Save your self a lot of aggravation and go get a might vac. Hook it up at the caliper bleed screw (nipple) and pump away till no more bubbles. Keep an eye on the master cylinder, it will go dry fast, if you suck air through the master cylinder its start over time.

 

Save your self a lot of aggravation and go get a might vac. Hook it up at the caliper bleed screw (nipple) and pump away till no more bubbles. Keep an eye on the master cylinder, it will go dry fast, if you suck air through the master cylinder its start over time.

Or if you have an air compressor at home you could get this.

http://www.griotsgarage.com/catalog.jsp?L1=L1_2000&L2=L2_2050&SKU=35714

But the gist of this whole thing is, that you pump up the brake handle (Master Cylinder) and build pressure in the system. Since its a sealed system if you pump and hold, you should be forcing fluid down to the caliper. While holding the handle down (Constant Pressure), crack the bleed nipple (at one caliper at a time) just enough for the fluid to escape. Quickly close the bleed nipple BEFORE letting the brake lever go. Repeat the process as needed.

If you use the vacuum devices that we mentioned, then it alleviates to a great extent your need to pump the break lever (Master Cylinder), as the Vacuum devices are sucking the fluid out of the reservoir down through the bleed nipple.

Make sense? It's likely your first time will probably be a total nightmare, just make sure to clean off anything that gets brake fluid on it. That sh*t will eat through paint/plastic and discolor so be careful. It does get easier after you get the hang of it though.:thumbup
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Where can I buy a might vac? how much $$$$?

 

I prefer using the traditional - pump brake lever and hold, crack bleeder, tighten bleeder, release brake lever - method rather than using the mightyvac. Just a personal preference, I just feel it works better. Ask ChampionsR1 - we bled his brakes with a mightyvac at Jennings, then I did it manually after that and the lever had a much firmer feel to it after the manual bleeding. Also, when doing this, have the resivour cap OFF and be sure the fluid doesnt get too low. Actually more of a 2 person job, but a mightyvac makes it a 1 person job..

 

Actually it's not as hard as you think it is...I still do the old school way and it doesn't take much time and I get great results.

To make the job less messy I used a clear tubing that goes over the bleeder valve and directs into a bottle. That way you don't get brake fluid on any painted parts and you can see the bubble coming out of the bleeder easier.

First make sure the bleeder valve is closed. Start off by pumping the brake lever several times, open the bleeder screw slightly (enough to see fluid/bubbles flow through the tubing) on the caliper for a few seconds...Never let go of the brake lever while the bleeder is open 'cause it will suck air back into the lines. Close the bleeder valve and repeat...Pump the brake lever a few times and then hold it down. Open the bleeder for a few seconds. Close it, release the lever. Repeat until you do not get any air out of the bleeder, just brake fluid.

The first few times you pump the lever/open the valve/close the valve, you won't have much pressure on the brake lever. Keep going through this process until you have good pressure on the brake lever and no more bubble in the lines and you're all set.

For the front breaks, you want to start bleeding at the left caliper (furthest from the mast cylinder), then the right, and lastly the master cylinder on the right clippon.

...Same proces for the rear brake.

Oh one more thing! You don't have to do this but...Before I install ss lines, I completely remove the bleeder valve and wrap some teflon tape around the threads to ensure I get no leaks in the system. I've never had a problem with a leaky brake system ever since I started doing this. Hope this helps!

 

Actually it's not as hard as you think it is...I still do the old school way and it doesn't take much time and I get great results.


Never let go of the brake lever while the bleeder is open 'cause it will suck air back into the lines.

You can prevent this by keeping the end of the hose submerged like I posted. When you release the lever, you will see the air bubbles start moving back up the hose towards the caliper, but those will come right back out when you pull the lever again. They move a lot slower going in then they do when you pump them out. It's just a lot faster that way. You only have to open the nipple once to bleed the whole caliper.

