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How many pushes to bleed the brakes

Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 1:26 pm
by mitch_f1
Just curious as to whether anyone has done any experimentation with different coloured fluids to work out how many pushes of the brake pedal (approx) it takes to get fluid from the reservoir to the RR corner caliper?

Re: How many pushes to bleed the brakes

Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 2:14 pm
by NitroDann
Jack up car

Remove wheels

Open master cylinder reservoir

Fill it

Put trays under all 4 brakes

Undo all 4 nipples

Continue to top up fluid

As each cylinder starts to drip clear close them until all 4 are closed.

Top up master cylider reservoir.

Put wheels on.

Lower.

You are welcome.

Dann

Re: How many pushes to bleed the brakes

Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 4:04 pm
by mitch_f1
Not sure if you read my post, but that wasn't exactly my question.... I am quite aware of the process of bleeding brakes.

Re: How many pushes to bleed the brakes

Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 4:05 pm
by NitroDann
Re read MY post.
Dont push the pedal.

dann

Re: How many pushes to bleed the brakes

Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 4:06 pm
by mitch_f1
So anyway, how many pushes of the brake pedal does it take to get fluid from the reservoir to the caliper please?

Re: How many pushes to bleed the brakes

Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 4:12 pm
by NitroDann
No idea, who does. Do it my way, and the answer is under ten minutes, and you will be able to do it with 1 person and be 100% guaranteed no air whatsoever.

Dann

Re: How many pushes to bleed the brakes

Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 4:15 pm
by hks_kansei
I think Mitch is meaning to flush the fluid.


Mitch, just bleed as you normally would. Just keep doing it until you've got about 2/3 through the bottle of fluid.
That should be enough to have flushed the system.

Even better, use up a whole bottle from bleeding and topping up, then use the new bottle to do the final top up.
Probably overkill, but brake fluid's cheap anyway.

*awaits response from Dann saying I'm wrong :P *

Dann,
This is not meant to offend in any way, I know you only try to help, so I am doing the same.

Often when you suggest somebody is wrong, what you actually mean is "there's a better/faster/easier way of doing it"
So unless of course the suggested method is wrong (in that it won't do what is being asked) perhaps try instead saying "There's another better way of doing that"

Again, I know you're trying to help people in an area you have knowledge in, I'm doing the same.
Part of my job is to explain to people why they're wrong, and generally they don't like it. So you need to choose words carefully.

Then once they're off the phone you call them a moron :P


edit:
so, turns out d!ckhead get's changed to hottie with the swear filter.

Re: How many pushes to bleed the brakes

Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 4:25 pm
by NitroDann
Yeah you have to 'bleed' the brakes no matter what you do if you let any fluid out of the system.

Let me rephrase.

It should be through in under 15 pumps. Assuming both the pumper and the opener/closer of the valve work in sync, and they are full pumps.

The other way to be sure is to do what I suggested in my first post, even if you only want the one cylinder done you can do the same thing, just let it bleed with gravity until the fluid runs clean, assuming you use a light coloured container to catch it, you will know when that is.

Dann

Re: How many pushes to bleed the brakes

Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:48 pm
by eskimo
Simple answer, when I flush dirty brake fluid, 8-10 pumps is approx the amount needed to have fresh uncontaminated fluid
at the L/H rear wheel (we always start at the wheel furtherest from the M/cyl). would be similar to R/H.
Complicated answer starts involving vehicle lenth, wether ABS is fitted ETC.

Re: How many pushes to bleed the brakes

Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:56 pm
by Hjt
Thanks for all the useful replies, but i think Mitch has solved this conundrum.