Is there a better Zerk fitting?

[RV7A Flyer]

In the last couple of months, two of us have had the same problem...the cheesy little red rubber cap on the Zerk fitting came off of one of the fittings on the prop hub, and the damned thing leaked a bit of grease which was then faintly visible on the canopy after landing (and on the cowling). It's not a big deal, but a PITA to decowl, remove the spinner, put a new cap on, recowl, clean everything up, etc. AND, we've had other friends who have had the same issue in the past.

It's not a huge deal, just an annoyance, but...*why* do these things leak like this, and (more importantly), is there a better Zerk out there somewhere?

[Bob Martin]

I know this is not answering your question, But......
What I do, because I was taught by someone, is once I finish pumping grease in, and before I screw the zerk back in, I take a bent over piece of safety wire and remove enough grease that the zerk fitting is not pushing on the grease and creating pressure on the fitting.
Just a thought. YMMV

[RV7A Flyer]

Yep, we all do that...seems to help, I think, but once that little cap comes off, the grease seems to dribble out.

I wonder if the centrifugal force (okay, okay...yes, I took Physics...centripetal acceleration LOL!) moves the ball just a tad sideways. That spring in there can't be very strong, and although it might be low due to proximity to the center of rotation, there is *some* sideways force on it.

In any case, this isn't a one-off...3 planes, 3 or more instances of this annoyance...grrrrr....

[DanH]

Unscrew the zerk, put a plug in the hole.

[Ron B.]

Dan, would you recommend using a plug in all holes if you were going that way, for balance?

[RV6_flyer]

Originally Posted by Bob Martin

I know this is not answering your question, But......
What I do, because I was taught by someone, is once I finish pumping grease in, and before I screw the zerk back in, I take a bent over piece of safety wire and remove enough grease that the zerk fitting is not pushing on the grease and creating pressure on the fitting.
Just a thought. YMMV

I use a small screwdriver out of my tool box instead of a piece of safety wire.

[Ironflight]

Originally Posted by DanH

Unscrew the zerk, put a plug in the hole.

I just took delivery of a brand new Hartzell, and it came (from the factory) with only two zirks - one in each "leading edge" hole, and two plugs, one in each of the "trailing edge" holes. So that's two fewer zirks to leak.....

I guess the factory approves of the plug method.

[n82rb]

breakaway wire around the rubber cap to keep it from coming off.....

bob burns
RV-4 N82RB