Viewing 39 posts - 1 through 39 (of 39 total)
  • Tips for bleeding Elixir Brakes
  • mtb_matt
    Free Member

    Hi,

    Just tried bleeding some Avid Elixir brakes. I followed Avid’s video and now they’re no better possibly even worse. Does anyone have any tips?

    Does the bleed port need to be vertical? I’d have to remove the lever from the handle bars to get it vertical. It doesn’t mention this in the video.

    Thanks

    Matt

    Ringo
    Free Member

    There a **** nightmare

    Pawsy_Bear
    Free Member

    Bin them then buy some XTs

    stumpy01
    Full Member

    If you follow the vid, it should be pretty straightforward and work pretty well. Do they have the pad contact adjuster, and if so did you have it wound back out…?

    AlasdairMc
    Full Member

    Bleed port doesn’t need to be vertical. They might take a couple of bleeds to get good, alternatively if you pull back too hard on a syringe you may blow a seal.

    cloudnine
    Free Member

    Bin them then buy some XTs

    This.. just ebay them and buy something that works

    mtb_matt
    Free Member

    I’m not going to sell them and give up just yet, but thanks for the advice 🙂

    There is a 2.5mm allen key to adjust the reach of the lever but no pad contact adjuster.

    Will try another bleed now. Loads of air came out the first time.

    Cheers

    Matt

    wolfenstein
    Free Member

    Bought the professional avid bleed kit.. Always have a perfect bleed.

    fasthaggis
    Full Member

    Bought borrow the a professional avid bleed kit.. Always have a perfect bleed.

    Yup ,same here.
    Should I sell them anyway,just in case,it can only be a matter of time? Hmmmm 😉

    OP Check that all the olive joints on the hoses ,if there are no leaks,then give it another go.
    As AlasdairMc said,don’t be too fierce with the syringe.

    fasternotfatter
    Free Member

    There is nothing wrong with Avids if you have the proper bleed kit. It is well worth the money over cheaper bleed kits and gives a perfect bleed every time. I have Avid and Shimano brakes and the Avids are a lot easier to bleed because the syringes screw into place giving a perfect seal.

    jmatlock
    Free Member

    You could swap to a set of Deores, sell the Avids and only be a few quid down.

    I swapped from Elixir 3s to SLX last week and can’t believe the difference.

    I always thought it was a cliche but Avid brakes are truly terrible.

    FunkyDunc
    Free Member

    My Avids were just as nice as my 615 deores in action, but boy were they crap in every other way.

    Deores are less than £60 just change

    spacemonkey1
    Free Member

    I would never have Avids again on my bike, they were a nightmare to sort out! I changed the piston seals and bled them many times only for them to be just as rubbish. In the end I give up and got some Shimano SLX ones, the comparison to the Avid brakes is night and day.

    samjgeorge86
    Free Member

    On the flip side, I had, Elixirs, then XT, now back to Elixirs. I prefer them.
    They bleed pretty easy, it’s more of a patience thing than anything IMO. Just do every step to the book, and they will come up fine. Tapping the hoses and calliper / lever while you do it helps shift any air bubbles too.

    Garry_Lager
    Full Member

    They’re v easy to bleed. But then they have to be. Hard to know if there’s something you’re missing, but there’s certainly no trick or skill to it.

    Used elixirs a lot in recent years and they perform well on the trail, but they’re a hassle to maintain. Tolerances seem finer, bleeds often required, and the pistons can be sticky IME. So don’t really disagree with those saying ‘bin them for xts’ – the brake performance is no better on the trail (IME, used both), but they’re way easier to maintain.

    bigyinn
    Free Member

    I never understand the need for constant bleeding of brakes. Unless there’s a leak and airs getting in, why would you need to? I know the fluid degrades over time, but every 6 months should be more than adequate.

