hey wookie! welcome to I-O. The max-flo probably has never been cleaned. Or if it was, it was cleaned years ago! I would take it apart and give it a nice greasing, some new orings, and you should be good to go. Follow the link below to the "I-O Library"
http://www.impulse-owners.com/*-io-library-*/impulse-library/Click on the IMPULSE FAQ - Technical, and then look at #5. It's a nice video that will walk you through cleaning your maxflo.
Let me know if you have any questions.