Grease Gun & Zerk Fittings

[Huff1013]

I have been living with a grease fitting on my lawn mower that would always squirt grease back out when I removed the grease gun. So today when I bought new blades, I remembered to ask about the grease fitting, and was given a choice of 2 kinds. Remembering that the old fitting was in a tight place and was a straight fitting, I chose the same kind... Boy, was I in for a surprize! This new grease fitting is a "Press-On" type. Also known as Drive Type or Drive Fit or Press In, this fitting does NOT screw in. Sure it looks like it has threads, but look closer... they are not threads. I have never noticed grease fittings that did not screw in, weird! The bad fitting was also the Press-On type, so I could stop being mad at the sales guy, and just be mad at the manufacturer for being cheap. Long story short - How the heck do you get the old fitting out? I was able to pry mine out! Be patient, I used a large flat screwdriver with a sharp edge and a hammer to tap up under the base of fitting, and gradually work it loose on one side then the other side. Finally it came out of the hole without breaking and no damage to the hole. I might could have wiggled it out with vise-grips, but it might have broken off too. The new fitting can be tapped into the hole with a small nut driver that's just large enough to fit over the ball end, but small enough to engage the base. Be careful, don't damage the new check ball. I searched all over the internet for "how to remove grease fittings" but not once did anything come up about how to remove these press-on type. Hopefully this post will save someone a few hours someday!! Todd