Edit: Well, actually more than once because you should close it to empty the cup and when you stop to fill the reservoir. My bad

 

Go get a regular brake bleeding kit for about $10 at any auto parts store. You can't pump the lever to build up pressure, all that is doing is applying pressure, then relieving it, and then applying the same pressure again. The idea is to pump brake fluid through the lines to push out the air bubbles. The bleed kit should consist of a rubber fitting for the nipple, a clear hose, and a little cup for the hose to go in. You need to put brake fluid in the cup and make sure the clear hose inside stays submerged. You will most likely have to hold the cup because the clear tubing usually forces the cup to sit however it wants to. You need to put the tightest nipple fitting on the nipple that you can get on there. The kit usually has multiple sizes. Make sure the fluid reservoir is full, and then loosen the nipple on the caliper just barely enough so that you can squeeze brake fluid out when you pump the brake. Whenever you release the brake, it will suck fluid back in through the nipple, which is why you need to keep the clear hose in the cup submerged. Keep pumping the brake until either you don't see any more bubbles in the clear hose, or the reservoir gets low. When the reservoir gets low, hold the brake lever in and tighten the nipple to close it again. Refill the reservoir. You will most likely have to keep emptying the cup too, so have something ready to dump it in when it gets full. When you don't see anymore bubbles coming out of the nipple, tighten it up good. I would recommend using the closed end of the wrench and just set it on the nipple even before you put the rubber fitting on it, then just use the wrench as an "open/close" lever. Bleed nipples on calipers are probably the easiest thing on any vehicle to strip, so make sure it's the exact size wrench and don't use the open end.

Do this to each caliper and then you need to do it to the master cyclinder on the brake lever. try not to get any of the fluid on painted surfaces, and if you do, clean it right off. If the nipple fittings in the kit don't fit well, you can push the loose fitting against the nipple while you have the nipple open, and have someone else pump the brake for you. It might take longer to do it that way because you still might get a little air sucked back in every once in awhile, and some fluid may come out. It will get messy either way, so have quite a few rags or paper towels.

Just for future reference too, the rule of thumb to bleeding multiple components in a brake system is to bleed the furthest one away from the reservoir, and work your way to the closest, hence, bleeding the calipers first and then the master cylinder. I don't remember if the brake lines to the calipers are the same distance or not, but I'm sure the difference in hose length wouldn't make a difference in this case.

Now that I think about it, the bleed kit might not have the fittings and just has you put the rubber hose directly on the nipple, which is fine. I think it'll actually make a better seal. It's the vaccum pump kits that have the fittings on them, and I've tried to use them a few times, but like someone else said, you get better results from just doing it the manual way.

 

Here's what I do, everytime.

http://www.r1-forum.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52530

 

So i can use this same process to change the brake fluid. just keep up the process until i see clean fluid coming out of the bleeder valve making sure i keep filling master cylinder as i pump the fluid out. Thanks guys!!

 

So i can use this same process to change the brake fluid. just keep up the process until i see clean fluid coming out of the bleeder valve making sure i keep filling master cylinder as i pump the fluid out. Thanks guys!!

Thats the idea...just be sure that you don't let the reservoir run dry inbetween. Otherwise you just let air into the system back up at the top of the line. Now you have to push that air bubble back down the line. This is why having a second person just filling the reservoir with fresh fluid can come in handy.

One other note...we have a brake guy from Galfer on this site (RC51Guy or something like that), and he recommends zip tieing the brake levers down against the clipon when your done for overnight. This way under the constant pressure of the master cylinder, whatever small air bubbles that may be left after your initial bleeding session can rise back up and into the fluid reservoir overnight.

Good Luck:flex:

P.S. This always catches people out the first time they bleed brakes or put on new lines. If you have NO Lever pressure and you have done everything else we have told you correctly, chances are you have air up in the Master Cylinder on your right clipon. You'll need to loosen the Banjo Bolts on your Master Cylinder just a hair while pushing the lever, then retighten. That usually will do the trick. If that still doesn't do it, you may have an air leak in the system somewhere, so make sure all the nipples and Banjo bolts are tight!

 

Yep.

 

Speed Bleeders is my method of choice. Hook up a drain line to each nipple, crack bleeders and pump. Takes all of 5 minutes to do the whole bike. Also, make sure to keep fluid off any paint.

http://www.speedbleeder.com/

Mark
99 R1

 

Speed Bleeders is my method of choice. Hook up a drain line to each nipple, crack bleeders and pump. Takes all of 5 minutes to do the whole bike. Also, make sure to keep fluid off any paint.

http://www.speedbleeder.com/

Mark
99 R1

I need to man up and get me some of those.. Especially since I got new brakes..:sing:

 

funny, I just did a search for this exact thing 3 hours ago, before I started to bleed the brake lines, and couldn't find anything clear. Wish this was posted yesterday...

(and no it didn't take me 3 hours to bleed the lines, I was also taking care of some other things)