SMC Rebuild Kit

[dduelin]

Well, I finally got it done... going off the above quote from dduelin, I hooked up an old Hoover vacuum cleaner and hose to my home-made reservoir, and we tried it again on the back master cylinder....we got a nice steady vacuum on the lines, and by pumping the rear pedal as per the above advice (and using my beloved wife), we ended up with a very nice rear pedal and front lever.....bike rides like new...... The rear rotor is still very warm to the touch, but, I've given it my all. It'll just have to be hottish...... I'm satisfied....

We felt so masterful that we swapped fluid in the clutch line also......



Thanks to all for the advice and knowledge....

Isn't it nice to have a good hard brake pedal with no drop after releasing the front brake?

 

[Cousin Jack]

Isn't it nice to have a good hard brake pedal with no drop after releasing the front brake?

It is, this braking system ain't simple..... Your advice about cracking the rear pedal a couple of times was invaluable. Thank you again......

 

[Cousin Jack]

Well I spoke with Service Honda. They have refunded the SMC rebuild kit and ordered a complete assembly. I though they said they had one on hand. Oh well. Honda said that they did have it on hand and not the rebuild kit so. It should be shipped shortly. Maybe I can get back up and running over the weekend.

Hey, Sennister, buddy........ I don't know what you're using for suction, but it takes a lot, especially if you replace that complete assembly...... if you don't have a trick commercial machine, do like we did and utilize our old vacuum cleaner. We spent probably under $15 on a snap-shut container (Bi-Mart), three barbed hose receptors (Napa), and a plastic pipe elbow, screw in plug, and vinyl tubing (ACE Hardware). I sealed the barbs into the receptacle and the screw in plug with silicon. We took our vacuum cleaner hose to the hardware store to get a correct fit........ The thing worked like a charm, and probably as good as $300 worth of commercial brake machine.... I had a mityvac, but just couldn't pump up enough suck with my puny wrists....good luck, keep us informed.....

 

[sennister]

I have a mighty vac. Mine has a small tank. I guess I could build a bigger one if needed. I hope to have everything by this weekend so I can work on the bike then. I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[1129VLD]

Hey, Sennister, buddy........ I don't know what you're using for suction, but it takes a lot, especially if you replace that complete assembly...... if you don't have a trick commercial machine, do like we did and utilize our old vacuum cleaner. We spent probably under $15 on a snap-shut container (Bi-Mart), three barbed hose receptors (Napa), and a plastic pipe elbow, screw in plug, and vinyl tubing (ACE Hardware). I sealed the barbs into the receptacle and the screw in plug with silicon. We took our vacuum cleaner hose to the hardware store to get a correct fit........ The thing worked like a charm, and probably as good as $300 worth of commercial brake machine.... I had a mityvac, but just couldn't pump up enough suck with my puny wrists....good luck, keep us informed.....

Did you leave your vacuum cleaner running while bleeding, or did you turn it off and on?

 

[Cousin Jack]

Did you leave your vacuum cleaner running while bleeding, or did you turn it off and on?

Let it run...kind of a natural restrictor built into the connection....the vacuum just gently caved in the sides of the container while running. We'd run a cylinder or two through, and then I'd close the bleeder....... then turn the vacuum off.....

 

[1129VLD]

Let it run...kind of a natural restrictor built into the connection....the vacuum just gently caved in the sides of the container while running. We'd run a cylinder or two through, and then I'd close the bleeder....... then turn the vacuum off.....

I made a container out of a mason jar. It worked well (and I didn't have the caving in problem). I like the idea of using the vacuum.

 

[BigBadblue]

This is it!!!!!!!! You are the man!

Hey, Sennister, buddy........ I don't know what you're using for suction, but it takes a lot, especially if you replace that complete assembly...... if you don't have a trick commercial machine, do like we did and utilize our old vacuum cleaner. We spent probably under $15 on a snap-shut container (Bi-Mart), three barbed hose receptors (Napa), and a plastic pipe elbow, screw in plug, and vinyl tubing (ACE Hardware). I sealed the barbs into the receptacle and the screw in plug with silicon. We took our vacuum cleaner hose to the hardware store to get a correct fit........ The thing worked like a charm, and probably as good as $300 worth of commercial brake machine.... I had a mityvac, but just couldn't pump up enough suck with my puny wrists....good luck, keep us informed.....

YOU ARE THE MAN!!! I have been going berserk trying to figure out the soft pedal/dragging brake problem. I just threw away my POS hand vacuum pump bleeder! Last weekend I made my version of your power bleeder in a real barnyard fashion and it worked fantastic. I used a old thick plastic marinade bottle and some 3/8" poly tubing laying around to press fit it and the vacuum hose through slightly undersized holes (total cost $0). I WILL make a nice one (stronger container, maybe even some fittings) after seeing how well this makeshift one performed.
I almost bought a SMC but it would have been a total waste of money. I wonder how many SMCs Honda has sold to guys and the real problem solver was just a through bleeding during the install and the new SMC getting all the credit. This fixed the soft pedal/dragging brake issue when combined with the bleeding order cheat sheet https://www.st-owners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53678&page=4&highlight=17-11+2003-2007

My old 6 amp 5 gal shop vac worked OK but when I hooked up the the big boy: 20 gal 3hp(peak) shop vac things went much quicker. The big boy could even collapse the thick marinade bottle quite a bit but it still worked great! you can stand up and fill the reservoir and just watch the fluid go through(and drag the air bubbles out) in record time with very little effort. I will say it again this IS the hot combo (power vac bleed and cheat sheet) fix to soft pedal/dragging brakes. With a super shop vac you don't need a perfect seal at the collection container with the tubes, in fact you might want to vent some vacuum to keep your container from folding up. I plan on incorporating a adjustable leak. The vacuum cleaner likes a little bit of air flow to keep it running cooler.
My opinion: It is highly unlikely a stuck caliper piston on a relatively new machine operating in such a brake-friendly environment - no mud or any really nasty stuff can be blamed for a dragging brake. I have a +20 year old +300k mile 4x4 that has been through every nasty you can think of (river crossings, deep mud...etc) and every 75k miles all I do is knock the mud off, shoot a quick spray of brake cleaner, shove the pistons back in, put pads on, bleed most of the fluid out and drive through mud, dust and rocks for another 4 or 5 years and do it again with absolutely no problems at all.

I think (my opinion) the real culprit is a void in the proportioning valve sitting higher than the calipers and SMC and collecting/trapping any rising air. My brakes are now actually BETTER than new. Try it, you will love it.

BEFORE YOU WASTE YOUR $ ON A SMC, TRY THIS FIRST

 

[sennister]

In my case the piston was stuck. From when I took things apart I think the issue was water intrusion past the seals in the SMC that contaminated the fluid in side that component and this caused the seals in the piston to swell to the point that the piston wouldn't move anymore.

 

[MrMuzic]

What a NIGHTMARE ! Got it apart and the piston assembly will NOT pop out. In it goes BUT NOT out. I tried compressed air but maybe I am putting it in the wrong port. ANy help would be greatly appreciated as the piston assembly WILL NOT COME OUT ! ! ! ! HELP !

Kevin

 

[sennister]

I sent you a PM. How much PSI does your compressor generate? I was using mine at max rating of 120 PSI.