help on one person brake bleed

[Koenigturbo]

I need instructions on how to do the one man brake bleed


Thanks!!

 

[suprarx7nut]

Best bet is to buy the kits available at most auto stores.

Or get someone, anyone to help you. IMO, doing it with another person is 10x easier.

 

[Tanya]

gravity bleeding works well IMO, I've done it a few times with good results. Google it.

 

[gaboonviper85]

you can do a gravity bleed...but thats not the best method....all you do is crack one bleeder at a time and sit and wait till fluid runs out then tighten it back up....then move on to the next.

or go to a parts store and buy a brake bleeder pump...

 

[shaeff]

And start at the rear right, rear left, front right, front left.

 

[mirage83]

Not a hijack, but I do have a brake related question. I'm changing all my brake lines and the master cylinder, and know the fluid in the system now is kinda red-orange and nasty looking. Is doing a gravity or any other kind of bleed going to flush all the old fluid out of the ABS actuator and it's lines?

 

[AJ'S 88NA]

Not a hijack, but I do have a brake related question. I'm changing all my brake lines and the master cylinder, and know the fluid in the system now is kinda red-orange and nasty looking. Is doing a gravity or any other kind of bleed going to flush all the old fluid out of the ABS actuator and it's lines?

Sounds like it's way past due to be changed. Just bleed each brake until you see clean fluid comming out. I'd do it again in a few 100 miles.

 

[mirage83]

Sounds like it's way past due to be changed. Just bleed each brake until you see clean fluid comming out. I'd do it again in a few 100 miles.

Yeah, it was sitting for like 3 years and the guy who owned it could well have put practically anything in it, so it definately needs a good cleaning out. I just wanted to make sure that I didn't need to do anything special to flush all the garbage out, including out of the ABS actuator.

 

[Poodles]

And start at the rear right, rear left, front right, front left.

Depends if you have ABS or not

 

[hvyman]

^why is that. dont you want to go farthest from the master to the shortest regardless?

 

[jdub]

This makes bleeding or a complete brake fluid change a breeze:

Mityvac 6830

 

[jetjock]

That'll work. So will a small $15 garden sprayer from the local hardware store. Fwiw I pressure bleed from the wheel cylinder, the way it's done on aircraft. Bubbles prefer going up you know...

 

[shaeff]

Depends if you have ABS or not

That'll work. So will a small $15 garden sprayer from the local hardware store. Fwiw I pressure bleed from the wheel cylinder, the way it's done on aircraft. Bubbles prefer going up you know...

That's pretty cool. I can't imagine those garden sprayers last too long w/ brake fluid, eh?

So are you pressurizing it through the brake bleeder, then? I might have to give that a try- it's probably faster than conventional vacuum bleeding too...

 

[jetjock]

It can be messy if you don't mod a spare cap to catch the overflow. And no, those sprayers don't last long. At least the pumps don't .

Fwiw I recently came across a new kind of automotive bleeder that's used in the same fashion but I'll be damned if I can find it now. If you want a really firm pedal after bleeding use the old motorcycle trick of putting the master cylinder under pressure for 12 hours. It squeezes all the entrained air out of the fluid. Unfortunately it's a lot more work to hold the brake pedal down than it is to squeeze a bike's handle and bungee it...