No clutch lever pressure

[pack mule]

I just changed the fluid for the clutch, now I can't seem to get the pressure back on the lever. I used the correct dot 4 fluid and I bleed almost a whole bottle thru but still no pressure. Have I not removed all the air yet? Did I screw something up? I did a search but didn't see any answers to my problem. I bleed the brakes per the shop manual. Any help guys?

 

[delbert]

had a right ol game when i did mine , only way that seemed to work was to pump the lever half a dozen times , hold it in whilst releasing the bleed nipple .
repeated this several times and all came good , hope this helps

 

[pack mule]

I've done that more than several times and still have no pressure. I was just making sure than I wasn't doing anything wrong or missing something.

 

[delbert]

sorry cant be much more help from here . not unknown to get a sticky seal once the system is disturbed , you could have a load of crud around the push rod inside the casing stopping the slave returning etc , good luck

 

[HillbillyTom]

If it was working before, there is still a big air bubble in there somewhere.
Try following your line down to the clutch slave cylinder. Does it have a place where there is a dip in the line? Sometimes if the line loops down, back up, then goes on down to the cylinder, it can trap an air bubble in the down loop that can be a bear to get out.

A Mity Vac can work wonders for these kind of things.

 

[Z-ed]

Take a ziptie and pull the lever all the way back against the grip and leave it tied all night. Untie it in the morning, this wil let all the trapped air out. I have done this on brakes and it has worked in the past.

 

[Mr Bogus]

the clutch line is pretty long and the system holds a lot of fluid..

do not tie the clutch lever.. all that does is block the return port..

pull the bleeder screw and put a touch of grease around the threads (we are not packing the thing, just sealing the top so air can not go past the threads..)

attach a small hose to the bleeder that is reattached to the slave cylinder and hang that little hose into a cup on the floor..

open the master cylinder and make sure the thing is full
open the bleeder a full turn or so
NOW..KEEP THAT MASTER FULL...

you will watch the hose in the cup pushing bubbles out for a few minutes.. (you might have to pump the lever once or twice to get the flow going)

We are using gravity to do this, all you do is keep the cylinder full (you will use 8 to 12 ounces of dot 4 fluid)

When you see all the bubbles stop out of the hose, close the bleeder, top the master off and try the thing.. should be ok now... (worse case, repeat process)

Tying the lever back on the brakes is not a good idea IMHO.. on a disk brake system, the seals in the calipers "roll" a tiny bit when the brakes are applied, when you let off the brakes, the seal "rolls" back and pulls the pads back a tiny bit...

the levers should not be rock hard.. the hoses flex, the calipers flex and all the seals flex... that all equals the "feel"

 

[HillbillyTom]

Tying the brake lever back over night is a long proven method on dirt bike disc brakes. Dunno about clutch lines though.
I just Mity Vac everything. Done in a few minutes, clutches, brakes, cars, trucks, bikes, whatever, no problems.

 

[pack mule]

Thanks Mr. Bogus, thats what I'll do in the morning. I thought that it still had air in it, just looking for more opinions before I went thru another bottle of fluid. Thanks

 

[pack mule]

Tying the brake lever back over night is a long proven method on dirt bike disc brakes. Dunno about clutch lines though.
I just Mity Vac everything. Done in a few minutes, clutches, brakes, cars, trucks, bikes, whatever, no problems.

I wish I had a mity vac, probably wouldn't be in this fix right now. Going to try Mr. Bogus' idea in the morning, I have faith.

 

[Blanca BusaLess]

Excellent answers.
Great place where a guy in NC can get answers quick from a worldwide audience.
I hope you have it fixed by now.


Dell 24/7 service aint got nothin on the org..

Its funny cuz I do most of my tinkering at like 3 am in the morning because thats the only time I can count on Adam not wanting to 'help' ! As much as I love him I dont need any screws taken out right now little buddy is what i tell him.
But anyway I know if I had a prob at 3am I could probably post pics with a HELP sign and get answers quick.
Too cool..

 

[dadofthree]

Good luck with it

 

[Zoinks!]

I wish I had a mity vac, probably wouldn't be in this fix right now. Going to try Mr. Bogus' idea in the morning, I have faith.

Gravity bleed is the easiest (and in my opinion one of the best) ways to bleed. No pumping, no introducing new air into the system, etc. Just MAKE SURE as Bogus stated you KEEP THE MASTER FULL!!! If it gets too low it'll just suck more air back in and you'll have to wait for it to make it all the way to the bleed screw again.

 

[pack mule]

I ran another bottle thru this morning as instructed and it feels like new again Thanks for the advice everyone, once again Mr Bogus, right on the mark. This board is hands down the best on the net.

 

[Mr Bogus]

I ran another bottle thru this morning as instructed and it feels like new again Thanks for the advice everyone, once again Mr Bogus, right on the mark. This board is hands down the best on the net.

this is actually really really old school stuff... VW guys are pro's at it.. glad it worked out for you... now you can smile again

 

[turbobusa2000]

once again Mr Bogus, right on the mark. T

Jeez man, don't give that guy something else to gloat about. He already thinks he's god.

 

[BKNBLCK2011]

Hey guys. For anyone else who has this problem: I bled my clutch for 2 days straight. No lever pressure. Did the gravity bleed that was suggested earlier. No results. I borrowed my bros Mityvac....hooked it up & after literally 10 seconds of pumping & releasing vacuum it lever pressure was back to normal. I'm new to forum & am a shade tree mechanic at best. But I was at my wits end and this little vac pump saved the day quick style. Get one. $40. You'll love it. *I am unaffiliated with Mityvac but I will be getting one for my garage.

 

[wht_scorpion]

I rode from ohio to the dragon one year and found out at the dragon. I had no rear brakes went to wheeler and had them bleeded and rode the dragon got home and had no rear brake wth. Now the bike sat for the winter now I have to bleed every thing back brakes clutch and front brakes any Ideas. I do use a Mityvac and do have speed bleeders.

 

[Dscahill]

Vacuum is your friend!! Use a minivac to ensure you have all the air out. I use the same basic principle at my shop, only its a big mother that we use there.


good luck!

-D

 

[Couran]

You likely still have a large air bubble in the system. Just because fluid is coming out the bottom doesn't mean all the air is out. Fluid falls and air rises due to gravity while being bled. Turning the bars so that the line connected to the master is below the level of the fluid in the reservoir is critical to getting all of the air out. You may need to lean and support the bike at an angle during bleeding to make sure the reservoir is at a level higher than any other part of the system.

A power bleeder can also make the job easier.