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hey guys
i bought the epic shimano bleed kit (2012+) for my new brakes. When i bought them my hoses were too long so i cut them down following instructions and using thier bleed kit. the front brake worked perfect first time. the rear however didn't work. ive bled the system a few times and it still doesn't work properly.
the lever goes all the way to the bar and the pads doesn't even hit the disk? one occasion, when i pressed the lever you could hear a squelchy noise from the caliper.
Any suggestions?
Can you see any fluid/wetness coming from the pistons at caliper end or coming from the cable at both ends just in case the olive or insert isn't seated properly?
there is a bit of wetness at both ends. more so at the lever end. wether or not this is from the bleed i've just done im not sure. you think maybe the olive/insert may not be seated properly?
You need to take the caliper off the brake mounts and move it around as you bleed. Think about where the air is trapped and move it so that the air rises into the bleed port. You'll be amazed how much air will be in there (if youve not done this already 😉 )
cheers ben. ill give it a whirl actually.
Tapping the hose and caliper gently for a good few minutes can help shift air bubbles plus like ben said moving the caliper about to help shift stuck air pockets. Make sure everything is wiped clean when finished so when you come to check it you can see if anything is leaking.
Check the nut that tightens the hose to the lever is tight enough (I had similar and the nut just needed a tweek)
Re bleed. if it has that free stroke screw, wind it out.
I also found if you have the lever reach adjusters you need to have levers as far from the bars as you can.
As has been said, tap hose and calliper to dislodge bubbles.
Take the caliper off and raise it above the brake lever - hang it on the wall as high as possible and try it that way.
Alternatively take the lid of the master cylinder brake lever and push fluid in from the brake caliper up to the master cylinder. The caliper should be lower than the master cylinder for this.
This all assumes you have no leaks of course.
Hth
Marko
cheers guys. i've tried all what you have said to no luck. i've disconnected the hose from both ends. and flushed about 100ml of fluid through to make sure there were no air trapped, bled the system 3times and there doesnt seem to be any fluid leaking from anywhere, and there is still the squelchy noise coming from the caliper! =\ starting to scratch my head now, even if it is the olive and barb, that shouldnt make the noise in the caliper?
One more thing to try:
Get hold of some clear tube (screen wash tube from Halfords or try a pet shop/aquarium place).
You need a length that will reach from the caliper bleed nipple to the master cylinder.
The idea is that you cycle the fluid out of the caliper and back up to the master cylinder. This allows you to rattle/tap/lift/twist the caliper whilst constantly pumping the brake lever.
Don't be fooled by a stream of micro bubbles though - that's just air being pulled in around the nipple threads.
Worked for me a couple of times when all else failed.
Hth
Marko
Did mine Wednesday. I had the same problem and found the bleeding block was too thick, leading to underfilling the system, bled with wheel pads and rotor in place and all good. Just be careful not to get fluid on pads and rotors!
Are you getting a solid lever when bleeding with the bleed block in place?
If you can't even feel solid resistance with that in place, and having bled thoroughly, then you may have a leak somewhere.
I think i've sorted it. i gave it another bleed today and moved and wacked the caliper and a big air bubble managed to get dislodged, i also did what you said chrishc77 and didnt use a bleed block and just used a pad spacer. seems to have got it, it does still however make more of a squelchy noise than the front? ill give them a whirl when my wheels come back from been trued.