Bled my 08 ST1300A brakes completely w no problems using the old fashioned 'pump the lever / pedal' technique and the FSM sequence. Then brother shows up w his '03 ST1300 non-abs and can't get fluid out from the forward bleeder on the rear caliper pushing either the brake pedal or the brake lever. What gives?
Doin something wrong?
- Thread starter markchgo
- Start date
Did you try to take out the bleeder completely if its not clogged?
Good idea. I'll try that when we hit the garage tomorrow. Now I'm curious, if the SMS applies pressure to the center piston of the rear caliper, would pressing the rear brake or pulling the front brake lever when the bike is stationary result in any pressure on this center piston of the rear caliper since the SMS wouldn't be activated?
I really don't know the system on your bike, my 94 st1100 non abs has separate front and rear brakes- simple system. The possibility of clogged bleeder was the first thing that came on my mind when I was reading your thread. That happened to me before and the way I checked if in fact it's clogged, is that I was loosening bleeder slowly while gently applying brake until I saw brake fluid pushing thru the thread. You don't want to get more air in the system by just removing bleeder if you don't have to and also if its clogged, you don't want to have brake fluid spraying all over if Peale is pressed, piston under pressure and you'd unscrew bleeder too quickly.
Than again, it could be something else but I think it's worth to try. It'll take 5 minutes.
Than again, it could be something else but I think it's worth to try. It'll take 5 minutes.
The forward bleed screw of the rear brake caliper is for the center piston. The center piston of the rear brake caliper is supplied brake fluid directly from the rear master cylinder (rear brake pedal).
Check for brake fluid in the reservoir, and check for corrosion at the bleed screw, indeed with the bleed screw removed you can place your finger over the bleed screw opening in the caliper, and try actuating the brake pedal, you should get either air, brake fluid, or a mix of both slipping past your finger (of course this is a messy procedure). Do keep your finger over the opening when allowing the brake pedal to return, as this prevents air from being drawn back into the hydraulic system through the bleed screw opening.
Here's a sketch of the ST1300 brake system.
bdalameda
PaleoCyclist
IGOFAR - IGOFAR to the white courtesy phone please!!!!
Ok, his bike must've been grumpy yesterday. Today we opened the bleeder and it seemed to flow as normal. Thanks for all the great support guys. And also thanks Anna's Dad for that chart on the brake circuits, the first i've seen like that. The FSM doesn't offer that level of detail. I'm going to save that for future reference. 