First Brake Job: Tips, Tricks, or Usefull info would be great (2 Viewers)

[StaticTorque]

Here in the next couple of weeks I will be replacing both my rear brake calipers. One of them blew out and is leaking from the seals of the pistons. (Here's a link to how bad it leaks: ) Has anyone seen a caliper this bad? I am new to working on my own vehicle so this was a surprise to see. The DS rear caliper seemed to be a little wet, so I decided to replace them both with brand new OEM brake caliper. Will also be replacing the copper washers when taking the caliper off, new pads and rotors. Will be replacing the e brake system too. I have to replace the LSPV as well since I found out that is leaking as well. Also replacing all studs on the axle.

As this is my first brake job I will be doing, looking for any help or other info I should know. Done lots of reading on Mud but still have some questions, I do have a FSM that I will be going off of as well when replacing everything.

Some questions I have:
In what order do I need to bleed the system? I have seen PS rear, DS rear, LSPS, PS front, DS front. But I have also seen PS rear, DS rear, PS front, DS front, LSPV.
What brake bleeder do you guys recommend? I heard the LSPV is a pain in the a*s to bleed. Will be doing the two person method.
How hard is it to replace the LSPV? Anything to know before hand?

 

[greentruck]

SNIP

Some questions I have:
In what order do I need to bleed the system? I have seen PS rear, DS rear, LSPS, PS front, DS front. But I have also seen PS rear, DS rear, PS front, DS front, LSPV.
SNIP

The basic idea is that you start with bleeding the orifice farthest from the master cylinder. That is IIRC the rear PS. But I've also seen it both ways. When I did mine last year, I didn't break into the lines other than R&Ring the caliper, just bled things as I went. I started with the DS rear, then did the PS. Bleeding went well, so I never bothered with going back to rebleed the DS after doing the PS. With taking the LSPV out, you will have plenty of time to practice your bleeding. In any case, so long as the bleeding gets results, you're doing it right.

 

[jpoole]

Good idea to replace the calipers

Bleeding these can be a chore. Going ahead and replacing calipers and lspv is smart and means that you won't be starting over every time you replace another component. Don't worry about bleeding sequence too much, just plan to buy lots of extra fluid and you can try each sequence that seems like a good idea Seriously, you'll likely bleed this thing a few times so the sequence starts to be less relevant with multiple passes.

If you have the coin I'd consider replacing all of the following unless they are known to be pretty fresh:

• front brake calipers, especially if they are as old as the rears
• master cylinder, these can easily get ruined if they are older and then you start pumping them full stroke doing a brake bleed. There is often gunk on the cylinder walls in the MC where the plunger/seals normally don't travel. When bleeding you'll run the seals/plunger well into the gunk and can damage the little seal cups. Replace it now and avoid having to start over if all goes well.
• all soft lines, particularly along with any calipers you are replacing, unless yours are OEM and known to be pretty recent/new

I would also go ahead and buy a pressure bleeder. I'm a fan of the bleeder plus occasional pumping just before closing the bleeder off method. Not sure it's actually better but I like the idea of constant pressure from the pressure bleeder helping avoid sucking air and then the bursts from the pedal pushing sticky bubbles out. I also like to open up the lines on the ABS module to bleed up there. I rinse often with water which does a great job of keeping the paint-eating brake fluid off of the paint/etc.

Here's a parts list dump from some of my past brake jobs on my '97. You won't need all of these and need to confirm any parts before using as sometimes I note parts numbers from Mud/etc. but don't necessarily confirm they are all accurate etc. Even with those disclaimers this could help save you a lot of time. McGeorge, Partsouq and other online dealers will offer varied prices so check them all and save a lot of $$ overall by buying from the right place or places.

front brake pads	BRAD0502
front chassis to caliper left	BRH02A18
front chassis to caliper right	BRH02817
chassis to rear axle	BRH02A17
rear chassis to caliper left	BRH02615
rear chassis to caliper right	BRH02614
rear brake hose 1	90947-02A17
rear passenger side brake hose 2 (@ wheel)	90947-02614
rear drivers side brake hose 2 (@wheel)	90947-02615
front passenger side hose 1	90947-02817
front driver side hose 1	90947-02A18
front hose 2 (@wheel)	90947-02A16
	48511-69386
brake master	ADVICS BMT-046
parking brake shoe	46550-60040
parking brake shoe	46550-60040
parking brake shoe	46540-60050
parking brake shoe	46580-60050
rubber plugs for rear drum adjuster holes	47491-22020
front caliper rebuild	04479-60020
rear caliper rebuild	04479-60030
caliper crush washer	90430-10074
banjo bolt	90401-10015
frnt caliper piston	47731-60010
rear cal piston	47731-60020
front brake caliper	47730-60060-84
front brake caliper	47750-60060-84
rear brake caliper	47730-60070-84
rear brake caliper	47750-60070-84

