Zerk fitting torque specs?

[phaeton]

Sorry, I know that sounds like a silly question.

I'm rebuilding most of the front end on my truck- all upper ball
joints, all lower ball joints, outer tie rod ends, bushings, and
stabilizer links. The truck is a 99 Ranger 2.5L 2WD with coil
springs, and these are all Moog parts, for the curious.

I got one side done, and went around putting in zerk fittings in all
the parts that required them. When I got to the upper ball joint, I
got about 2 revolutions in and the zerk sheared off. I was putting it
in with a socket by hand (no ratchet, just the socket IN my fingers).
I never felt resistance, it just broke. I'm now stuck trying to get
the lower half of that fitting out so I can replace it. (of course,
the ball joint is integral with the upper control arm, so this is the
most expensive part of the whole build).

Meanwhile, I'm now really nervous putting in the other fittings. I
made a point not to torque the rest of them down any more after they
'stopped' by hand. However, I have a few that are squirting grease up
through the threads when I hit them with the grease gun. I assume
that this isn't supposed to happen.

Is there a 'rule of thumb' for zerk fittings? I would assume that
Moog would supply fittings that would be the right length and
strength, so I want to make sure I'm doing the right thing.

Thanks for any help.

[Paul in Houston TX]

A quick Google search found quite a few specs.
Most seem to be 30-55 inch pounds.

Universal Joint Grease Zerk (Nipple) Fitting and Plug
Torque
Minimum Zerk Torque
Part Number Description N•m lbs. in.
500174-1 .250-28 NF
Tapered Thread
4.5 - 6.2 40 - 55
500168-2 .125-27 PTF 4.5 - 6.2 40 - 55

SLIP MEMBER GREASE ZERK (NIPPLE) FITTING
SPECIFICATIONS
SERIES GREASE ZERK P/N THREAD SIZE ZERK TORQUE
Nm IN. LB.
SPL90 500174-1 0.25"-28 3.5-6.2 31-55

[jim]

phaeton wrote:
>
> Sorry, I know that sounds like a silly question.
>
> I'm rebuilding most of the front end on my truck- all upper ball
> joints, all lower ball joints, outer tie rod ends, bushings, and
> stabilizer links. The truck is a 99 Ranger 2.5L 2WD with coil
> springs, and these are all Moog parts, for the curious.
>
> I got one side done, and went around putting in zerk fittings in all
> the parts that required them. When I got to the upper ball joint, I
> got about 2 revolutions in and the zerk sheared off. I was putting it
> in with a socket by hand (no ratchet, just the socket IN my fingers).
> I never felt resistance, it just broke. I'm now stuck trying to get
> the lower half of that fitting out so I can replace it. (of course,
> the ball joint is integral with the upper control arm, so this is the
> most expensive part of the whole build).

If it broke that easy it must have been already about to fall apart. You
should be able to get it out by wedging a small screw driver in the hole
and turning it back out. It shouldn't take any more effort to back it out
than you used to turn it in.

The zerk threads are usually tapered pipe threads. They don't require
much torque. Just enough so that the threads seal and don't leak grease.

-jim

[phaeton]

I googled a bunch too, but I guess your google-fu is better than
mine. Thanks for the info.




I got most of the broken bit out by tapping a torx into it. However,
it crumbled as soon as I turned it with a screwdriver. I fished out
as many pieces as I could see, but I have a feeling that there's metal
all inside the balljoint by now. I didn't have enough pieces to
reconstruct the zerk. Looks like my error means ordering another
part. Oh well.

Thanks though.

[hls]

"phaeton" <blahb...@hotmail.com> wrote in message I didn't have enough

pieces to
reconstruct the zerk. Looks like my error means ordering another
part. Oh well.

Thanks though.

****Some people would probably just fit another Zerk in there
and see how long it lasts. Could be a LONG time.

I wouldnt do that. I can afford to be picky, and I dont
like to jury rig.

Best of luck

[phaeton]

On Oct 16, 7:31 pm, "hls" <h...@nospam.nix> wrote:
> "phaeton" <blahbleh...@hotmail.com> wrote in message  I didn't have enough

Same here. In my youth when I was broke and down-hearted, I would
Redneck Engineer all sorts of things. But now that I'm a bit older
and can afford to do things the right way, I see the value in it. It
sucks because my truck is up on jack stands for another week, but I
have another vehicle (which needs a wheel bearing) and the $70 for a
new control arm will be long forgotten.

[Steve W.]

What were the zerks made out of? If they are steel grab a small rare
earth magnet and go fishing. Use the magnet to make a chunk of mechanics
wire magnetic.

--
Steve W.

[Scott Dorsey]

Steve W. <csr6...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>What were the zerks made out of? If they are steel grab a small rare
>earth magnet and go fishing. Use the magnet to make a chunk of mechanics
>wire magnetic.

If they were steel they wouldn't have fragged.

However, I think you can get the thing out and clean it with compressed
air, alcohol, and a Q-tip and be pretty sure that you have it all out.

It's probably pot metal that is very very soft and so a little dust left
from it will not be as harmful as you might expect.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

[Steve W.]

Depends, I've got steel, aluminum, brass, and plastic zerks.

--
Steve W.

[phaeton]

On Oct 16, 8:53 pm, klu...@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) wrote:

Yeah I tried using a magnet also. The ball is the only ferrous metal,
which didn't surprise me.

[Steve W.]

Well you could do a last ditch effort. Pull the part off, flip it over
and tap the part lightly and see if you can knock the pieces out. If it
doesn't work I'd take it back and when they hand you the new part, have
them install the fitting before you leave the store/dealer.

--
Steve W.

[Paul in Houston TX]

If the zerks are soft metal and if it were my truck, I would get out
what I could and not worry about it. I have taken ball joints
apart and found that the metal is incredibly hard.
More than likely what ever fragments are left will be turned
to mush.

[J R]

That Alemite/Zerk was probally made in China.

I have a plastic Folger's coffee jar with two strong magnets and a
string taped to the magnets, the string goes up through a hole in the
coffee jar lid, I have a washer attatched to that end of the
string.Handy for picking up little things.I pull the string up and the
stuff drops off into a trash bag.
cuhulin

[phaeton]

Btw,

I got the replacement ball joint/control arm assy in. Fwiw, the zerk
that came with this one looked like it was made out of different
material- it was more a steel grey instead of having that "Cadmium
Oxide" look. The other surprise was that the hole in the ball joint
didn't have any threads in it. The zerk cuts them the first time you
put them in.

It only seemed to want to go in slightly crooked. After a couple of
tries to get it in straight just let it go in at the 10 degree angle.
It's in there solid and it doesn't leak, but it sure makes me look
like an idiot.


Oh well. All is well that ends well, right? The truck drives
WONDERFULLY now. I never realized how much play there was in the
steering, how much correction I had to do after hitting a bump, and
how much flopping and banging around the front suspension components
were doing all the time.

Over the 12 years of driving it and having it get gradually worse, I
thought all this was normal :D

-J

[Paul in Houston TX]

Thanks for the update.
Makes me think of my last car... I put all new bushings
in at about 150,000 miles and it was so much better.