Whats the trick to bleeding brakes???
- Thread starter JASON
- Start date
I like to use a hand vacuum pump or just gravity bleed them. Summit sells the Mityvac hand pump with the little reservoir to keep brake fluid out of the pump for about $30. To gravity bleed them, empty the accumulator if a powermaster (pump pedal 10-15 times with key off until it gets hard), pull the top off the reservoir and make sure it's full, set the top loosely back on to keep junk out, then just open up the bleeders and go watch tv. Check the level every 15 minutes or so; I add fluid after maybe 20-30 minutes. I did new front calipers and rubber hoses, rear rubber hose, rear wheel cylinders, and did nothing but gravity bleed for 1-2 hours and had a great pedal. If it's been over a year since the fluid was changed, get a $1.99 turkey baster from WalMart and suck all the old fluid out of the reservoir before you start bleeding, and refill with fresh stuff. Let it run until the fluid coming out is nice and clean - you do flush and replace the brake fluid once a year, don't you? 
Originally posted by ijames
I like to use a hand vacuum pump or just gravity bleed them. Summit sells the Mityvac hand pump with the little reservoir to keep brake fluid out of the pump for about $30. To gravity bleed them, empty the accumulator if a powermaster (pump pedal 10-15 times with key off until it gets hard), pull the top off the reservoir and make sure it's full, set the top loosely back on to keep junk out, then just open up the bleeders and go watch tv. Check the level every 15 minutes or so; I add fluid after maybe 20-30 minutes. I did new front calipers and rubber hoses, rear rubber hose, rear wheel cylinders, and did nothing but gravity bleed for 1-2 hours and had a great pedal. If it's been over a year since the fluid was changed, get a $1.99 turkey baster from WalMart and suck all the old fluid out of the reservoir before you start bleeding, and refill with fresh stuff. Let it run until the fluid coming out is nice and clean - you do flush and replace the brake fluid once a year, don't you?
Thanks for the reply I tryed that tonight it would drain 20oz or so and then just stop
why would it do that ????anyway I did that to 4 wheels and just like before not a lick of brakes! they worked fine before I started my project.....one other thing when I try to pump them up the power master seems to leak a little..is this normal?? thanks- Joined
- May 26, 2001
Either the master cylinder died or you have air in it? My guess is air.
Bleed the master cylinder properly first.
Bleed the master cylinder properly first.
John Larkin
Sublime Master of Turbology
- Joined
- May 25, 2001
Jason, there is a really good diagram of the prop valve on gnttype. Check it out. Just wedge something in front of the prop valve and the lower control arm; it'll push the plunger in. It's very small; you'll see what I mean. As for bleeding the master cylinder, just remove the brake lines from the master cylinder, put a rag in front of the holes and push the pedal until fluid comes out, then reconnect the lines. Protect your paint from splatter with a big towel, fender cover, etc. It'll eat everything in it's path.
If there's air in the mc than that has to go first. You don't need to remove the lines, just get someone to push the pedal down and hold it, then wrap a rag around wrench and line and loosen the fitting until fluid squirts out. Retighten, have them let off the pedal and push it down again, and repeat the loosening/tightening. Immediately wash any fluid off the paint if it spatters. Get all that air out first, then bleed the rears, then the fronts. There is a plunger on the proportioning valve down by the transmission linkage that you need to hold in if you bleed the rears by pumping the pedal - that's one reason I like the vacuum pump and/or gravity method. You don't need to push the plunger in, it is already in if your foot is off the pedal, you just need to hold if from coming out (so don't go wild and drive it in too hard and break it ). Use a c clamp or something to just put a little pressure on it if you need to.
No, there shouldn't be any kind of leak at the pressure switch or master cylinder or accumulator. If there is then you have to fix that before doing anything else. Don't let the reservoir run dry while gravity bleeding or you have to start over. Fluid should run through while gravity bleeding as long as the bleeders are open and there is fluid in the reservoir, so I don't understand why yours stopped flowing at 20 oz (which should have been more than enough to fully bleed everything).
). Use a c clamp or something to just put a little pressure on it if you need to.No, there shouldn't be any kind of leak at the pressure switch or master cylinder or accumulator. If there is then you have to fix that before doing anything else. Don't let the reservoir run dry while gravity bleeding or you have to start over. Fluid should run through while gravity bleeding as long as the bleeders are open and there is fluid in the reservoir, so I don't understand why yours stopped flowing at 20 oz (which should have been more than enough to fully bleed everything).
