How to Get Grease Gun off Nipple? 4 Steps

Lubrication of bearings and other mechanical parts of an automobile or industrial machines without a grease gun can be daunting. Of course, you can tell better if you’ve ever been in such an awkward situation before.

In fact, the essence of a grease gun can’t be overemphasized. Basically, every professional uses it to apply lubricants on gears, rusty surfaces, and moving parts. Precisions can’t be attained without it and, likewise, when its use is abused. Meanwhile, though grease guns could dispense lubricants at high pressure, what saves the quantity of the lubricant and gives ultimate precision is the GREASE GUN NIPPLE.

The nipples or fittings are those removable accessories with different sizes of the orifice at their tips. Indeed, the easiest way to misuse a grease gun is the improper fixation of the nipple and the inability to decipher the right nipple for the appropriate task.

Professionals often have them bountifully in their stores to have innumerable choices to make absolute precisions. Each nipple represents the best suit for a distinct task. With this, they can multitask and attain a definite result.


How to Get Grease Gun off Nipple? 4 Easy Steps

1. When to Get Nipples off Grease Gun?

  • The moment lubricants are not dispensing flawlessly but rather get stuck in the tip of the grease gun; it is an indication that you need to change the grease gun.
  • Lubricants can become sticky and dried at the orifice of the nipples when exposed to air. Therefore, you might need to get the nipples off first to remove the dried residue.
  • Some tasks come with instructions, and a definite type of nipple has to be used to get the correct application.
  • Whenever the tip becomes rusty and has the diameter of the orifice constantly expanding, it needs to be removed and changed.
  • Removing it after completing a task and cleaning it is the most advisable way of using it. This makes the grease gun to be productive for a long time.

2. Steps in Getting Grease Gun off Nipples

  • Learn about the type of grease gun and use the manual to understand how the valve, handles, and other accessories are set up on the grease gun.
  • Do this in a secluded region. You can place a material underneath to pour the leftover lubricants into the container. This would definitely prevent the environment from becoming messy.
  • Screw out the nipple by using your right hand to grip the handle while your left-hand turns the tip leftward and moves it forth and back until it removes from the opening top.
  • You could use a nipple remover to remove the grease nipples from the grease gun pleasantly.
  • Try inverting the nipple and the grease gun to allow the liquid lubricant to ebb off. You can even go ahead to

3. Errors to Avoid

Grease guns have their nipples, so fitting that directly twisting the grease gun or the nipple tip anticlockwise could be the next to futility. However, you would need to slightly tilt the gun or the connecting tube at a 15 degree angle to get the grease gun removed snugly.

Don’t exert too much force on the grease gun coupler and the fitting. The tilting should be at its pace until the nipple is driven twice in an anticlockwise direction and back and forth if needs being.

The tilting should be done carefully, especially when a cord tube is connected to the grease gun. Some technical tips and advice that you should put on safety gloves while doing this. Nonetheless, that’s left to you, though.

4. Final Steps

  • Grease gun couplers and nipples are detachable from each other. The entire process could be hectic if debris is clogged within so remove every gunk.
  • Use the best refilling method for the cartridge. In other words, make sure that the grease gun is in a safe condition often.
  • Removing the hose for cleaning increases the chances of proper air pumping through the pipes. Therefore, consider doing this, provided you’re using a hydraulic grease gun to get a perfect outcome.
  • Consult the manufacturer or a technician if you still find difficulties removing the grease gun from the fittings.


What Are Grease Nipples Called?

They are referred to as grease fitting. You can find them in various sizes and threads. Welders, painters, hobbyists, and many others use them to execute various tasks. The dimensions and thread series they opt for will determine the precise amount of lubricant ejected out.

Are There Different Grease Nipple Sizes?

Yea, they are available in different sizes. The thread sizes you can find are M6, M6, M8, M8, M10, M10, and M12. Brands have them in various styles and shapes also. You can check out the very types that would suit your needs. 

Why is My Grease Gun Stuck in the Fitting?

Several factors could cause this. Oftentimes, gunk causes grease to clog the orifices in the fitting, and insufficient pressure could also cause it. However, you can correct this by removing the grease gun from the fittings and the hose for proper cleaning.

What Size Socket is a Grease Nipple?

The standard sizes you can find grease nipples are 0.25inch- 28SAE-LT and 0.125inch-27PTF. You can find them both in regular and in stainless steel. The profound shape that you see in the sockets is hexagonal. Find out more information about the size socket before buying from the marketplace.

How to Get Grease Gun off Nipple

Final Words

Those are the steps of getting grease guns off nipples. Removing grease guns from nipples is what you’d always do from time to time, and doing it well would save you time and errors. Notwithstanding, we believe you’ve got everything needed here to have easy use of your grease gun at any time.