So, the Speed Bleeder is just a replacement bleeder nipple? You just leave it open during bleeding, and leave it on the bike after?
Is there a how-to post or thread? I don't see a clutch section in the ST1100 Tech sections.
Exactly…it’s a replacement bleeder with a ball valve and spring, so you can pump away at the lever and watch the MC fluid level drop, refill and don’t worry about down below til you’re done. Unscrew old bleeder, lose a marginal amount of fluid, replace with Speed Bleeder (tighten fully), and go to work. Open 1/8 turn, pump old fluid out, watch fluid level in MC so it doesn’t draw air, keep going til you’re satisfied with clean fluid coming out at the nipple, then close the nipple by 1/8 turn, close up the MC cap, and you’re done (10 minutes tops). I also like the bag with the silicone line as it stays well on the nipple, so there’s no spillage of the brake fluid. The bag and silicone line are reusable, just put the line into a bottle and invert the bag so the old, used brake fluid can be stored in the bottle (like soda bottle) for recycling.
I even put one on the clutch slave cylinder of my MR2, so that’s a one man job as long as you’re watching the MC fluid level carefully when pumping the clutch pedal.
This video shows the install procedure very well:
For the brakes on my cars, even though I don’t have speed bleeders on them, I have a special bottle with some fluid in the base and can bleed all 4 wheels in about an hour per car (have to put the wheels up on ramps to do this though). It’s one of those jobs that is conceptually difficult, until you do it, then realize why did you pay someone to do it all this time (although garages will typically use a vacuum tool or electric pump to pull the fluid through vs pushing it out).
