how to remove brake fluid reservoir
 

Let's assume some stoopid idiot drops something into his brake fluid reservoir and, due to the angled filler neck, can't get it out again. :crying:

Now this idiot (myself) needs to remove the reservoir. I ordered the rubber grommets already and while waiting for them to arrive I would like to tap into the collective wisdom of the forum . I didn't find anything in the archives so the question is:

What's the best way to remove the reservoir without braking it and without making too much of a mess with the fluid in the reservoir? :banghead:

Any help greatly appreciated!

Kurt
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90S4 satin black metallic

Hi Kurt, from what I read, suck it dry as you can w/ turkey baster and slowly pry off. I tried pulling one off and man they really are stuck on.

Dave

is the thing stuck metal? If so, a little telescoping magnet will do the trick as well. I'm guessing that this is not the case tho!

Put the cap on tight and seal the air vent hole with a piece of tape to prevent the reservoir from draining, then wiggle/pull the reservoir out of the grommets.

Careful to not get any brake fluid on painted surfaces.

Ed: no metal, it's about an inch of plastic tubing that I used to suck old fluid out of the reservoir before bleeding the brakes. When attempting to pull it out again a piece broke off.

Dave and Randy: thanks for the tips, I understand it is possible to pull it out of the grommets without any prying it from below? There are metal stops that prevent the reservoir from moving left and right so I guess I have to pull it out of the rear grommet first and then the front one?!


Kurt

Try putting the finger retracting thingy from Harbor freight and see if you can pull the piece of tubing out.
http://www.harborfreight.com/24-inch...ool-94162.html

I got one of these but I can't get it through the filler neck of the reservoir. The narrow vertical channel is the problem. I guess I will have a hard enough time to get the part out of the reservoir once it is removed from the MC.

Kurt

you can probably leave the piece in there BUT it may be damaged by brake fluid no telling

To remove reservoir ,
First put some towels under the reservoir and remove the intake tube, and top airfilter cover,

I spray some WD40 onto the bottom tank area,
then making sure that the solvent got into the grommets,
wiggle the tank back and forth,
you may have a reservoir bracket if so than wiggling may not work well.

Then get a thick shank flat screw driver and with the flat portion of the shank against the bottom of the tank gently pry upwards till you feel the tank coming loose,
push it back in and then work on the rear,
once the rear comes loose then pry the front up and put the tank into a pan.

To clean the tank to like new do this
drain it , then rinse the tank with some brake cleaner.

Then add about 1 oz of simple green and shake vigorously,
then rinse with hot water, repeat this step.
Then take some isopropyl alcohol and pour into the tank , shake it then drain . repeat .
then take a hair drier and run the warm air into the tank till you dont smell anymore alcohol then tank is now ready to install.

Before install the new grommets to the MC put a smear of Dow Corning 111 onto the rubbers.

NOTE if upon inspection of the old grommets the sealing areas are not smooth where they touch the MC
IE the MC surface may have rusted thus deforming the sealing surface,
You may find the grommets to soon be leaking thus a new MC will need to be installed

Thanks a lot for the detailed write up Stan!
I will try this as soon as I have the new grommets in hand. Wish me luck that I don't break even more in the process of fixing the damage done during such a simple job as bleeding the brakes!

Kurt

I tried to remove my reservoir from the 87 but it wouldn't budge with moderate force. I think it was the fist time it had ever been touched and was stuck on hard. I didn't want to break it. My solution was to remove the master cylinder first to get a better handle on it and then used a pry bar and wood shim to work it straight up. It took quite a bit of force but I was able to get it off without damaging the plastic. In my case I was replacing the MC but would still have done it this way regardless to be safe. Reinstalling the reservoir (new rubber grommets) was super easy compared to the effort getting it off. Reinstalling the MC first was also relatively easy.

Also if you use colored pebbles or aquarium rocks in the tank to help clean it, make sure to screen out any flat or tiny pebbles. The flat ones can get stuck in the creases inside. It took a lot if shaking and dental picks for me to get a couple problem pebbles out.

There's a vendor at the swap meet here in Vegas that sells dental tools, and forcepts. I've bought some weird tweezers and such for working in tight places. Might be worth a try, also look over whats for sale on google. Most of this type of stuff is cheap.

If you follow the cleaning procedure I detailed you dont need any stones in the tank,\
When your finished the tank will look like new.

It is also important to use the DC111 on the new grommets as the sealant will prevent water ingress through the grommets and thus reduce the chance of further rust on the MC bores

A quick update: I couldn't leave it alone and bled most of the fluid out through one front and rear caliper. After letting it soak in WD40 and a bit of wiggling I tried to pry the tank off. With a bit of persuasion it came of clean and I spilled only small amounts of brake fluid. So far so good.

No the bad news : there is no chance to get the piece out through the bottom holes to the MC as there are additional screens in front of them which can't be removed (probably can be destroyed easily). So the loose piece had no chance to enter the MC anyway. So I went to search for it shing a light through the tank. First I could not see anything but after flooding the tank with brake cleaner I could see it sticking to one side of the tank.
Going through Stan's suggested cleaning procedure would clean out some crud but the plastic is still stuck to the side. On the positive side there was no rust inside the MC feed bores.

Polecat: as a dentist I have a lot of tools for small difficult to reach places but I don't see any chance to get into the reservoir and pick out the piece of plastic! I see little chance other than just leave it in there in hope that it doesn't do any harm to the brake fluid.

So what I can say for the moment is thanks for all the help :bowdown:, it worked well so far!

Now I have to wait for the grommets and get some Dow Corning 111.
Kurt

There is a plastic crease inside on the wall that things can get stuck or wedged in. If that is where it is, you may be able to dislodge it by shaking with water. When I used pebbles they went into all areas, including down by the screens. I was able to get them all out with numerous flushes and shakes. A dental tool also can help.