The brakes are one of the last things I need to finish before I can enjoy my shark. My calipers were shot, so I rebuild and painted them and they are much better now. I am having problems bleeding the brakes. I have searched the forums and picked up a couple of tips, but I still have some questions. I have a mityvac and I used that to bleed the brakes. From what I have read, that is not the best tool. I am considering getting the power bleeder tool. I have never bled the brakes on any car, so here is what I know and please add in anything that I am missing. I am using prestone synthetic dot4 fluid. I bled the brakes yesterday, but I goofed up and did it in the wrong order, so I am pretty sure that I have an air bubble in the system. Before I got into fixing the brake system, my brakes worked well, but made a lot of noise due to old worn down pads. I am going to bleed the system with the mityvac in the correct order this time. The problem I am having is that with the mityvac it is hard to close the bleed screw while keeping pressure on the system. I guess that is why I have air in the system. When is push the pedal with the engine off it is soft and stays soft. Am I better of just using a helper? When I top off fluid into the reservior, I cant see the fluid inside, So I just add it slowly until it fills by the cap. Am I supposed to add fluid after I bleed each caliper? Am I supposed to close the bleed screw while there is still fluid coming out? What I want is to have no bubbles, only fluid coming out of the bleed screw, then it is ready to close, right? Thanks for the help and sorry about the long post. I am just anxious about finally getting my shark back on the road. Borys.

 

Oh yeah, and my master cylinder has no bleed screw right? If it does, where is it because i cannot see one.

 

Your master has no bleed screw.

Sounds like you need to recruit a helper. They push, you open, you close, they lift up. Do the last couple really quick and small so the pedal is still moving when it closes. Make sure the reservoir doesn't empty. (Aargh!)

After removing lines or calipers, I'll bleed it till decently firm, then drive it a while, then bleed it again. Seems to get the last bubbles moving.

 

You can use the mightyvac but the pressure bleeder is better.

Bleed in the following order,
right rear
left rear
right front
left front

The idea is to start as far away from the master cylinder as possible and work towards it.

Pump the brakes several times, applying plenty of pressure before the first wheel and between bleeding each wheel. This seems to force any trapped air to the end of the circuit, ie the calipers.

Don't be surprised if you need to go around at least two times until the brakes feel right.

Also, consider a set of speed bleeder valves. The ball check valve makes it harder to screw up the job.

Phil Silano

 

Y'know...

If you'd just titled this thread "Brake Bleeding Blues" you woulda had a great song title.

 

Invest in the power bleeder, follow the instructions, brakes are bled in no time.

Longest part of the whole operation is removing and re-installing the wheels.

 

Airflite, with a helper you can do an excellent job of bleeding the brakes without a pressure bleeder or mityvac. The job quickly gets repetitious and boring but you should only need their help for 15 minutes if you already have all the wheels off. The key is to never lose sight of the fluid in the reservoir(fill more often) and be meticulous about communicating pedal position/bleed screw open or closed with your helper.

 

Amen, Brother Dave.

I find teenagers who want to ride in or, better yet, drive the car are highly motivated.

 

For those playing along at home: If you know in advance that you will be bleeding/flushing the brakes or clutch, get thee a power bleeder. It makes short work of the process, pretty much eliminates the possibility of running out of fluid, doesn't require that you turn the keys over to the neighbor's kid after he pumps the pedal for you. It also allows you to bleed without risk of pressing the pedal to the floor with the possibility of damaging the cups at the end of the pedal stroke. With the power bleeder, the biggest part of the job is getting the car up and the wheels off and back on.

I've learned my lesson!

 

So, I should have my helper press the brake pedal (all the way or how far?) and I open the bleed valve. I wait until there is a steady stream of fluid, close the valve and my helper releases the pedal, and move on to the next one? Should the helper just depress the pedal or do they have to press and release (pump) until I close the valve?

 

Dr Bob mentioned the ideal solution. He rightly points out that if there is corrosion in the master cylinder you can toast it by bleeding manually. If the pedal has already been to the floor then this is a moot point. If there is corrosion, the damage is already done. Check for brake fluid in the booster by securely taping a q-tip to a piece of coathanger and probing the bottom of the brake booster through the vacuum port. If it comes back out with brake fluid on it, don't waste any more time bleeding the brakes, because your next project is going to be the master cylinder.

Having said that... If you want to bleed manually.... it goes like this(H=Helper, Y=You)
Y: "Pump!"
H: Pumps brake pedal until it firms up or does not firm up anymore or until it becomes apparent it's not going to firm up. Helper has instructions to hold brake pedal down when one of these conditions are met and to yell out "Holding".
Y: Open bleed screw until fluid stops coming out, then close it. You should have a clear tube that seals tightly to the bleed screw going into a container that has fluid in it so it can't suck air back up the tube. Helper has instructions to yell out "Down" when the pedal reaches the floor. If you can't see the fluid moving, you close the bleed screw when the helper yells "Down".
Y: (Bleed screw closed) "Pump!"
H: (After pumping it up, same conditions as above) "Holding!"
Y: Open Bleed screw
H: "Down!"
Y: Close bleed screw
Y: "Pump!"
H: (pumps it up) "Holding!"
Y: Open bleed screw
H: "Down!"
Y: Close bleed screw....

etc, etc. repeating on each caliper until you get clean, bubble-free fluid.

Under no circumstances should the helper release the pedal while you have the bleed valve open.

Again, check fluid level often. Never lose sight of the fluid in the reservoir. Bleed calipers in the following order, flip left/right for RHD cars: RR, LR, RF, LF

If there is a TON of air in the system and/or the pedal does not firm up by the time you get to the LF caliper, then you missed a bubble or two... repeat the process after getting most of the air out the first time around.

Note to future thread readers: Bleed clutch first if you have one.