*#%^($@ BRAKES!

[Red Merle]

If you have an air compressor use one of these, it will pressure bleed through the ABS system too. Been using for years and works amazingly well. Never had any bubbles or air trapped. ABS works fine. Have done about 5-6 bleeds with this this. Never a problem.

Pneumatic Brake Fluid Bleeder

I bought one of those. I was either using it wrong(not sure how I could have, I followed the directions and it's not that complicated of a tool) or it really didn't work for me. I wish I would have bought their miti-vac pump instead. I am going to try to rig up the pressure sprayer method to bleed my Tacoma one of these days.

 

[ZackR]

I vote to skip the pressure bleeder and go with the gatorade bottle method. I use this method on all of my vehicles annually and it works well.

 

[Red Merle]

I vote to skip the pressure bleeder and go with the gatorade bottle method. I use this method on all of my vehicles annually and it works well.

View attachment 1494223

Do you need two people to use that method? Looks like the way I do mine if I have someone to push on the pedal, which I don't always have.

 

[ZackR]

Its a one man or woman operation. You open the bleeder until fluid flows into the bottle and the hose is submerged then pump the brake pedal (with bleeder still open) about 7-10 times (depending on the size of the bottle). Open the bleeder enough that its easy to push the pedal and don't max it out to full travel if you can avoid it.

Since the hose is submerged air bubbles come out but can't go back into the system. The key thing to watch is the fluid reservoir, this method allows for a lot of fluid to move so you need to constantly top off the reservoir. Once you see new clear fluid and no bubbles close the bleeder and move to the next one.

I actually prefer to have the bottle suspended above the caliper so that any bubbles rise to the top, away from the caliper. I use this method on the cruiser as well as our BMW's and it works great.

Your local auto parts store will sell a system for less than $10 (this is what I use).

 

[Red Merle]

Its a one man or woman operation. You open the bleeder until fluid flows into the bottle and the hose is submerged then pump the brake pedal (with bleeder still open) about 7-10 times (depending on the size of the bottle). Open the bleeder enough that its easy to push the pedal and don't max it out to full travel if you can avoid it.

Since the hose is submerged air bubbles come out but can't go back into the system. The key thing to watch is the fluid reservoir, this method allows for a lot of fluid to move so you need to constantly top off the reservoir. Once you see new clear fluid and no bubbles close the bleeder and move to the next one.

I actually prefer to have the bottle suspended above the caliper so that any bubbles rise to the top, away from the caliper. I use this method on the cruiser as well as our BMW's and it works great.

Your local auto parts store will sell a system for less than $10 (this is what I use).

View attachment 1494225

Nice! I will give that whirl before I mess around with the pressure bleeder.

 

[Tools R Us]

... a pressure bleeder is the new way, I know some people do not like change, but some times changes are good just my .02

Yep, that's it, change is bad! Guess "new" is relative, I first used a pressure bleeder in the late seventies, so new compared to somethings?

Pressure bleeders work, if you are a loner, it's a good option. Personally I find them more fiddly than they are worth. Likely still have one around, somewhere, know the Phoenix Systems was sold, don't agree with the way they work.

 

[Pin_Head]

We had a pressure bleeder gizmo back in the 70s too, but we stopped using it after the reservoir blew off spewing brake fluid all over the customer's paint. It cost the shop about $500 for a paint job, which is about like $2,000 today. The main problem with a pressure bleeder is that it doesn't always get the difficult bubbles out. Gravity flow and the vacuum bleeder work sometimes too but people don't post up messages about your brakes bleeding successfully.

 

[shocktower]

I vote to skip the pressure bleeder and go with the gatorade bottle method. I use this method on all of my vehicles annually and it works well.

View attachment 1494223

That is all fine and dandy but if you are in a hurry or just don't have the time to do the gravitational or a new set of hoses pressure is the most efficient way from my experience

 

[JeepinPete]

I have the Motive pressure bleeder, and I would highly recommend it. When bleeding brakes, I usually flush a whole quart of fluid through the system since I am messing with the brake anyhow. Pour the quart bottle into the bleeder, flush/bleed away. Wastes next to no fluid. I've never had a brake system that wasn't well bled using it. The other methods mentioned in this thread have given me trouble at one time or another. YMMV...

 

[ranma21]

I have the Motive pressure bleeder, and I would highly recommend it. When bleeding brakes, I usually flush a whole quart of fluid through the system since I am messing with the brake anyhow. Pour the quart bottle into the bleeder, flush/bleed away. Wastes next to no fluid. I've never had a brake system that wasn't well bled using it. The other methods mentioned in this thread have given me trouble at one time or another. YMMV...

X2, Motive pressure bleeder rocks!! Used it many times for the past 10 yrs on my 80, other vehicles and my 201 recently.

 

[Azca]

Here is an update,

Finished up bleeding the brakes, for the 4th time, today and now she stops on a dime ... okay I am exaggerating a wee bit. I is tough to stay seated without belts though so, huge improvement. The brakes still feel a bit spongy to me but it is a marked improvement from where they were. So, here is what I did to address.

There were several items that had to be re-addressed.

1st: Check valve and grommet. Check valve seemed to work okay but I decided to replace it anyway. The new brake booster came with a grommet that was a tad too large and was letting air by it. I replaced with a Toyota grommet and this seems to have resolved the somewhat hard pedal. The one item here that I am not sure about is when I test it by letting it run, holding the brake down, and shutting it off. The FSM says it should take 30 seconds or more to rebound. Mine starts in 5 to 7 seconds.

2nd. I did the LSPV delete as mentioned earlier in this post. Well I bungled it. The o-ring I used did not hold and, as a result, I had a significant leak. I fixed this by using copper washers instead of the o-rings. Easier and obviously less at risk of failure. See pictures below.

3rd. I had never heard/seen this before. When bleeding the passenger rear caliper, the fluid came out almost as a gel. Thick, about the consistency of nectar. Any ideas of what caused this. Air entrainment?

So after replacing all soft lines, all calipers, master cylinder, brake booster, rotors and pads and bypassing the LSPV, the brakes are the best the vehicle has had since I owned it. I still would like a firmer brake but not sure how I can attain that apparently lofty goal. Without further ado, picks.

Test of the copper washer to see if it seated properly.

All the parts I used.

Stainless hardware and copper washer being installed on the bottom end.

I used 4 copper washers inside the LSPV as a spacer. I could barely get a socket on the nut with a single washer and was not comfortable with that. I don't like stacking but, did not see a practical alternative.
Note that there is a rubber grommet that goes in this location that is removed. The area around it is raised a couple of MMs or so. I added a SS lock washer as well. I did not trust nylocks in the brake fluid.

I used a jam nut as well. I just don't want this to fail.

 

[Azca]

Finally, the bottom of the LSPV showing the finished install with the copper washer and allen bolt.

 

[Jatnole]

Do you remember what size the bolt was? It looks like 1/4-20 but I wanted to be sure.

 

[Azca]

I don't. I am sure I went metric though to keep everything on the rig on the same unit of measure.