Bleeding brakes with new hose

[floxy1]

There are plenty of videos on YouTube for bleeding brakes but I can’t find much on the process when you have a new hose with no fluid. I’m pretty handy but haven’t really ventured into the brake bleed territory. Backlog at the bike shop is weeks so I’m going give it a go.

This is a new MTB build with Sram Level brakes.

[scoobydrew]

Same procedure. Just need a bit more fluid and a bit more patience since there'll be more air in the system.

[eddief]

not the best production values or the smoothest talker, but i think if you watch a few times it shows all the steps in good detail. i actually have still never done it successfully myself .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXQKx4S_eoI

[brewsmith]

I just did this for the first time two nights ago, and as above, the procedure is the same, just with more air, so a little more time/fluid is required. I would also recommend using a larger syringe on the lever/receiving side (assuming you are feeding fluid in at the caliper to compensate for the air volume you are pushing out

[floxy1]

Originally Posted by scoobydrew

Same procedure. Just need a bit more fluid and a bit more patience since there'll be more air in the system.

Meaning I’ll need to refill one of the syringes during the process? Or one of them will just get lower? Adding more fluid too one of the syringes seems frought with problems.

[thermalattorney]

Originally Posted by floxy1

Or one of them will just get lower?

Lines don't hold a lot of fluid so a full-ish syringe will be fine!

[joosttx]

Originally Posted by floxy1

Meaning I’ll need to refill one of the syringes during the process? Or one of them will just get lower? Adding more fluid too one of the syringes seems frought with problems.

if you follow the official sram bleeding brake tutorial on YouTube you will have enough fluid to bleed a brake system with a new hose. Add a little bit more if you are concerned.

[oddsaabs]

Originally Posted by joosttx

if you follow the official sram bleeding brake tutorial on YouTube you will have enough fluid to bleed a brake system with a new hose. Add a little bit more if you are concerned.

And bring lots of extra patience because Levels are not the most friendly to set-up. After you've bled them 3 times and there's still air in the line, be ready to bleed them 3 more times till you get it right. I find it helps to walk away, wash you hands, get a cold beer, pet the dog, then dive in again. They are a process to say the least.

https://youtu.be/HqB8atmvEK0

[tkbike]

Originally Posted by joosttx

if you follow the official sram bleeding brake tutorial on YouTube you will have enough fluid to bleed a brake system with a new hose. Add a little bit more if you are concerned.

Just bled a G2 system for a friend last week, no big deal, just follow the tutorial, no more difficult than Shimano! I have probably set up and bled over 100 systems for customers and don't find any difference in difficulty between Shimano and SRAM.

[scoobydrew]

The volume in the line is actually pretty small, but you can simply add a bit more fluid into one of the syringes before you start the actual bleed process to make up for that volume.

I've used this procedure in the past with good results: https://www.worldwidecyclery.com/blo...ode-rsc-brakes

[Lovetoclimb]

Originally Posted by oddsaabs

And bring lots of extra patience because Levels are not the most friendly to set-up. After you've bled them 3 times and there's still air in the line, be ready to bleed them 3 more times till you get it right. I find it helps to walk away, wash you hands, get a cold beer, pet the dog, then dive in again. They are a process to say the least.

https://youtu.be/HqB8atmvEK0

Someone please tell me I’m not completely mechanically inept. Took existing levers and calipers off one bike to install on a new one. Set up with new hoses, barbs and olives. All fittings tightened down but definitely carefully given the 5Nm torque. Unfortunately I don’t have a wrench with a crow foot adapter to confirm it.

Anyway filled the system with fresh fluid using the park tool kit. Everything felt good and even on a 3hr shake down ride brakes performed well. New rotors and pads so I used what few very small hills near me to bed them in as best as possible.

Next day I load up the bike in my car (laid sideways) and head down fo the nearest mountains. After only a few hard downhill braking efforts both levers went completely mush. I don’t see fluid coming from the hose connection points. Of course that could mean air is getting in. Or is it possible I just never got all of the air out to begin with? Whatever I did wrong I did on both brakes because they went from nice and firm to mostly useless at the same time.

[beamin]

Very curious to learn from others how to solve this after having a similar experience recently setting up hydraulic brakes for the first time. I ended up buying Klampers in case I want to tear these hydraulic brakes out. Haven’t done it yet though it.

[Gummee]

I always fill the caliper up and push fluid up to the end of the hose before attaching the hose to the levers. Less chance of air trapped in the system that way.

SRAM has pretty much always sucked to bleed. The new new stuff is better, but still not 'bang two rocks together' simple like Shimano

YRMV

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