Front Vertical links

[gordont]

The vertical links on my S2 do not have grease nipples, I have just bought these (1/4 UNF) and will install, question is do I use grease or some sort of oil in these? should they be cleaned or flushed out first?
Any tips?

[summerinmaine]

The vertical links on my S2 do not have grease nipples, I have just bought these (1/4 UNF) and will install, question is do I use grease or some sort of oil in these? should they be cleaned or flushed out first?
Any tips?

Gear oil, and yes, if they have been greased.

[gordont]

thanks Jim

I believe they were oiled in the past, so next question is whilst I have a grease gun how do you get oil into a nipple (uurgh now that sounds weird!) Oil gun? if so any suggestions where to buy?

[gordont]

Thanks Jim

I believe they were oiled in the past, so questions now are....
What do I use to get oil into the nipple (without sounding weird)?
There has been no covering on teh hole for the last 13,000 miles and 2 years so maybe I should clean? suggestions? do I just flush out with kero?

[GrUmPyBoDgEr]

Gordon,

it sounds like you are preparing yourself & your car for a regime of regular maintenance & those trunnions do need it.
If you're not certain of the history I would recommend you replace the trunnions & clean everything thoroughly before re-assembling; it's a relatively simple job, the parts are easily sourced & not too expensive.
A thorough clean is vital even with new parts.
If you decide just to fit the (grease) nipples then clean the area around the blanking screw before doing the job.
"Cleanliness is next to Godliness", they say.
When pumping in the fresh lubricant keep an eye on the stuff that is being forced out from under the top seal.
As soon as fresh looking stuff emerges you have effectively flushed the joint.
Once again, when you next do a lub' clean the nipple thoroughly beforehand.
If you scan through the archives you will find many differing opinions about what lubricant to use; some, like myself, use grease, others stick "to the book" & use oil; there are others who use a mixture of both.
All make their claims for having the best solution.
The best solution is regular maintenance & how often you do that is dependent on the car's usage; too often is better than too late.
These things pack up, sometimes catastrophically, when neglected.

Cheers
John

[StoatWithToast]

Not sure about suppliers in Oz, but frosts in the Uk do a nice oil gun for this: http://www.frost.co.uk/item_Detail.asp? ... cellaneous

The links are sourced from Triumph and they are designed and spec'd for oil. Should be high pressure oil EP80 or 90. Sorry, I don't have a manual with me right now.

Because it's oil it should be done very often, I've been told every 200-300 miles by people I trust.

[alexblack13]

Hi Folks, Hello Gordon....


Great advice guys.

As far as the delivery tool is concerned. I just use a st'd Wanner, 1 handed grease gun & I only fill into it what I use per 'lube session', otherwise some of the Liquid grease I use makes it to the floor. Great advice from John regarding strip / clean / check etc. Bang on the money.

How hard can it be to make sure your trunnions last as long as they can? Well worth doing regularly. Safer and will save you money long term (Probably )

Al' ......

[gerrym]

On the question of what oil gun to use when injecting oil into zerk fittings (for the trunnions or anything else), I tried various grease guns and they all leaked oil and made a dreadful mess. I then then purchased some oil guns and they were rubbish. I've ended up taking a perfectly good but spare Pressol grease gun and after a simple modification, converted it into an oil gun.

The modification was simply to hacksaw off the end off the barrel complete with plunger for refilling with grease from a bulk grease container. Into the plain end of the tube, I epoxied glued into place an aluminium plug. If you want to make a nice job, knurl the outside diameter of the plug where it protrudes beyond the base of the barrel. This will make it easy to unscrew the barrel for refilling. To use as an oil gun, unscrew the barrel from the gun. The aluminium plug has a wide flat base so stable when filling/pouring the oil into the barrel. Then screw the filled barrel back into the gun. The barrel has an o ring where it screws into the gun. Invert the gun and the oil will flow into the pump suction. Easy to use and very effective.

Note I drilled and tapped a hole in the base of the aluminium plug. For storage, the gun sits on a simple aluminium bracket off the side of the workbench (or cabinet whatever) with a fastener screwed up by hand into the tapped hole. This stops the gun flopping over and dripping or seeping. The scrap spring from inside the barrel/plunger can be used as a hook to keep the end of the flexible hose tidy.

Will post a picture later, easy mod and makes a very effective oil gun.

Regards
Gerry

[summerinmaine]

I bought an oil gun many years ago for my Norton Commandos. Very nice piece of kit, but I don't remember where I got it.

Red can with a trigger plunger, high pressure hose and a grease gun type of fitting for embracing the nipple. Works great unless the nipple has already been clogged with dried grease.

[paddy]

I just have one of these:

http://www.tooled-up.com/Product.asp?PID=128600

on the shelf, permanently filled with oil. It doesn't leak when it's standing up and it works fine.

Paddy

[alexblack13]

I fitted a softer spring to the Wanner Gerry and so far....OK. Not so much pressure has helped stop it leaking when you forget to pull the tension off the spring.

Good mod though.. Might try that. Problem is I use the same gun for grease now n then..

Alex...

[GrUmPyBoDgEr]

Seems like nobody has built the perfect "grease gun" (for home use) yet!
I have two or three with different greases for different applications.
(ooops showing my age, that should of course be "apps" )
Stopping them oozing stick, slippery substances is beyond me so they live in plastic bags where they can wallow in it until I need to give them a good wipe down before the next use.
'Orrible devices of the devil!

John

PS Yup, you got it, cold & windy here I'm suffering from cabin fever & verbal diarrhoea

Ooops missed your posts Jim, Paddy you were too fast for me

[alexblack13]

Well done JP

Another good idea I never thought of!! I'm off to stick mine in a poly poke now..

The simple posts are the best for exposing great tips are they not?

Sunny lovely day here... Na na na nana....

Al' .....

[gordont]

thanks all, so on the question of oil just a standard gearbox oil??

[Robbie693]

Like others I have a few (inherited) guns for lubricating. The one I use for oil looks like a large syringe (or cake icer!) and has a cork plunger inside. This doesn't seem to leak when I'm using it and I empty and keep in a plastic bag after use..

Robbie