Brake overhaul - last step - need your help

[Peter B.]

Re: Brake overhaul - last step - need your help

You guys are AWESOME. Thanks for the valuable feedback. I will be doing the manual bleeding tonight. Going with my daughter. She is 10 and longer legs than my 8yr old son. However if he finds out he was not involved, I am in trouble.

Thanks again guys.

By the way, flushing the lines out with Alcohol I feel made a difference. It cleared out a bunch of particles that may be a cause for a somewhat soft pedal.

[Chuck S.]

Re: Brake overhaul - last step - need your help

By the way, flushing the lines out with Alcohol I feel made a difference. It cleared out a bunch of particles that may be a cause for a somewhat soft pedal.

It made a difference, but not for the reason you think.

Solid particles are likely to be incompressible; compression of air in the system is what causes soft pedal. Ultimately, solid particles can migrate to the calipers, score the bores and ruin the seals, leading to you needing to overhaul your brakes again (and, yes, soft pedal again too). Cleaning the system with the IPA and using silicone fluid will increase your brake system longevity.

[Duke W.]

Re: Brake overhaul - last step - need your help

A few years ago the clutch slave cylinder on my MBZ gave out. (The bore and piston were perfect, but the end of the pushrod that bears on the clutch fork was severely worn, which is what was causing the clutch drag.)

I didn't look forward to bleeding the system, but the shop manual offered a nice trick. It suggested running a hose from the RH brake caliper to the slave cylinder bleed valve, which should be open about half a turn.

Then "bleed" the RH caliper to fill the clutch release system from below. Since it was due for a fluid change, I flushed the brake system first so the clutch system would have fresh fluid.

It worked like a charm.

One could probably use a pressure bleeder to fill an emply brake system "from below".

Duke

[Patrick H.]

Re: Brake overhaul - last step - need your help

There is no reason for one car to be harder than another when you are starting empty lines. The brake lines all run in the same places.

I prefer gravity bleeding. Have you tried that? It will not work on a dry system, but will work if there is not so much air that the lines get air locked.

I don't usually have the time to let a car sit, as I'm not at my house and don't have the ability to let it sit for 30 min or so per bleeder to let it gravity bleed.

And as to why some are more difficult... I don't know. But, they are.

Patrick

[Michael M.]

Re: Brake overhaul - last step - need your help

Go to a discussion on May 9th. Scroll down to a picture that John Hinckley posted. I did the samething with great success. (Motive Products Bleeder, 6 inch C clamp, 6.5 inch long X 1inch square tubing) This will hold the 10 psi that the instructions call for. It dosen't get any easier!

[Patrick H.]

Re: Brake overhaul - last step - need your help

Go to a discussion on May 9th. Scroll down to a picture that John Hinckley posted. I did the samething with great success. (Motive Products Bleeder, 6 inch C clamp, 6.5 inch long X 1inch square tubing) This will hold the 10 psi that the instructions call for. It dosen't get any easier!

Been there, done that as I mentioned in an earlier post.
Also had brake fluid squirt out with this method because the top has to be exactly correct on the MC with perfect alignment and pressure, or it leaks.
And, the brake pedal is still soft.

Yah, I've tried about everything. I'm still siding with Joe on this one. Corvette brake bleeding is a PITA.