When they use a grease gun has an hydrostatic pump to they need to modify it to pump water? and would the zerk fitting work for the connection. I have used a commercial unit like David R8 purchased. But I would like to try a grease gun< it sounds like a good cheap substitute. Any tips would be appreciated before I waste my time and money.
hydrostatic water grease gun?
- Thread starter fixerup
- Start date
I haven’t seen hydrostatic testing done with a grease gun. My only experience with grease guns is the one my dad had which seemed to put more grease on him than the intended fitting.
Doggggboy
Ultra Member
I believe it is just used to pump grease into the tank, not water. The tank is filled to 100% capacity with water and then the grease gun is used to create pressure by attempting to overfill the tank with the little bit of grease it would take.
I've never done it so I could be very very wrong but I think that's how it works.
That's a good idea, I can just use my existing grease gun without modifying it. I like that and if I am concern with grease contaminating my test subject , I can just use a longer hydraulic hose, let say 18" and fill that with water. Providing the system is well bleed of air and not leaking, I should be able to quickly build up some pressure before much grease flow. My pressure relief valve would need to be close to the grease gun so that after the pressure test is completed I can let the grease ooze out right at the grease gun and not in the test subject.
I don't think the zerk fitting will be a good idea if I was using grease , I would not want to deal with grease oozing out every were. I would do the set up with solid fitting connection. I just thought the quick disconnect feature of the zerk would be nice.
I tried searching the Web and only found one video of AvE
. From that video, it looks like a grease pump can't build pressure with a low viscosity fluid, so a check valve would be needed if water was used. Now, I remember seeing a check valve on that commercial hydrostatic pump unit we had at work.
Just got thinking about the Zerk or grease fitting, they are kind of a crude check valve. Maybe the grease gun don't have internal check valve and they rely on the zirk.
historicalarms
Ultra Member
Lots of usage for grease guns to build pressure, and they will build a LOT of pressure with a simple zerk-segmented gun head hookup. I have seen & used grease guns used to build tons of pressure to tighten big Cat rails tight enough to stop a 400 hp engine from turning the tracks ( weren't supposed to be even close to that tight but dude kept pumping the handle until he couldnt pump no more). Sometimes the join will leak a bit or a lot of grease but if the zerk and hose end are in good shape just hand pressure on the hose will give enough of a seal that leakage is very minimum.
I have never had to do it but some gunsmith's keep on hand a grease gun to pump grease into a rifle barrel to remove a stuck bullet or stuck empty brass
I have never had to do it but some gunsmith's keep on hand a grease gun to pump grease into a rifle barrel to remove a stuck bullet or stuck empty brass
I saw a post by a gunsmith that had a rig he would stick in the tailstock for that. Used soft brass for the seal surface, would not mar the rifling or finish. Simple tube with a hole in the middle, cross drilled for a grease zerk. Pretty elegant solution to a repeat problem in a Gunsmiths shop, IMO!