Speed Bleeders and You

Discussion in 'Performance & Technical' started by dmason53, Aug 14, 2012.

  1. dmason53

    dmason53 What's an apex?

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    Speed bleeders. Back in my car days I remember mixed opinions on whether they were truly safe and/or effective. I chose to pass on them at the time. Now that I'm doing the bike I plan to refresh my brake fluid before every track weekend, so the Speed Bleeders will be a nice convenience.

    Last night I installed a set on the front of my '06 GSX-R600. As expected there was a decent amount of air in the system just from installing the bleeders. I went through about three reservoir's worth of fluid to get things nice and clear with ~no bubbles. That seem about right?

    So. Speed Bleeders. You use 'em? You trust 'em? Let's hear it! :cheer:
     
  2. Boomer0369

    Boomer0369 Rides with no training wheels

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    I installed some on my ZX6E that i'm building and they seem to work great. I put them on from a recommendation from a buddy who races with them and he can't stop talking about how great they are. So I don't have any experience with them on the track yet buy from what I've heard they are gtg!! Once I get mine on the track and see how they perform I'll let ya know.
     
  3. luckboxx74

    luckboxx74 n00b

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    Have them installed on 2 bikes and so far no problems. Super easy to bleed.
     
  4. themexican

    themexican n00b

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    I have them on my 2004 gsx-r600 and they have been good.
    Makes solo bleeding a lot easier and cleaner.
    The stock bleeders would seep some fluid past the threads when they were cracked open which left a mess by the time i was done.
    If you intend to replace the master cylinder bleeder, keep in mind that it is a different size than the caliper bleeders (at least on my bike).
    Money well spent in my opinion.
     
  5. Tiller

    Tiller TEAM GIXXER RACING

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    I now only have one caliper that has a speed bleeder and one that has the original bleeder. Mine worked awesome for about 6 months and then one of them decided to fail and not seal up properly so it would let air back into the system after being bled. So i had to go back to my OEM bleeder but the speed bleeder on my other caliper has been great
     
  6. TLR67

    TLR67 Cheers!
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    And that is the ONLY reason I wont use them... Yes easier to bleed but you add 2 more points of failure to your system....
     
  7. dmason53

    dmason53 What's an apex?

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    Curious whether you've experienced a failure yourself or whether it's more of a philosophical thing? I value all opinions on the matter!

    Thanks!
     
  8. Tiller

    Tiller TEAM GIXXER RACING

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    Just make sure to keep a close eye one them when bleeding your fluid since they do have potential to fail
     
  9. TLR67

    TLR67 Cheers!
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    I would say more functional than philosophical... And no I have not used them but have seen others have reliability issues with them.... I just use the old lungs and a long piece of fishtank tubing in a water bottle... I have bled brakes for so long I have it down packed pretty good... I tried the mighty vac and it was messier than my method...
     
  10. sobottka

    sobottka Rides with no training wheels

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    Totally unnecessary. I can start with a completely dry system and have a full system with no air in under 10 min. No speed bleeders or fancy pumps, just a water bottle and hose
     
  11. dmason53

    dmason53 What's an apex?

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    I've always used a piece of plastic tubing and an empty beer growler...
     
  12. dmason53

    dmason53 What's an apex?

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    ...until now. I have Speed Bleeders and the Motion-Pro Mini Bleeder. That thing is awesome. In the past the tube would regularly slip off the bleeder causing a spill. Not any more! :getdown:
     
  13. bmw675

    bmw675 n00b

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    I like the idea of the motion pro bleeder. It's definetly on my list of things to pick up.
     
  14. Zepp

    Zepp STT Staff

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    I have used them on my bikes for a couple years now, they work great.
     
  15. newleaf

    newleaf What's an apex?

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    do tell....
     
  16. sobottka

    sobottka Rides with no training wheels

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    Tell what? How to bleed brakes? Or are you confused because I forgot to include a wrench in my list of tools?
     
    #16 sobottka, Aug 15, 2012
    Last edited: Aug 15, 2012
  17. dmason53

    dmason53 What's an apex?

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    I believe him. Even without fancy-schmancy tools I can change fluid in well under 30 minutes.
     
  18. gsxr-transformer

    gsxr-transformer Rides with no training wheels

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    mark and 1 of his many talents

    mark u can suck anything through a hose, we all know that!
     
  19. TLR67

    TLR67 Cheers!
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    You coming out in Advanced this weekend Big Guy??:fencing:
     
  20. gsxr-transformer

    gsxr-transformer Rides with no training wheels

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    yep

    yeah, I may put on my big boy pants and come play. u want me to kick it back a notch so we can ride some together. lol:wheel:
     

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