free lash in three"?
I take the load off -- remove the wheel and try to measure the in/out of the swing arm at the edge of the brake drum. Is that similar to what you do?
As for greasing -- I think using a drinking straw to extract the old grease at least annually is a pretty good approach. The straw lets you know you have new grease. When I pump in the new, I wiggle the wheel/tire and bounce it up and down.
Dennis
[quote title=Matt Colie wrote on Sat, 13 April 2013 21:49
Gene,
I don't "wiggle the arms".
During each and every layup for winter work, I unload the rear suspension and measure the free lash in three and record it in the coach log book. It has changed very little in almost 30k miles. That may be because I pump moly loaded grease into them just about every one thousand miles.
I have records that the bogie bearing were re-bushed about 10k miles before I acquired the coach. At the current wear rate, I am expecting to need to service them again in about another 125K miles - maybe.
Matt [/quote]
Dennis S
73 Painted Desert 230
Memphis TN Metro
[Updated on: Sat, 13 April 2013 22:21] Report message to a moderator |
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| Re: Pneumatic Grease Gun [message #204620 is a reply to message #204476] |
Sun, 14 April 2013 08:45 |
JohnL455
Messages: 4447
Registered: October 2006
Location: Woodstock, IL
Karma: 12
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Senior Member |
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Nothing drives like a just greased vehicle. Gives that new car feel back for a little while at least. Probably takes up a couple thousandths x number of parts greased. Of course, so does a just washed vehicle-- something to do with airflow smoothness, or its in our heads. Anyway I don't own any vehicles with greased for life front ends. I remember climbing under Fords in the day to see plugs instead of zerks. I can see saving a penny x number of cars but the plug has about the same metal content. That and no distributor doors turned me off to earlier Fords
John Lebetski
Woodstock, IL
77 Eleganza II
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| Re: [GMCnet] Pneumatic Grease Gun [message #204632 is a reply to message #204595] |
Sun, 14 April 2013 10:05 |
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Matt Colie
Messages: 8547
Registered: March 2007
Location: S.E. Michigan
Karma: 7
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Senior Member |
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| Dennis S wrote on Sat, 13 April 2013 23:19 |
Matt,
How are you measuring the lash? What is "free lash in three"?
I take the load off -- remove the wheel and try to measure the in/out of the swing arm at the edge of the brake drum. Is that similar to what you do?
As for greasing -- I think using a drinking straw to extract the old grease at least annually is a pretty good approach. The straw lets you know you have new grease. When I pump in the new, I wiggle the wheel/tire and bounce it up and down.
Dennis
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Sorry Dennis, I left a word out. When I planned to do this, I wanted to measure clearance in three planes, but could not get the third, so I settled for "free lash in three - modes". More about this down the page.
I don't do the straw trick. I did it once and then decided that it was a waste of time for me. Why no straw? Simple, there is never old grease to remove. I try to grease the bogie pins every one thousand (Yes, 1K) miles. If you had been watching when I pulled the parking blocks at Dothan, you would have seen the grease gun come out - first. They still got greased once more on the 2200 miles that we took to get home. The grease I use is Valvoline Syn-Power (Moly - only the oldest tubes say Moly, but the part number VV985 hasn't changed) is a synthetic grease that won't age out easily, it doesn't separate like M1 and it is MoS2 loaded.
Doing a push/pull on the brake drum will include the rear bearing lash in what you feel. But, if you wrap fingers around to the backing plate, you can feel just the lash at the pin.
What I is do is kind of complex, but not too complex for someone as mechanically paranoid as I am (remember that when your boat brakes down, it can be a long walk). You need a mag-base dial gage and a giant screwdriver.
With rear suspension unloaded and not grease recently -
- Put the gage base on the casting to indicate lateral movement at the give a push/pull and read the side clearance on the pin.
- Put the gage base on the arm and set the gage to indicate the vertical travel. Here is where you need the large screw driver as my prybars are too thick. Try to move the arm up and down. this will give you a vertical clearance.
- This last is not my favorite, I could not figure out how to get a good push pull on the bearing. So, I put the magbase on the frame rail and indicated horizontally on the back of the spindle. This does not give a clear indication of the bearing clearance, but I am hopeful that the relative value over time is meaningful.
Right now, none of my numbers are not very big. The records say that it was re-bushed about 10k miles before I acquired the coach. But I have to start watching as this year's travel will top all prior years when we return from Bean Station.
Matt
Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
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| Re: [GMCnet] Pneumatic Grease Gun [message #204642 is a reply to message #204632] |
Sun, 14 April 2013 12:48 |
Dennis S
Messages: 3046
Registered: November 2005
Karma: 2
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Senior Member |
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Matt,
Thank you for the explanation.
Agree that removing the old grease is not necessary every time -- but mention it for the benefit of those who have not been regularly greasing or who recently purchased a coach -- it allows you to set a baseline.
I am sure my bogie pins have never been rebushed -- the trailing arm shows less than an 1/8 inch -- but I need to get a more accurate measuring device so I can follow the wear trend. The early 73 coaches may have had different bushing material (I have read nylon) so I want to watch closely. And I am still hopeful of the top hats freeing up enough to allow some adjustment in the end play.
Dennis
| Matt Colie wrote on Sun, 14 April 2013 10:05 |
| Dennis S wrote on Sat, 13 April 2013 23:19 |
Matt,
How are you measuring the lash? What is "free lash in three"?
I take the load off -- remove the wheel and try to measure the in/out of the swing arm at the edge of the brake drum. Is that similar to what you do?
As for greasing -- I think using a drinking straw to extract the old grease at least annually is a pretty good approach. The straw lets you know you have new grease. When I pump in the new, I wiggle the wheel/tire and bounce it up and down.
Dennis
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Sorry Dennis, I left a word out. When I planned to do this, I wanted to measure clearance in three planes, but could not get the third, so I settled for "free lash in three - modes". More about this down the page.
I don't do the straw trick. I did it once and then decided that it was a waste of time for me. Why no straw? Simple, there is never old grease to remove. I try to grease the bogie pins every one thousand (Yes, 1K) miles. If you had been watching when I pulled the parking blocks at Dothan, you would have seen the grease gun come out - first. They still got greased once more on the 2200 miles that we took to get home. The grease I use is Valvoline Syn-Power (Moly - only the oldest tubes say Moly, but the part number VV985 hasn't changed) is a synthetic grease that won't age out easily, it doesn't separate like M1 and it is MoS2 loaded.
Doing a push/pull on the brake drum will include the rear bearing lash in what you feel. But, if you wrap fingers around to the backing plate, you can feel just the lash at the pin.
What I is do is kind of complex, but not too complex for someone as mechanically paranoid as I am (remember that when your boat brakes down, it can be a long walk). You need a mag-base dial gage and a giant screwdriver.
With rear suspension unloaded and not grease recently -
- Put the gage base on the casting to indicate lateral movement at the give a push/pull and read the side clearance on the pin.
- Put the gage base on the arm and set the gage to indicate the vertical travel. Here is where you need the large screw driver as my prybars are too thick. Try to move the arm up and down. this will give you a vertical clearance.
- This last is not my favorite, I could not figure out how to get a good push pull on the bearing. So, I put the magbase on the frame rail and indicated horizontally on the back of the spindle. This does not give a clear indication of the bearing clearance, but I am hopeful that the relative value over time is meaningful.
Right now, none of my numbers are not very big. The records say that it was re-bushed about 10k miles before I acquired the coach. But I have to start watching as this year's travel will top all prior years when we return from Bean Station.
Matt
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Dennis S
73 Painted Desert 230
Memphis TN Metro
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