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Issues With Grease Nipple Threads?

Bote

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2021
Messages
289
Location
Kentucky
I replaced the pins and bushings in my 580M loader bucket/linkage over the weekend with parts from Broken Tractor and broke a tap in the first one trying to fix the threads for the grease nipple. The simplest part of the job turned out to be a real pain. I couldn’t get grease nipples to thread in any of the 6 pins. The threads appeared to be 1/8” 27 NPTF like OEM so I retapped them. Of course, I broke a tap off in the hardened steel on the first one and didn’t have an extractor that small, so I had to put the old pin back in. I didn’t tap the others as deep as I would have liked. I’ve never had a problem with OEM pins. Anyone ever had this issue? I usually scan eBay for cheap surplus OEM pins but hadn’t located what I needed for this job.
 

Bote

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2021
Messages
289
Location
Kentucky
That would explain it. As every nipple on the machine so far has been SAE I didn't think about that. I've bought a few pins from Reliable Aftermarket Parts and they were all SAE. I messaged Broken Tractor and they said the pins should have come with nipples and they were shipping some to me, but they didn't answer the question about the threads.
 

HarleyHappy

Senior Member
Joined
Sep 30, 2020
Messages
3,374
Location
So NH
Occupation
Welder/Mechanic
I had to buy an assortment of zerk fittings, SAE and metric. Even though already had hundreds of them, the sizes were generally wrong.
The worst, in my opinion are the serrated drive in ones.
Needless to say, the wife will have to deal with them, once I’m gone.
Of course the kits came with those stupid caps, think I just threw them away.
Depending on how broken the tap is, it would be worth trying to get out.
 

Simon C

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 1, 2015
Messages
2,990
Location
Rocky Mountain House , AB., Canada
Occupation
Heavy Equipment Mechanic
Taps are super hard so to get them out if they are jammed tight and if you have tried other things I :

1- Brakleen the tap and blow out all oils
2- Light a torch with a carburizing flame and coat the tap and the hole with as much soot as possible
3- Wipe off just the end of the tap with small screwdriver with rag on end with brakleen on rag.
4- Light the torch in preparation to cut steel and just hit the center of the tap with oxygen once red and blow in as far as you can for a second or two.
5- Usually if you made it close to bottom the sides of the tap will come out with a pick
Threads should all still be good as carbon from tap prevents anything from sticking to them.
Have done numerous times with success.
Simon C
 

Bote

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2021
Messages
289
Location
Kentucky
Thanks for the good advice. Broken Tractor won’t respond to my question about what the pins were tapped for, but they did ship new fittings which will be here tomorrow. I probably won’t do anything for a while except try and get the broken tap out of the one pin and see if the new fittings fit. I don’t have a cutting torch but I do have a set of prong security bits which I’ll try. The broken tap turns a few degrees with a pick but won’t come out. One of the bushings was a little tight for the new pin so I already planned on running the old pin for a few hours for the bushing to settle in. The other 5 pins all have SAE nipples that took grease and the threads didn’t leak so the machine was usable except for a dead battery. It was quite the day. The machine wouldn’t jump start, so I installed a spare. On the positive side, the bad battery would have been 9 years old next month. I like DEKA batteries, but I’ve never gotten more than 6 years out of one. Picked up a new one today for $191 including tax which is cheaper than the one I bought from Rural King for $100 that lasted 2 years.
 

Bote

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2021
Messages
289
Location
Kentucky
The only place on my 580M where 6mm nipples are used are on the king pins for the steering swivels. Everything else the 219-1 LUBE NIPPLE 1/8'' - 27 NPTF or the 45 degree 219-36. I can't claim that level of knowledge, but when Coaldust first posted on this greasy thread that he thought the aftermarket pins might be 10mm, I did an AI search of "lube nipples" in my digital parts catalog lol.
 

crane operator

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2009
Messages
10,146
Location
sw missouri
I have taken a socket and cut slots 90degrees to each other with a cut off wheel.

Making essentially 4 prongs sticking out, to catch the flutes of a tap someone broke off and left in a hole.
 
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