    JoeG
    Free Member

    Pinkbike’s bubble bleed is the solution for a bit of air in the master cylinder.

    http://www.pinkbike.com/news/tech-spotlight-5-minute-bubble-bleed-2014.html

    shedfull
    Free Member

    All my bikes run Elixirs, so I’ve had lots of practice. The pro bleed kit really helps, too. Elixirs are a bit harder to bleed than Shimano but not impossible – the key is to have no air anywhere in the system – reservoir or lines – whereas Shimano are happy with a bit of air in the reservoir.

    Make sure the pistons are pushed all the way into the caliper before bleeding and insert a bleed block. It’s easier, especially with the rear brake, to bleed if the lever is raised up obove the caliper – easy to do if you have a workstand.

    Fill a syringe very slowly from a fresh bottle of DOT5.1 as it froths and gets air in it if you haul on the syringe plunger. Attach this syringe to the caliper bleed point and an empty one to the lever end. Push a good amount of fluid slowly through the system. Remove the lever syringe and junk the old fluid, replacing with about an inch worth of new fluid. Refill the caliper syringe with fluid and reattach. Push a little fluid down from the lever end to push out any air from when you reattached the caliper syringe.

    Now, push fluid up slowly from the caliper end towards the lever. Tap the hose as you do this and bubbles will be dislodged. When you get half way through the caliper syringe’s fluid, flip the bars so that the lever is highest, tap the hose, push a little fluid through and then flip the bars down so that the bleed point is uppermost. All the bubbles trapped in there should flow straight out.

    After you’ve done this, you should be able to push fluid through from either end push fluid back and forth several times to check) and see no bubbles coming from caliper or lever. Never let a syringe empty, EVER, while you’re doing this.

    Finally, remove the lower syringe with the bleed cap ready to screw in. Push a little on the upper syringe before replacing its cap to ensure fluid is coming out instead of air going in as you replace the bleed cap.

    I always replace the pads and pump the brakes carefully to push the pads to just above a disc thickness before replacing the wheel. I think you’ll be impressed how good you can get them using this method.

    martinxyz
    Free Member

    I always flush from the lever towards the caliper. You more often than not will find the filthiest of fluid at the caliper end. No point in flushing from the caliper up and dragging crap through the whole system.

    mtb_matt
    Free Member

    Thanks for the tips. After about 5 attempts I seem to have a reasonable bleed.

    Just one more question, should I do anything with the lever before the bleed. Some videos seem to suggest that it is wound halfway in. Why is this?

    Thanks

    Matt

    samjgeorge86
    Free Member

    Wind the lever all the way out (reach at it’s furthest point).
    On the newer brakes (not sure on the older ones), you will then need to turn it back in a little till you can move fluid from calliper to lever. If it’s all the way out, then it blocks it for some reason.

    soobalias
    Free Member

    elixir 5s
    talk about a faff, with the kit and following most of the tips above/linked

    does the lever ever feel really solid? when i grab a handful of my hopes they lock solid with a sense that any further pressure would bend the lever, the elixirs have a bite point but will still pull to the bar.

    round 3 coming up. starting to think a seal is gone, but in both sets, only 2yo and there doesnt appear to be a leak, so its gotta be more bubbles.

    skinnyboy
    Free Member

    Had Elixirs for years and never had a problem bleeding them. I really don’t get how people can **** em up. Still makes for cheap Avids on eBay for us fans!

    I also have XT’s and they are no easier or harder to bleed.

    ahwiles
    Free Member

    while all the avid fans are here, all … 5 of you, how do i push back the pistons?

    (they simply will not budge)

    iain65
    Free Member

    ahwiles – I did some at the weekend with the same problem, I had to release a small amount of fluid from the caliper bleed point to push the pistons back fully, it seems to have worked okay but ordered a bleed kit just in case…..

    ahwiles
    Free Member

    seriously?! – i have to open the calliper every time i want to push the pistons back? – how crap is that?!

    soobalias
    Free Member

    last night i removed the lever and managed to wiggle out another bubble or two, refit it and within two squeezes, the lever will pull to the bars.

    thats the third full bleed and still not even what i would call working, nevermind good.

    the syringes are secure, the now nearly empty bottle of dot5.1 was new, i de-gas the fluid, im careful not to re-introduce air to the system…… but it just doesnt get better.
    i can get it feeling ok, with a block in place, but when i refit the pads/wheel is all goes to shit.

