Anyone take brakes off bike to bleed them?

Posted by: shoreboy

Posted by: [email protected]

Posted by: thaaad

I've been using one of these for over a decade with no problems. Price has gone up quite a bit though jeez.

https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5013-302/sport-mechanic-work-stand

I've been using that one for over a decade as well.

Having said that, over the years I've done several successful brake bleeds without a stand when one wasn't available. I usually rig something up with blocks of wood or patio chairs or something like that.

--

As for Shimano bleeds, after many years on SRAM brakes I found the Shimano procedure with their bleed kit confusing and messy. A few months ago I picked up a Shimano bleed kit from bleedkit.com that looks like it would allow a more SRAM-like bleed method with two syringes. Haven't tried it yet, will report back when I do.

The bleedkit.com system is exactly the same as the Shimano system except it uses an empty syringe rather than the funnel. Otherwise the procedure is identical from a brief look at the video. Push fluid up from the caliper into the lever syringe (funnel) followed by a gravity bleed from the lever syringe down to the caliper. There is no vacuum placed on the lever end of the system with a syringe. Im guessing Shimano doesn't want people pulling a vacuum on the lever end to protect the bladder from being ruptured.

There were about 70 different youtubes telling me how to bleed brakes but the way i see it if there isnt some fluid in a cup or syringe at the lever its possible for air to enter the system should be your takeaway

the bleedkit.com site looks cool

Posted by: [email protected]

Posted by: thaaad

I've been using one of these for over a decade with no problems. Price has gone up quite a bit though jeez.

https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5013-302/sport-mechanic-work-stand

I've been using that one for over a decade as well.

Having said that, over the years I've done several successful brake bleeds without a stand when one wasn't available. I usually rig something up with blocks of wood or patio chairs or something like that.

--

As for Shimano bleeds, after many years on SRAM brakes I found the Shimano procedure with their bleed kit confusing and messy. A few months ago I picked up a Shimano bleed kit from bleedkit.com that looks like it would allow a more SRAM-like bleed method with two syringes. Haven't tried it yet, will report back when I do.

Shimano bleed instructions are so involved and bizarre. I tried following them to the letter and ended up chest deep in mineral oil.

The Shimano funnel method takes 3 minutes even you don't know how to operate a wrench. How hard can it be to write a manual for that?

The manual could just be one Lego style instruction picture of the bleed pot screwed into a master cylinder.

Posted by: Hepcat

Shimano bleed instructions are so involved and bizarre. I tried following them to the letter and ended up chest deep in mineral oil.

The Shimano funnel method takes 3 minutes even you don't know how to operate a wrench. How hard can it be to write a manual for that?

The manual could just be one Lego style instruction picture of the bleed pot screwed into a master cylinder.

Yes the Shimano instructions are really bad and they did confuse me initially. But there are good how-to videos on youtube.

When it comes to flushing the entire system with fresh fluid, I much prefer a closed system with 2 syringes but that's probably just because I did so many Sram bleeds and only 2 Shimano so far. I'll get used to it at some point.

Posted by: Hepcat

Posted by: [email protected]

Posted by: thaaad

I've been using one of these for over a decade with no problems. Price has gone up quite a bit though jeez.

https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5013-302/sport-mechanic-work-stand

I've been using that one for over a decade as well.

Having said that, over the years I've done several successful brake bleeds without a stand when one wasn't available. I usually rig something up with blocks of wood or patio chairs or something like that.

--

As for Shimano bleeds, after many years on SRAM brakes I found the Shimano procedure with their bleed kit confusing and messy. A few months ago I picked up a Shimano bleed kit from bleedkit.com that looks like it would allow a more SRAM-like bleed method with two syringes. Haven't tried it yet, will report back when I do.

Shimano bleed instructions are so involved and bizarre. I tried following them to the letter and ended up chest deep in mineral oil.

The Shimano funnel method takes 3 minutes even you don't know how to operate a wrench. How hard can it be to write a manual for that?

The manual could just be one Lego style instruction picture of the bleed pot screwed into a master cylinder.

They need the Ikea dudes to do their next manual.

Posted by: [email protected]

Posted by: Hepcat

Shimano bleed instructions are so involved and bizarre. I tried following them to the letter and ended up chest deep in mineral oil.

The Shimano funnel method takes 3 minutes even you don't know how to operate a wrench. How hard can it be to write a manual for that?

The manual could just be one Lego style instruction picture of the bleed pot screwed into a master cylinder.

Yes the Shimano instructions are really bad and they did confuse me initially. But there are good how-to videos on youtube.

When it comes to flushing the entire system with fresh fluid, I much prefer a closed system with 2 syringes but that's probably just because I did so many Sram bleeds and only 2 Shimano so far. I'll get used to it at some point.

