Grease gun wont work

[repairs]

My (hand operated) grease gun was working fine until it ran out of grease. I put in a new grease cartridge and now it refuses to work. I pumped it darn near 100 times, pumped that spring loaded shaft that goes into the cylinder (where the grease goes), and banged the top of it against a board to work the grease to the top. I did get out the last tiny amount that was in the tip, and I can hear it pump out air, but no grease. Is the gun dead, or is there some trick to it?

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, I am sure you open the cartridge?

[clare]

remove the "chuck" from the end of the gun and force some grease through the pump. Once it is primed it will pump again, but it's hard to prime with a snout full of air under pressure.

[Don Phillipson]

We need to insert grease cartridges (1) opened, viz. the retaining seal cut or broken open (2) right end up, viz. the opened end nearer the nozzle. (The seal is usually aluminum foil. This is what keeps the grease from leaking out of the cartridge during storage.)

[dpb]

_BOTH_ ends are opened...assuming a cartridge -- the bottom end fully, the top w/ seal removed. :)

I've not seen any cartridges that one could get into the gun upside down--there's a metal rim on the seal end; only a plastic cap over the other.

Sounds to me like OP didn't break the seal most likely culprit here...

[Roy]

Get your neighbor to show you how...or just chuck it and get another one. I'm sure this is just another nuisance posting as you don't have to be a rocket scientist to change a grease cartridge and get it to work.

[Jon Danniken]

Interesting, I have a "broken" grease gun with a similar set of symptoms as OP, which "broke" right after it ran out of grease.

I have been using my other grease gun, but now that I read this I'll have to tinker with the "broken" one to see if this fixes it.

Thanks.

Jon

[Stormin Mormon]

I've had that same problem, but many years ago. I saw your post a couple days ago, and been thinking, try and remember what I did to restart the grease. Probably the same things you did. I think the suggestion to remove the tip and pump some more makes sense. The problem sounds like you've got air in the pump, instead of grease. I also put a ring on the T handle end of my grease gun, so I can hang it, end up, and the grease should settle into the pump by gravity. Slowly, glacial slow.