How many pumps to bleed?

[GolfVenture]

By any chance someone recorded how many strokes of the lever one needs to pump before new fluid is bleeding out? I bleed my clutch, front brakes and rear brakes. All the fluid that came out seemed really clean, being that I have only put 1000 miles since I purchased my 89 VR, I do not know when they were last bleeded. I pumped 4 times then refilled the Reservoir until I guessed it was enough. I also made sure that each Reservoir ended up half full for expansion.

[Bubber]

I didn't keep track when I did the 2nd Gen but It was more than 4 pumps.

Fluid is cheap. I would pump four or five Reservoirs throuh the system before calling it good. Just my 2 cents worth.

[GolfVenture]

Ok, sounds good. I'll fill the fluid to the top and pump down to what I think is half empty then refill. Do this 10 times and that would be about 5 Reservoirs worth.

 

Thank You.

[Guest scarylarry]

Good question, I'll let you this weekend I just got my speed bleeders in and the clutch is the first thing I will do....

I hope these speed bleeders work like I read here, in other words a one person job...

[Bubber]

Speed bleeders work JUST like they say they do. I have them on all my brakes and clutch.

Great product!!!!!!!!

Golf&Venture: don't fill it up to much. if you spill on the paint it likes to eat it and quick. ALWAYS cover your painted parts. and use a barrier to like a plastic sheet.

SAFE is better than sorry.

I also made the assumption you were not just bleeding your brakes and clutch but flushhing the old fluid out and replacing it with new clean fluid. That being said fluid is still cheap even if your just bleeding and not flushing.

Have a great day playing with the bike.

It is supposed to be in the 30's and even in the 40's this coming week so I have toys to play with. YAHOOOOOOOOO!

[Eck]

Depends on how much air is in the system you are attempting to bleed...

 

All systems will vary on quantity of pumps on the hand lever...

[GolfVenture]

Now that I've finished flushing. The front brake hand lever kind of feels like a rock. Any suggestions?

[MiCarl]

Now that I've finished flushing. The front brake hand lever kind of feels like a rock. Any suggestions?

 

It's supposed to be hard. Make sure it works when pushing the bike, then don't worry about it.

 

Brake reservoirs should be mostly full. Clutch reservoir will rise as the clutch wears so it should be near the minimum level.

[ken]

Where would one find speed bleeders? I would guess they would be cheeper then a vacuum pump. Either way I'm going to get one or the other.

[Rocket]

Where would one find speed bleeders? I would guess they would be cheeper then a vacuum pump. Either way I'm going to get one or the other.

 

One source is http://www.speedbleeder.com/Motorcycle%20Sizes.htm#Yamaha

 

http://speedbleeder.zoovy.com/

[Condor]

By any chance someone recorded how many strokes of the lever one needs to pump before new fluid is bleeding out? I bleed my clutch, front brakes and rear brakes. All the fluid that came out seemed really clean, being that I have only put 1000 miles since I purchased my 89 VR, I do not know when they were last bleeded. I pumped 4 times then refilled the Reservoir until I guessed it was enough. I also made sure that each Reservoir ended up half full for expansion.

 

The number of pumps is varible depending on how ugly the fluid is when starting. If your fluid is clear, don't bother bleeding. However, I'd bleed them every other spring whether they need it or not....

[wes0778]

+1 on the speed bleeders!!!

That being said, when I installed them on my RSV, the ones for all the brakes worked as advertised right out of the package, but the one for the clutch gave me a problem. The ball may have been stuck 'cause I had to get most of the air out the old fashion way. Once I got some fluid down to it, the speed bleeder started working as advertised and made finishing the job a snap.

 

Since then I have changed the clutch fluid in a couple of other bikes, only to find out that for the most part getting all the air out of the clutch circuit takes a lot of patience (read PITA), even using a vacuum pump.

[Condor]

Since then I have changed the clutch fluid in a couple of other bikes, only to find out that for the most part getting all the air out of the clutch circuit takes a lot of patience (read PITA), even using a vacuum pump.

 

I hate to keep preaching about reverse bleeding the clutch to get the air out of the lines, but I haven't mentioned it lately, so here goes again.....

When trying to bleed a clutch that is completely empty of fluid on a Venture, it’s very difficult…maybe impossible… to get all the air purged out of the lines normally because of the location of the reserve to the slave. Unlike bleeding the brakes where the pressure is built up by rapid pumping the pedal or lever, the clutch does not build pressure. Squeezing the clutch lever has to be done slowly and constantly. Using this method causes the air bubbles in the lines to move down toward the slave with each stroke. During the release of the lever the air bubble rises upward in the line. Air rises. So in effect you end up with these bubbles rising and falling and going nowhere. I seen threads over the years where the owner has struggled for days to get the clutch properly bled.

Reverse bleeding is done by forcing DOT fluid into the bleeder valve and forcing the air up the line and into the reserve. This can be done several ways. If you have a Speed-Bleeder installed it will have to be removed. If you have a regular bleeder, the reverse bleed can be done with the valve in and open, or you can remove the valve like a speed-bleeder. I find the removal of the valve the easiest.

Take a rubber ear wax remover blub... the bigger the better.. that you can find in your local drug store and snip the tip off a little bit at a time until it fits into the threads of the removed valve. It should fit snuggly and the tip should be a bit off the bottom of the hole in the caliper.

Remove all the fluid in the reserve. Suck up enough new DOT 3 or 4 fluid to fill the bulb, insert it in the threads of the slave and force the fluid into the slave. Keep an eye on the reserve to make sure it doesn’t overflow. Not good. Sometimes you can hear bubbles as they make their way out of the line and into the reserve. If the bulb runs out of fluid it can be reloaded. The hole can be blocked off with your finger while refilling. When no more bubbles appear stick the bleeder valve back into the slave, adjust the level of the fluid in the reserve to about half full, replace the reserve top and you’re good to go.

This whole process can be done in about 15 minutes. When done go for a ride.

PS: After first opening up the reserve, lightly squeeze the clutch lever a tad. The surface of the fluid in the reserve should deform slightly. Squeeze hard and you’ll end up with fluid on you and the bike. Not good. What this shows you is that the expansion orifice is clear and functioning. If it’s plugged the hot expanded fluid will have no place to go, and start to push on the slave as if you were actually pulling the lever. The clutch will start to slip. This is also why the reserve should be only filled half way. I have seen owners spend a lot of money rebuilding their clutches, and all the reserve had was a plugged expansion hole.

Hope this helps

[GolfVenture]

Yes. I reversed bleed the clutch and it easily pushed the air out into the reserves.

 

Do you also do it for the brakes also?

[Condor]

Yes. I reversed bleed the clutch and it easily pushed the air out into the reserves.

 

Do you also do it for the brakes also?

 

You can do this on the right front brake if you have a 'problem' bubble in the lines somewhere, but with a Speed-Bleeder installed it really isn't necessary. One thing I have found is that instead of initially pumping the brakes up to seat the pads, and then do the 3 pumps and bleed meathod, wait and just pump fluid through the system until all the air is out.... then pump up the pressure. I did this when installing new R1 Calipers on the '83 and had them airless and both calipers pumped up in about 10 minutes. What the deal is, is with the pistons pressed back into the caliper body there is a smaller cavity to air out. Once the air is out they're good to pump up and remain airless....unless you forget to keep the reserve topped off... It'll even work on the left side using the pedal...