Shimano Non-Series Hydraulic Brakes

[2LeftCleats]

Have a Trek Checkpoint gravel bike and was going to replace the hydraulic fluid. It’s my first time doing this, so I studied the Park Tool and Shimano websites. All looked straightforward until I got to my levers. I thought the whole group set was 105, but there are no logos on the brifters. A little research showed that these are some cheaper OEM version, called “non-series”. Pulling back the hood reveals no fill port on the top as illustrated in the service manuals for “series” versions, like the Ultegra on my other bike. Looking further, I see what appears to be a lateral side plate and possibly a fill port. To expose it enough to work on it will require cutting away some of the bar tape (or unwrapping the bar). Then it looks like I must loosen the mounting bolt and rotate the brifter 90* or put the bike on its side on a table and unmount the caliper so it hangs down. Am I missing something or is there an easier way. Not sure why Shimano didn’t copy the design of the “series” versions. I could not find anything on the Shimano site or elsewhere discussing this.

Thanks in advance.

[Velocipede]

Which model number? 505? That was the common levers for 105 series builds until they came out with a true 105 branded lever.

[2LeftCleats]

Thanks for that. It’s not the 505 but that gave me a place to start looking. Appears to be a 405 and the fill port is back towards the base on top. Looks like some bar tape removal but after that ought to be fairly easy.

[Velocipede]

Thanks for that. It’s not the 505 but that gave me a place to start looking. Appears to be a 405 and the fill port is back towards the base on top. Looks like some bar tape removal but after that ought to be fairly easy.

They are pretty easy to bleed. And you don't need the little extender which is nice. The pot sits really level. Yeah, you might have to pull a bit of tape back but these, they bleed well. I've found the other style with the port at the tip of the hoods, they need to be bled more than once to start. They always seem to have a small amount of air in them even after a good bleed. These, I've never had this issue.

[2LeftCleats]

Thanks very much!

[Velocipede]

Absolutely!