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    I’ve got 2 pairs, they are very fussy and don’t seem to like anything other than strict adherance to the SRAM videos. Follow them to the letter and they’re OK.

    The problem is that rather than having a gravity fed resevoir like any other brake there’s a ‘wrinkly sausage’ shaped baloon in the lever to hold the excess fluid, and it’s hard to get all the air out of this (none of mine have been perfect from the factory, and even fishers didn’ get it right under warrenty). Then once that is done you have to set the volume to match the ammount needed to allow the pads to wear (Avids dont like the pads being worn down to the metal either, they need replacing at about 20%).

    It’s do-able, but it’s a faff. Whereas deore just lets air out into the resevoir, which is fine unless you store bikes upside down or something like that.

    chomp
    Free Member

    did mine for the first time last week and have to say that it wasn’t as bad as I feared

    I got fluid all over me, but other than that it went pretty smoothly.

    Followed a couple of videos on youtube and took my time. I even had the syringe fall out of the front brake and managed to reflush and get the air out without too much trouble.

    I’m not wanting to sound smug – but more to say that it’s not an insurmountable task (it was my first brake bleed)

    soobalias
    Free Member

    I wont be defeated, but i wont be doing it again for love nor money.

    the contrast to hope, shimano and maguras is incredible. Do some people just tolerate a sloppy spongey feeling lever, is close enough good enough?

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    Do some people just tolerate a sloppy spongey feeling lever, is close enough good enough?

    Mine are as solid as any other brake, maybe even more so (I run the bite point within mm of the bars, so they have to be). They’re just more all or nothing with the bleeding, you either bleed them right and they work consistently for years, or they’re spongy for a few rides and then fail.

    soobalias
    Free Member

    spongy for a few rides and then fail.

    looks like this is the way its heading.

    hypnotoad
    Free Member

    I find it’s easier to bleed them on a spare set of forks and bars, and have it to the syringe on the lever is at the highest point when bleeding so all the air goes into the syringe.

    I’ve only bled them once after shortening the hose and they;ve been fine ever since, touch wood.

    soobalias
    Free Member

    im going to the shed, i may be some time.

    danielgroves
    Free Member

    Bin them then buy some XTs

    Yeh, that.

    breadcrumb
    Full Member

    I cursed mine when I tried with a ebay kit. Borrowed the Avid one and its a lot easier.

    adyp
    Free Member

    The Epic kit is very good. Unfortunately it was the Elixir brakes themselves that, for me at least, were a complete PITA. When they they worked they were great but even from new the pistons were forever sticking and they needed bleeding every few months. So I ditched them and went for Shimanos.

    I’ve just been in my man cave shortening the hoses and bleeding my new XTs using an Epic syringe at the calliper and a shimano funnel at the lever. The mineral oil is much nicer to use and the process seems simpler than the Avids.

    But most of all the brakes themselves are lovely. Used them for the first time during the PDS on the very wet and muddy Sunday. They were great out of the box with no bleed and long hoses. In the evening I only had time to spray some oil on the chain before going away for 6 weeks. Today they’ve worked faultlessly…I’m very pleased indeed.

    soobalias
    Free Member

    ok, they are done. never again

    im very happy for those of you who love them.

    skinnyboy
    Free Member

    Haha the sound of a man defeated.

    Just be thankful you haven’t got Ashima’s

    Now they are the worst brakes I have ever used. I still have them in a box and refuse to sell them because I couldn’t be that much of an arse hole to any one. Utterly useless brakes.

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