Best Grease Gun

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Dec 6, 2019
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Have owned multiple grease guns over the years and have never owned one that would work properly. They pump for a while and lose prime even with a full cartridge. I then have to take them apart and screw around getting grease all over me etc. Are there any that will work well. I realize that this is for use maybe 6 times a year. Any suggestions are appreciated.
 
I have an Alemite 555-E Pistol Grip thats at least 15 years old. Probably 200 sticks have went thru it.

I have had Dewalt Cordless, Lincoln Cordless, Lincoln Air Powered and a couple of Lincoln Lever guns thru my garages and heavy truck garage.. none have survived.

I am spoiled to the pistol grip now.
 
Originally Posted by Rand
I threw my older 2 grease guns out in frustration as they continually air locked at the worst times.

Lincoln Lubrication 1134 Pistol Grip
they make better but not for $37
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002NYDZ8/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1



I'm with Rand. There are a lot of things in life that are bad but among the top is a screwed up, air locked grease gun that doesn't work
when you lying under the 4Runner trying to grease the driveshaft. And it gets better when you try to fix it and get grease all over everything.
Then the paper towels get all stuck to your hands and you have to take the latex gloves off because they are all greased up and you can't
grip anything. And then you can't a new set of gloves on because your hands are now all sweaty because you got all urinated off with the
stupid grease gun after you hit yourself in the eye with the nozzle end of the faulty grease pump as you jerked it off the zerk on your way out.
Not to mention your wife asking you what these spots are on your jeans that didn't come out in the washer.

Yea, pay the $40 and get one good one. LOL
 
I believe that you do have to go to a more expensive quality gun to get anything any good these days. My guns are both Lincoln and I think that they were my dads before he passed, and I am 77 years old, and they work fine. I bought a cheap pistol grip one from Walmart awhile back, and took it back the next day.
 
I was greasing all the fittings on the steering linkage and pivot points on my outboard motor yesterday. Got maybe two fittings greased. Took the gun apart and got greased everywhere except the intended fittings. Thought I could beat the air lock out of it by slamming it against a post. Needless to say that felt so good I went ahead and ensured it looked like junk since it is. Thanks for the info. You do get what you pay for...
 
I have an Alemite pistol grip I bought in the '80s. It mostly looks like the one sold now, but mine has a plastic dipped lever, and the handle on the spring lever is steel, whereas the new one looks like plastic.
 
Question regarding the better quality grease guns: Can you leave the cartridge in the gun for use next time as long as the plunger is locked? Thanks
 
My grease gun from Sears which I have had for going on fifty years still works as designed. Not much use for it anymore because grease zerks are a thing of the past on most vehicles. Only thing I use it for now is to lubricate pivot on floor jack. Once a year.
 
I have had a couple of brands over the years that got flying lessons about 50 ft down the driveway. That way I dont stupidly put i away thinking it will finally work correctly next time.
 
I've had the air lock several times and never found a solution. Dropped a new tube in my cheapie gun the other day to get tractor and mower lubed up and noticed that the top, when screwed off, had a good amount of grease stuck in it. I took a couple finger fulls of grease from another tube and put some on the inside top of the gun and some on top of the tube that I had just put in the gun. Screwed lid on and it worked perfectly. Maybe just luck, but will try it that way next time.

Another prob I have is zerks clogging and nozzle not staying on, or if they do, grease squirts all over! Oh well, thats another story!
 
You're doing something wrong, probably don't need the "best" grease gun. Someone doing a lot of greasing, multiple times every day, may need one that's heavy duty to last longer, but that is different than a basic, fit-for-purpose problem. It is not rocket science, either the grease used was junk, or the storage environment too hot. Worst comes to worst, any non-defective gun should work fine if stored upside down in a bucket so it stays primed. Granted, this is within the context of using NLGI #2, if your grease is more viscous, you need a higher quality gun to pump it.

If your gun is defective, sure then replace it, but this has nothing to do with "best". A grease gun is a simple tool that just has to work, where paying extra is more about features if you need something specific. At the same time, don't buy the cheapest generic on Amazon. Like anything, there is a sane middle ground and then there are idealized internet posts which fail to mention that the average grease gun works fine without issues for many years. It does not need to be "best" at all.

Quote
You do get what you pay for...


This is not true. The average economy grease gun works fine. For only occasional use, with no special requirements, paying over $30 (regular price) or $20 sale price, is a waste of money.
 
Last edited:
Dave9 must know something the rest of us don't.
Please provide your solution.
The group here needs to know where we all went wrong.
Comments?
 
Ruger
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Never had an air locked grease gun and have done a good bit of greasing in my life, especially on the farm. We greased some equipment before every use. Never had a failure of a grease gun, but I would sure love to hear about any new or innovative grease guns because the lever type are not the easiest thing to handle in confined spaces or by yourself.
 
I have a Performance Tool pistol grip grease gun from O'Reilly that I bought as a get by. It's working well enough that I'm still using it. I replaced the coupler with a Lock n Load from TSC and then a Lincoln needle nozzle. I think the parts upgrades help.
 
Originally Posted by TheLawnRanger
I have a Performance Tool pistol grip grease gun from O'Reilly that I bought as a get by. It's working well enough that I'm still using it. I replaced the coupler with a Lock n Load from TSC and then a Lincoln needle nozzle. I think the parts upgrades help.

I tried three performance tool ones and they all sucked and I returned it and spent the extra to get the flexzilla. Loooooove it! Don't know how you can tolerate the performance tool crap.
 
Originally Posted by dogememe
Originally Posted by TheLawnRanger
I have a Performance Tool pistol grip grease gun from O'Reilly that I bought as a get by. It's working well enough that I'm still using it. I replaced the coupler with a Lock n Load from TSC and then a Lincoln needle nozzle. I think the parts upgrades help.

I tried three performance tool ones and they all sucked and I returned it and spent the extra to get the flexzilla. Loooooove it! Don't know how you can tolerate the performance tool crap.

As I said, mine does a good job. If it hadn't, I would have returned it.
 
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