bleeding the brakes
- Thread starter zoo-mon
- Start date
Have you checked out the different tips in the self help forum on this?
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Brakes, Tires and Wheels - Archive - Harley Davidson Community
Click the blue header when you open a page to go to the post itself.
Brakes, Tires and Wheels - Archive - Harley Davidson Community
I do a combination of TQ's gravity drain out the bleeder screws, but also use vacumn pump from Harbor Freight $19 (all metal hardware similar to MityVac $45 version) to provide suction. Use an old turkey baster to take out almost all the old fluid in master cylinder. Fill with fresh fluid. Fill clear tube with fluid and attach to nipple, other end to vacumn pump, apply modest vacumn and open bleeder valve, watching bubble down hose to vacumn pump.
Check M/Cylinder for fluid visible in window and add as needed. Eventually the old stuff will be fresh purple (if DOT5) my sporty uses. It will be clear gold if fresh, not brown or amber (if DOT4)...don't know (DOT5.1 looks like but it is likely the same as DOT4). I have dual disc brakes, so I do the farthest side from M/C Left 1st, then bleed the right side 2nd. I do the rear last and your good to go for another 2-3 years depending on how much wet or humid weather you go through.
Check M/Cylinder for fluid visible in window and add as needed. Eventually the old stuff will be fresh purple (if DOT5) my sporty uses. It will be clear gold if fresh, not brown or amber (if DOT4)...don't know (DOT5.1 looks like but it is likely the same as DOT4). I have dual disc brakes, so I do the farthest side from M/C Left 1st, then bleed the right side 2nd. I do the rear last and your good to go for another 2-3 years depending on how much wet or humid weather you go through.
Last edited:
ironmark
Junior Member
My bleeder kit has a hose that goes into a plastic bottle & you must have some brake fluid in the bottle to prevent air from going back into the system . Here are some pics of mine ,yours may be different . Also I take the top off of the master cylinder and just draw out the fluid making sure that the master cylinder does not run out of fluid , if you are doing this by yourself you should close the bleeder fitting if you need to stop & add fluid to the master cylinder or if you need to take some fluid out of the plastic bottle by the vacume pump .
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zoo-mon
Member
Thanks guy's, I think that some fluid in bottle might be it, maybe air got in the line that way.:bigsmiley25: I'll have to try that and see how that goes. I have seen the shop air vacuum kits. they want big $'s for those. I don't think i will get or need much more vacuum than the pump i have. :bigsmiley25:
I find the easiest way to get fluid into the front brake is to reverse bleed by pushing the fluid in the calliper the air goes up the brake pipe and out through the master cylinder
i use a large syringe with some plastic tubing on the end fill the syringe fit the end of the tubing over the bleed nipple open the nipple and push the plunger of the syringe and the fluid goes in and pushes the air up the brake hose and out the top
using this method cover should be loosely fitted to the master cylinder to prevent splash
i use a large syringe with some plastic tubing on the end fill the syringe fit the end of the tubing over the bleed nipple open the nipple and push the plunger of the syringe and the fluid goes in and pushes the air up the brake hose and out the top
using this method cover should be loosely fitted to the master cylinder to prevent splash
Roy, do you have pictures of that master cylinder? Might help other readers to sort theirs if they have a similar situation...