I thought I'd put this thread up to show you the contraption I made... ;D
DIY Bleeder
The little jobs I had to do were ticked off the list, and it was time to bleed the brakes.
I started doing it the manual way, using a one-way valve. After pumping for ages and getting nothing but an aching leg I decided to make life a little easier and make a pressure bleeding kit.
Instructions are available online and it's a fairly simple tool. Here's how I did it:
First, you need to get one of those pressure sprayer things. Mine cost me all of £2.49 from Wilko.
^ I also got some 1/4in clear tubing from a hardware store.
Now, ideally you need a replacement master cylinder cap, but as this was a spur of the moment thing, I didn't have time to get one. Plus, I don't think my MC is a standard Herald one, so I don't think replacement caps can be easily come by.
Not to worry, after searching around the garage I found that the lid from an old Oxo tub is a perfect fit! ;D Threaded onto the resevoir a treat.
^ A hole was drilled to accept the pipe fitting.
I had a rummage through my endless tat and found some hose connections that would do the job. I also needed something to use as a seal for the top of the cap...
^ A universal bath and sink plug looked a likely candidate. This was trimmed down to size and fitted.
^ Here's the seal in place.
^ Side view showing pipe fittings.
^ The complete set-up, ready to roll.
So this morning I went out to give this contraption a try...
^ Here's the cap in place.
It worked like a charm! I filled the bottle with fluid, and with a few pumps brake fluid (and bubbles) began to flow through the N/S/R cylinder. I did the other rear one, then went around the front.
It was then that disaster struck and the seal on the lid gave out, spraying brake fluid all over my...erm... pristine paintwork!
I had to continue the rest manually, but the pressure bleeder had saved me an awful lot of work, and after another round of bleeding I have a firm pedal. I'll work at improving the design of the bleeder too as it'll be very handy in future I reckon!
A lot of work could be saved by using a normal master cylinder cap but I didn't have that luxury. I would have been able to bleed the brakes completely using this tool had I had a better sealing cap.
DIY Bleeder
The little jobs I had to do were ticked off the list, and it was time to bleed the brakes.
I started doing it the manual way, using a one-way valve. After pumping for ages and getting nothing but an aching leg I decided to make life a little easier and make a pressure bleeding kit.
Instructions are available online and it's a fairly simple tool. Here's how I did it:
First, you need to get one of those pressure sprayer things. Mine cost me all of £2.49 from Wilko.
^ I also got some 1/4in clear tubing from a hardware store.
Now, ideally you need a replacement master cylinder cap, but as this was a spur of the moment thing, I didn't have time to get one. Plus, I don't think my MC is a standard Herald one, so I don't think replacement caps can be easily come by.
Not to worry, after searching around the garage I found that the lid from an old Oxo tub is a perfect fit! ;D Threaded onto the resevoir a treat.
^ A hole was drilled to accept the pipe fitting.
I had a rummage through my endless tat and found some hose connections that would do the job. I also needed something to use as a seal for the top of the cap...
^ A universal bath and sink plug looked a likely candidate. This was trimmed down to size and fitted.
^ Here's the seal in place.
^ Side view showing pipe fittings.
^ The complete set-up, ready to roll.
So this morning I went out to give this contraption a try...
^ Here's the cap in place.
It worked like a charm! I filled the bottle with fluid, and with a few pumps brake fluid (and bubbles) began to flow through the N/S/R cylinder. I did the other rear one, then went around the front.
It was then that disaster struck and the seal on the lid gave out, spraying brake fluid all over my...erm... pristine paintwork!
I had to continue the rest manually, but the pressure bleeder had saved me an awful lot of work, and after another round of bleeding I have a firm pedal. I'll work at improving the design of the bleeder too as it'll be very handy in future I reckon!
A lot of work could be saved by using a normal master cylinder cap but I didn't have that luxury. I would have been able to bleed the brakes completely using this tool had I had a better sealing cap.
, I wonder how a fuel pump would handle brake fluid....