Id make sure to be careful with that bleedkit.com syringe used at the lever end. It has metal threads, and its pretty easy to cross thread the lever port if you aren't careful. Normally this only screws up the threads on the funnel (as it is plastic) and doesn't harm the lever.

I seriously don't get peoples' aversion to the funnel, it's the best thing ever.

No aversion, just find it less than ideal. The lever needs to be level and it's easier to spill fluid than with a closed system. I'm a pretty clumsy guy.

I'll get over it.

Yeah that cup can be pretty dang handy. Without irony, it takes me less time to top bleed my Shimano brakes than it does to take my Magura or SRAM kit out of the drawer and set up. 

My Pops always told me I was the worst mechanic he'd ever seen. Don't know about that...but I am supernaturally clumsy.

Pour a bit of fluid in the cup and set it down in it's included holder. Prop the front wheel over the bike stand, which for me is at the height where my lever is perfectly level. Then screw in the cup, pull the plunger, manipulatie lever... and it's bled. I'll often do it 5 minutes before a ride and still leave on time.

Full bleed is a different story- I use the Marshy method and it's slow and messy. Full Sram bleed is on the opposite end of the spectrum, click click, tidy and sensible. Magura is fine too, except for the soft plastic master cylinder threads is the idea of a madman.

I find i bleed my Shimano brakes approximately infinity times more often though and keep them crisp just because it's so easy. I'll toleraten some air in my Sram or Magura just because I don't want to deal with the bleed after being used to Shimano. With Sram the DOT is always an extra layer of faff too.

The best system I've ever seen was early Magura, metal threads on both ends and a matching threaded bleed kit. Completely fool proof. Good thing too because reliability was so bad you had to bleed them every ride haha.

Posted by: BC_Nuggets

This has become painfully obvious to me unfortunately.  To me there's nothing less exciting than shopping for a bike repair stand but goddammit it needs to be done.

Quite honestly, a good bike repair stand is likely to change your life (for the better) if you do most of the repair work on your bike. That's plenty to get excited about IMO.

I suggest you get a good one too. I bought an Ultimate Workstand (now Feedback Sports) about 20 years ago and I never regretted it.

If I had a bike stand and a handlebar stabilizer the funnel would be just fine.  I managed to make it work without but damn that was a sketch AF process with the propping the bike up on chairs and shit.  In hindsight I think the process would have been cleaner if I had removed the brakes and put them on some spare bars in my vice.  The tube that goes on the caliper comes off fairly easy (I used one I pulled off the shimano kit syringe) when going to an empty bottle.  Made a big mess in my yard but could see how dirty the fluid was and it was nice when the clean pinkish liquid started coming out.

Dumb question...can that shimano funnel only be used on shimano brakes or would it screw into other levers as well?

Posted by: Hepcat

Pour a bit of fluid in the cup and set it down in it's included holder. Prop the front wheel over the bike stand, which for me is at the height where my lever is perfectly level. Then screw in the cup, pull the plunger, manipulatie lever... and it's bled. I'll often do it 5 minutes before a ride and still leave on time.

Full bleed is a different story- I use the Marshy method and it's slow and messy. Full Sram bleed is on the opposite end of the spectrum, click click, tidy and sensible.

Yeah I was talking about the full system bleed. You can do a quick lever bleed on Sram brakes too using a syringe.

Posted by: FlipSide

Quite honestly, a good bike repair stand is likely to change your life (for the better) if you do most of the repair work on your bike. That's plenty to get excited about IMO.

Indeed.

Bleeding brakes is really just  getting all the bubble out, how do you do that,  a degree in fluid mechanics ?

I goggled universal bleed kits which gives me  a page of the yellow plastic kits all form China, what I noticed is that some cost mo, maybe cuz they  have  real metal threaded fittings than the more or less same kit with cheap plastic fittings ?

I'm not sure why I might want cheap plastic so I paid a little more for metal and just try  not to cross thread anything

At 15 I didnt really think much of juniors mechanical skills either 

but he turned out very awesome making  big bucks !

My cheap repair stand recently broke after only 25 years of constant use (what a gyp!).

In the interim I hung a loop of string from the ceiling, which worked mostly just fine. Then I switched to a tree branch outside which was so good I used it for a few months in place of a stand. Except for the dark and bugs and rain.

When I finally bought a replacement stand I bought all those little accessory trays and storage doodads (Norco John Henry had a selection) and it is the most convenient time saving thing I've ever done in the maintenance department. Hardly ever need to do archeological digs through the tool heap. Whatever stand you get, I highly recommend the doodads.