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The Art of Greasing

Yahoo Message Number: 40048
Hi Folks,

Greasing is at the top of a coaches scheduled maintenance list. The Files section of this user group has a good topic on when things need to be accomplished.

There are some important details for proper greasing.
1. Know the number of zerks on your coach. My coach has 16 in the front, 4 in the rear and 3 on the drive shaft. Some coaches have zerks on the steering wheel shafts. I grease the 4 knuckle zerks on the IFS lightly even though the manufacturer says they are sealed for life.
2. Grease selection - I prefer to use the NAPA crimson.
3. Cleaning before and after greasing. Before means cleaning the zerk
end. I use a needle tip for greasing as it guarentees that the grease goes in.

After greasing, I scrap all the grease off that oozes out and wash with paint thinner. After greasing the drive shaft slip, I back up and forward several times and then wipe the grease from the weep hole at the rear universal joint. There are 2 zerks on each universal joint - I grease both zerks to get a even distribution. A thin screwdriver and 1 inch scraper work well to remove the excess grease. And lots of rags for cleanup.
Fred Kovol

2000 Allure 30593

The Art of Greasing

Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40057
"3. Cleaning before and after greasing. Before means cleaning the zerk end. I use a needle tip for greasing as it guarentees that the grease goes in."
Fred

I'm not clear on how you grease with a needle tip.

I use Mobil 1 synthetic grease. It is red.
I do a lot of clean up as you do, but I use paper towels. I take a paper grocery bag under with me and stuff the dirty paper towels in it. A paper bag will stay open whereas plastic won't.
Interesting you lightly grease the sealed IFS knuckle post zerks. I pushed my O-rings out a bit doing that. Now I have to grease them in order to prevent any contamination from going in reverse. Since the bearing is sealed with an O-ring and you keep pumping in grease albeit a small amount, looks like the system would have to relieve itself of pressure somehow eventually.

George Harper
04 Allure
31093

Re: The Art of Greasing

Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40061
Hey Fred,

Thanks for your great primer on greasing! I have a little trouble getting my body to cooperate while cranking around under my coach so I avoid it whenever possible. My last lube, oil and filter change source was at the Service Center at Flying J, Gorman, CA. last month. It was fast and convenient. It was mid-day and they were not busy so, I was first in line. They had me in and out in about 90 minutes.
However, now you have me wondering how many fittings they may have missed. Their invoice does not show how many zerk fittings they serviced. I am not sure if a truck lube tech even knows how many there are and where each fitting is located. Are the drive trains and suspension systems on 18 wheelers and MoHo's similar enough so that the lube jockey would know what to do? I am thinking that maybe I should make photo copies of the Country Coach chassis lube chart to attach to the work order for each lube and ask the tech to sign off on it. That seems fair to me. After all, they asked me to sign off on the invoice that I heard the click of the torque wrench tightening the drain plug. This "click tune" witnessing is common procedure with Flying J and some other sources. I was told that the reason is that some unscrupulous trucker tried to get a new engine by claiming that they did not install the plug properly.
Anyway, has anyone had any experiences with using Flying J as a source for lube, oil and filter changes? Good? Bad? Indifferent? Now I am wondering if I need to blow the dust off of my old creeper and crawl under to check each zerk fitting for fresh grease! Any comments?

Daron Hairabedian, '98 Allure, #30226.

Re: The Art of Greasing

Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40063
The trick I use is I make a copy of the page in the chassis manual that shows the location of the lube points. That along with any precautions needed is handed to the tech doing the job.

Jim Hughes

2000 Allure #30511

Re: The Art of Greasing

Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40064
That's why I always do my own lube job. It took me a long time to locate the 26 (?) grease fittings on my chassis. I'm not confident that a grease jocky would take the time to find all of them. It doesn't take long and I know it's done right. By the way, I never knew Flying Js did service.

Larry 30856

Re: The Art of Greasing

Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40098
Larry,

Thanks for your reply. I have not yet pulled out the chassis lube guide so, I do not know how many zerks there are on my coach. I may take an Advil and try crawling around down there soon.
In answer to your question: Yes, Flying-J has some service centers but, only a few. On the West Coast there is only one. That is the one that I visited last month in Gorman (I-5 at the top of the Tejon Pass). You can find them by going to www.flyingj.com Then click on locations, then the state. The service centers have a checkmark under the "J-care" column.
BTW, a mechanic once told me that the best way to lube the front suspension components is to remove the load first by jacking up the frame. That sounds way too complicated. Does anyone do that? Is it usefull and necessary? Daron, '98 Allure, 30226

Re: The Art of Greasing

Reply #7 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40102
Thanks Daron. I've heard about jacking the front-end for a lube but have never done that. I wonder if the lube shop does? Thanks for the Flying J info.

Larry 03 Allure, 30856

Re: The Art of Greasing

Reply #8 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40120
BTW, there is a J-Care east of Blythe, California just inside the Arizona border. They changed the oil on my coach once.
If you have IFS and have anyone lube the chassis that is not familiar with it, you need to give them a drawing showing the Zerk fittings that do not get lubricated. Otherwise, you run the risk of having the seals pushed out. See Holland Neway Bulletin # 954 60 002.

Al Colby

2000 Intrigue 10979

Quote from: Larry Feather

Re: The Art of Greasing

Reply #10 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40205
Great suggestions. Also to add, if you have king pins in the front suspension, either straight axle or IFS, they must be off the ground to properly grease them. We jack all front ends up to grease and on our Semi customers, the difference between jacking up or not is 250,000 miles if greased on the ground and 1,000,000 miles of component life if greased while off the ground.

Dick Lorntson
Precision Frame
Elk River, MN
2004 Damon SOB

Re: The Art of Greasing

Reply #11 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40293
Thanks for the input and good feed back, nice string of information.
I too have a difficult time getting myself under the coach - do you guys run it up on blocks or have you some other method to get additional ground clearance?

Thanks
Mark

03 Allure #30916

Quote from: fredkovol
Hi Folks,

Greasing is at the top of a coaches scheduled maintenance list. The > Files section of this user group has a good topic on when things

need

Quote
to be accomplished.

There are some important details for proper greasing.
1. Know the number of zerks on your coach. My coach has 16 in the > front, 4 in the rear and 3 on the drive shaft. Some coaches have

zerks

Quote
on the steering wheel shafts. I grease the 4 knuckle zerks on the

IFS

Quote
lightly even though the manufacturer says they are sealed for life.
2. Grease selection - I prefer to use the NAPA crimson.
3. Cleaning before and after greasing. Before means cleaning the

zerk

Quote
end. I use a needle tip for greasing as it guarentees that the

grease

Quote
goes in.

After greasing, I scrap all the grease off that oozes out and wash > with paint thinner. After greasing the drive shaft slip, I back up

and

Quote
forward several times and then wipe the grease from the weep hole

at

Quote
the rear universal joint. There are 2 zerks on each universal

joint -

Quote
I grease both zerks to get a even distribution. A thin screwdriver

and

Quote
1 inch scraper work well to remove the excess grease. And lots of

rags