brake bleed - 07 RSTD

trying to bleed the brakes - starting at rear - i cannot remove the reservoir lid due to a molded plastic piece in the way - i do see an allen screw which appears to hold it in place - must i remove that screw to access the reservoir lid?? see pic...............

Yes I just went through that a couple months ago. It's part of the bracket that holds it in place.

got the bracket off and accessed the lid - removed it and topped off....placed mighty vac on bleeder got some vacuum - loosened the bleeder and got a small amount of fluid and air bubbles as well...can't seem to get fluid to drain from reservoir. is there any reason this can't be done the old fashioned way .....place a tube over bleeder, place other end of tube in submerged brake fluid....pump and hold brake, now release bleeder and pedal goes down, now tighten bleeder and repeat until you've flushed new fluid into that brake line ??

if using a mighty Vac. you shouldn`t have to touch the brake peddle, it should suck the fluid from the res. Some one please correct me if I am wrong here..

I'm not sure about the mighty vac, but you should be able to do it the old fashoned way like you said. I did it that way until I put on my speed bleeders. You just have to watch out that you don't run the cylinder dry. If you do you'll have to start over. When you get it done, you really need to look into Speed Bleeders. They make the job super easy.

if using a mighty Vac. you shouldn`t have to touch the brake peddle, it should suck the fluid from the res. Some one please correct me if I am wrong here..

That's all I did.

did the rear the old fashioned way and it seems fine .....guess i'll try the front the same way.....thanks for the inputs.

When you do the front, start with the left side (when sitting on the bike). I'm not sure where I read it, but by bleeding the left side first you can get the bubble out of the master cylinder right below the plunger.

I see that you "topped it off", If the fluid was low, check the pads, might be time for that as well.

Mighty vac method should work fine. A couple things to remember is the mighty vac will suck air in around the bleeder threads. While this will create bubbles in the mighty vac line, it does not mean you have air in the system.

When using a mighty vac you want to open the valve pretty good 1/2-3/4 turn from seated and keep a steady vacuum on it. Always close the bleeder while there is still vacuum on it.

After I get the fluid nice and clear with the mighty vac, I always give it a couple of old school pump and bleeds with the pedal.

RSTDdog

When you do the front, start with the left side (when sitting on the bike). I'm not sure where I read it, but by bleeding the left side first you can get the bubble out of the master cylinder right below the plunger.

thanks.....someone else recently told me the same.....let me ask you did you leave the front reservoir lid off when you bled fronts the old way or place it back on between bleeds??

Yes I did. Be aware that ther is a hole in the bottom of the reservoir to bleed pressure off. It will send up a geyser if yoy pump too fast. I put a rag on my tank and bars to catch any fluid that cam out.

Yes I did. Be aware that ther is a hole in the bottom of the reservoir to bleed pressure off. It will send up a geyser if yoy pump too fast. I put a rag on my tank and bars to catch any fluid that cam out.

thanks again.....i got it done. really not that bad doing it the old way but would have been easier with help on the left front. my front brake lever is much less spongy than before. i used the DOT 5.1 fluid (non silicone). now i'm wondering if you can bleed the clutch similar to this.....i'm thinking you can begin to put pressure on the clutch lever and crack the bleeder and do it like the brakes??

I see that you "topped it off", If the fluid was low, check the pads, might be time for that as well.

 

Mighty vac method should work fine. A couple things to remember is the mighty vac will suck air in around the bleeder threads. While this will create bubbles in the mighty vac line, it does not mean you have air in the system.

 

When using a mighty vac you want to open the valve pretty good 1/2-3/4 turn from seated and keep a steady vacuum on it. Always close the bleeder while there is still vacuum on it.

 

After I get the fluid nice and clear with the mighty vac, I always give it a couple of old school pump and bleeds with the pedal.

 

RSTDdog

thanks for the insight... i just wasn't comfortable with see air bubble during the bleed - i couldn't seem to move any fluid out of the reservoir by using the mighty vac, so i choose to do it the old fashioned method and it seems to have turned out fine, i'll know better when i ride it. i do indeed need pads and was putting them off until i was done with fall riding (which is close) i got 21K miles on the original pads, is that fairly typical. i'm going with the EBC HH Sintered pads front & rear - will be getting hold of SKYDOC soon to order them.

I had a little air left in there but it eventually works it way out.

Here is the link for the Speed Bleeders. You can get them from Dennis Kirk or Curiser Customizing also. If you don't get them from Speedbleeder.com they go by the brand name of Russell Speed Bleeders. They are the same ones under a different name.

https://www.speedbleeder.com

Love those speed bleeders.

Here is the link for the Speed Bleeders. You can get them from Dennis Kirk or Curiser Customizing also. If you don't get them from Speedbleeder.com they go by the brand name of Russell Speed Bleeders. They are the same ones under a different name.

 

https://www.speedbleeder.com

 

thanks again - i suspect these work like a one way valve, eliminating the opening/closing of the bleeder...i have the part numbers i need and have put them on my wish list (b-day & Christmas coming up)

now i'm wondering if you can bleed the clutch similar to this.....i'm thinking you can begin to put pressure on the clutch lever and crack the bleeder and do it like the brakes??

Yes, I've done it that way. I bought a MityVac and couldn't get it to work, so did it by hand.

With just a tube into a coffee can.

Buz, not trying to steal your post, but I want to tell everyone that the people from Speedbleeder are topnotch!!!!!!!!!!!!

Placed my order and got it within a few days, opened the package and did one of those "DOH" am I a dummy thoughts. Forgot that there was 2 bleeders on each wheel so I went and ordered a second set thinking oh well I just will have to pay the extra cost of postage..... Got a note back from them saying they were refunding the cost of postage on the second order..... WOW that shows they are a great place to buy things..

Jim,

just tried ordering from Speed Bleeder.com and when i got to the checkout - i got a warning from my browser (firefox) - i had been rerouted to ssl.zoovy.com - wasn't sure about that so i aborted the order. i did sent them an email asking about it.

ats who they use, or you can check out on ebay and pay that way

Jim,

just tried ordering from Speed Bleeder.com and when i got to the checkout - i got a warning from my browser (firefox) - i had been rerouted to ssl.zoovy.com - wasn't sure about that so i aborted the order. i did sent them an email asking about it.

That address in the URL bar PROBABLY had this in the front of it--> https://

Notice the 's'...which means 'secure'...and the 'ssl' means Secure Sockets Layer....meaning its a website that is encrypting your traffic back and forth....you were probably OK but being cautious is a necessary thing nowdays.

ats who they use, or you can check out on ebay and pay that way

i git an email response that zoovy.com is handles their shopping cart. i'll go ahead and order them. Jim when you replace with the speed bleeder, do you just unscrew old and screw on new, then maybe do a small bleed?

Roger that.... dont want any air in the lines..

There are a set of instructions that come with the bleeders. I removed each caliper to prevent fluid from getting on the pads and rotors. They are only held on by two bolts and are easy to work with. Also, there is a great "how to and cautions" on the web site. You might want to take a look at it. It's a very simple job and worth the extra time to do it right.