 

[StaticTorque]

@jpoole Hey, this would have been great to have over the weekend when ordering all my parts. As of right now I plan to just do the rears because I can't drive it at its current state. My pads and rotors are brand new in the front, that is why I am not doing them right now. When front pads and rotors wear out, planning on getting some much nicer pads and rotors, and will replace front calipers as I know they will last me another 25+ years. I have newer Slee extended brake lines so I am good there. Is there a pressure bleeder you would recommend? I've heard its tricky with the 80 because the plug is a different size than most? Or something along those lines. Great info and I appreciate it!

 

[jpoole]

Sounds good, if you don't plan to replace the MC try to have the person on the brake pedal limit their stroke. An old trick is to put a block behind the pedal to limit its travel that way...

I made my own bleeder in part because I already had an old pump sprayer, pressure gauge, lines, etc. on hand. I bought a rubber plumbing fitting from the local hardware store that slips over the top of the cap and clamps on nicely. Had to rig up adapting that plumbing fitting to the line/etc. though so it wasn't as easy as just buying one. There are adapters available out there that work, vacuum bleeders that suck from the bleeder screws, speed bleeders, etc. that are all good options from what I hear. After that non-answer my real rec. is to read up and pick one based on the reported experiences of others. Here's a search that may help get your research started:

80 brake bleeder site:forum.ih8mud.com​

 

[greentruck]

One more tip that will make things easier is to prefill the caliper with fluid, let it sit, maybe tap a little to get any air out. It will be a little messy getting it hooked up to the brake line, but really helps with the whole process.

 

[StaticTorque]

One more tip that will make things easier is to prefill the caliper with fluid, let it sit, maybe tap a little to get any air out. It will be a little messy getting it hooked up to the brake line, but really helps with the whole process.

pre fill the caliper? Like from the bleeder port?

 

[greentruck]

pre fill the caliper? Like from the bleeder port?

Nope, through the opening the brake line connects to. You may want to loosen the bleeder port to help get all the air out, though.

The basic idea is to get as much fluid pre-filled in the system and leave the least amount of air to displace when you start bleeding things when you've got it all together again.

 

[StaticTorque]

Nope, through the opening the brake line connects to. You may want to loosen the bleeder port to help get all the air out, though.

The basic idea is to get as much fluid pre-filled in the system and leave the least amount of air to displace when you start bleeding things when you've got it all together again.

Ah okay! That makes a lot of sense and seems like it would help with the bleeding process. Also looking into getting a bleeder.

 

[South Texas 97]

If you are doing your calipers, may want to take a good look at your flexible lines as well. I just replaced all of mine, and the amount of junk that came out of the caliper when I bled the brakes after, as well as what I found in the lines, means I probably need a caliper rebuild.
If you have two people, bleeding the brakes and LSPV is a pretty quick job if you can get the bleed valves lose. As mentioned elsewhere, Furthest away to closest. LSPV is higher than the calipers, so if you are replacing that, perhaps bleed that first.

 

[StaticTorque]

If you are doing your calipers, may want to take a good look at your flexible lines as well. I just replaced all of mine, and the amount of junk that came out of the caliper when I bled the brakes after, as well as what I found in the lines, means I probably need a caliper rebuild.
If you have two people, bleeding the brakes and LSPV is a pretty quick job if you can get the bleed valves lose. As mentioned elsewhere, Furthest away to closest. LSPV is higher than the calipers, so if you are replacing that, perhaps bleed that first.

I did check those, I forgot but the PO put new Slee brake lines on it within the past year. The calipers are brand new with new bracket, bleeder, and bleeder cap. I am going to replave the LSPV, unfortunately, that wont be here for 2 weeks because its coming from Dubai. Ah I see, I am replacing it so ill do LSPV first, thank you!