What is your must-have for a one-person, hydraulic bleeder tool?

[shelfboy1]

for 50 years i have used and adjustable bar to hold the pedal down .usually placed between the seat and the pedal then i go open the bleeder , takes a bit of time but has worked well for me .used this on old stuff new stuff even a new gm truck that has an over complicated way to bleed brakes

 

[4x4veteran]

My dad gave me a bleeding tool years ago but I never used it.
Every once in a while I come across a parts of it when rummaging through my junk box looking for something else.
Looking back the first time I bled brakes was on my 60 Chevy wagon when my wife and I were going together about 52 years ago.
We have become a team and bled brakes together many times on many different vehicles.
There are many perks to having a wife and I will put bleeding brakes among them.

 

[scoutingranch]

I have been using the Phoenix System brake bleeding kit for years. Everything from Sunbeam Tigers, Broncos, old Mustangs etc.
One person operation. Remember......the bubbles go up, stop trying to push them down.
Home Page - Phoenix Systems Brake Bleeding

 

[Dizzy]

Reverse bleeding sounds like a better candidate.

 

[too tall]

I use gravity. Take the cap off the master and start with the furthest brake from the master first. Crack the bleeder and wait until the bubbles stop and you get clear fluid. The weight of the fluid above will push the air out. Repeat for the rest of the brakes. Top up the master if it gets low through the process. I have been bleeding brakes on all of my cars and many others like this for decades. There is no need to have someone else help you.

 

[pbgbottle]

Nice. Too tall

I was just going to say the same thing. “What about gravity bleeding” , I have done it this way on my cruiser for years also.

,,super easy on the clutch system also. No pumping what so ever

 

[4x4veteran]

Nice. Too tall

I was just going to say the same thing. “What about gravity bleeding” , I have done it this way on my cruiser for years also.

,,super easy on the clutch system also. No pumping what so ever

I have done the clutch by gravity but not enough patients for the four corners.

 

[iptman]

Motive pressure bleeder here.

 

[Dizzy]

After spending valuable wrenching time shopping for tools, I never really found an adequate hose to attach to the brake cylinder bleeder nipple that fits well. The closest one was from Autozone and it is rigor mortis stiff to the point where it barely will reach a jar without tipping it over due to it being 30-some degrees under the truck. Any suggestions?

 

[mrboatman]

I use clear tygon tubing
JP

 

[Dizzy]

Is Tygon available locally? Do you know the size to also account for stretch over the nipple barb?

 

[mrboatman]

Is Tygon available locally? Do you know the size to also account for stretch over the nipple barb?

I used to get from work but it can be bought at home hardware, lowes type stores. I don`t know the actual size I would guess in the 1/8" range.
JP

 

[too tall]

Is Tygon available locally? Do you know the size to also account for stretch over the nipple barb?

Take the tube you have and heat the tip up with a heat gun or a lighter, then try pushing it on.

 

[vpatsears]

About 12” of tubing that fits on the nipple. Feed the tubing into a mason jar that sits on the leaf springs. Make sure the tubing bends above the level of the bleeder, this way you can depress the brake pedal yourself and come back around to tighten off the bleeder without introducing air. Only down side is you can’t see the fluid coming out to check for bubbles.

This is the way I do it!

 

[Dizzy]

1/4" 'vinyl' (pvc?) tubing from the hardware store for the brakes. The barb on the nipple measures about .293" -- between 7 and 8 mm. The clutch is smaller, and the Autozone barely-a-bottle-barely-a-magnet option had good sized tubing for it.

For today, I simply wanted to replace the old fluid in attempt to save the system from further aging, and flush it before I start with new components. I started with a turkey baster to clean the reservoirs and add some fresh corrosion inhibitors with new DOT 3. However, the brake MC was leaking fluid in the cab, and the slave cylinder wasn't about to wake up from its slumber without leaking either. I'm looking forward to seeing if there is any good cast iron that can be honed. I really don't know the last time this truck was driven. I wonder if the hardlines are toast on the inside? One front wheel cylinder drained the front reservoir almost completely, and the brakes were flatline when I got the truck. The clutch was operable at the time of purchase.

Bottle up and hose hoop above bleeder worked fine, but I wasn't really trying to drive out much air.

Even on a warm day like today, it is cold.