Leshiy leak at secondary bleed screw

Thanks.

It was pretty dirty in there.

It appears somebody tried to previously seal it with teflon tape. I removed all of that residue and the rest of the crud but I'm still getting bubbles after re-installation.

Worth trying Teflon tape?

I opted against attempting teflon tape on the threads or as a gasket of sorts between the ball and the screw (read about the latter idea in a previous thread).

Cleaned everything once again and filled to 150 bar. Still getting bubbles but will check and see how slow the leak is overnight.

Maybe the cup of the set screw has a slight burr?

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I took it apart one more time after my last post. I rubbed the cup of the screw on a micro fiber cloth to try to buff it a bit. 

Still getting bubbles. 

Filled to 100 bar & will see how much it leaks overnight.

It has dropped around 45 bar in 90 minutes. So it's just above 50 bar on the gauge now. If last week is any indication the leak will now slow to nearly a stop. 

With the screw & the ball removed I can see a ring of silver around where the ball seats. Have to shine a bright LED to see it. Is this area normally black anodized that is possibly worn through? Or is the faint ring of raw aluminum normal?

With the amount of Teflon tape in the threads I assume this was a problem for a previous owner. I never had a problem until I installed the never used (never used by me, at least) stock reg to test it. It was locked up & I had the drain from the secondary bleed screw. I've had a slow leak since so it was the first place I checked when I decided to trouble shoot today. 

Sounds pretty clear the original owner had the same issue - have you reached out to whom you bought it from? Maybe the ball is the wrong size. When I first went to de-gas my first Leshiy I didn't know there was a ball in there and fully unscrewed the bleed screw. I saw the ball for a second before it got shot out. I luckily found it after a 30 minute hunt. What I am thinking is possible the first guy lost the ball and replaced it with one that it out of spec. 

Maybe Brian can get you a new ball and set screw.

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I am not certain that the guy I purchased it from & the original owner are the same person. I'm going to leave him out of it, at least for now. 

Since I also replaced the gauge recently I decided to swap the old one in just now. It doesn't read correctly but it was holding air & should give me enough of an idea if the leak is limited to the secondary bleed screw. Maybe I'll get lucky & the leak at the bleed screw will be minor enough to live with & I can just replace the gauge again.

But given that I cleaned all that Teflon out & it's leaking faster than it was last week I suspect the problem is entirely at the bleed screw. I should know in about an hour. 

Someone on here was offering free balls for the cost of shipping. I could send you a few. The teflon tape is a dead giveaway that it was problematic. I don’t have any set screws though.

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I know who that was & am looking for his profile. 

The set screw seems to have a slight recessed area for the ball. Or is that not normal either? Maybe one of the previous owners tried to over tighten it? 

I certainly don't mind trying a new ball but if it boils down to that entire rear section that might be a long wait with the current shipping situation. I'd rather just trade it away at a loss & move on than wait. 

I'll see if my wife's camera can pick up that ring of what I'm assuming is aluminum. And the recess on the end of the set screw. 

The old gauge made no difference. Still leaking worse than last week. 

I wasn't able to take a picture of the end of the set screw but upon closer inspection it looks like wear to me. 

Here is my attempt at taking a picture of the area where the ball seats. 

Is the silver ring normal or is that wear? 

The silver ring is just the imprint from the ball - how do the surface of the end of the screw that contacts the ball look? - it should be flat and square, not force the ball sideways when tightened - maybe the former owner change the screw - those screws are often made with a "hollow" end for binding into a surface

..alu is much softer that the steel, you could try to rebuild the sealing area, the "silver ring", with the steel ball, a 3mm brass dowel and a slight blow from a hammer

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I figured the silver area was normal. Thank you for confirming. 

The morning sun (and finding my reading glasses) has made this easier to observe & photograph. 

The end of the screw looks better than I thought. I'll attach two images below.

I have new balls on the way. I'll first check & see if they're the same size as the one that came installed in my Leshiy. I'll use one to gently hammer into the seating area & a fresh one to test if the repair is successful.