Pressurizing your hydrolic clutch to bleed air.
Posted: Sat May 03, 2008 8:50 pm
Ok gang, so here it is, the answer to all our frustrations and torment. I, like many of you, have battled with the erroneous air bubbles that like to become trapped in our hydrolic lines and cylinders causing us to loose clutch pressure. I searched high and low in the archives and did not come up with any real sure fire way to bleed off the system without going to the dealer and dropping my drawers. That is when a little searching on the WWW came up with an ingenious yet simple solution courtesy of a local Ford Ranger off road club.
Take these steps:
Purchase 1 bicycle inner tube with a max diameter of 2 1/2 inches.
Purchase a 2 inch band clamp.
Make sure you have a bike pump and a tire pressure gauge.
Cut the tube approximately 8 inches away from the air valve.
Use water to clean all powder out of tube then dry thoroughly.
Tie off tube at long end, a regular knot will work just pull it tight.
Pop off reservoir cap and slide open end of tube over the neck.
Clamp it tightly but DONT over torque it.
Also be sure to tighten the clamp around the base of the reservoir.
(Now here is the part that should be review for most of you, you will need a brake bleed kit, $7 at Auto Zone, secure this to the bleeder on the slave cylinder, make sure your connections are tight and be sure to add fluid to the bottom of your catch bottle to prevent any air from being sucked back into the system.)
OK, so your all tubed up and ready to go? Make sure your master cylinder reservoir is topped off, you do not want any air being pulled into the system as a result of low fluid levels.
Next you want to begin to pressurize the inner tube, dont overdo it, just add air in steps or stages (say 10psi) until you achieve just enough pressure to bleed out the air bubbles.
Now I used a cheap plug in air compressor with a built in gauge, the gauge never registered pressure but the tube expanded to nearly double its size when I decided to try the first bleed.
Having someone to help you from the cabin is nice but if no one is around you can slowly pump the clutch pedal by hand 3 or 4 times and then use a piece of pipe or a breaker bar to hold the pedal down while you go around to the front and open up the lower bleed screw.
Once the clutch fork has stopped moving tighten the screw back up, check all of your connections again to ensure that no air is leaking in, check the master cylinder for proper fluid level and then repeat these steps until pressure is achieved.
I had to repeat the steps 3 times before I felt confident in the pressure from the pedal. Once I got everything back together and the clutch pedal adjusted I had no problems starting up and running through the gears. She shifts like a champ and the process was quite easy to follow so I would recommend this to anyone who needs to bleed the system during repairs.
Ben
Take these steps:
Purchase 1 bicycle inner tube with a max diameter of 2 1/2 inches.
Purchase a 2 inch band clamp.
Make sure you have a bike pump and a tire pressure gauge.
Cut the tube approximately 8 inches away from the air valve.
Use water to clean all powder out of tube then dry thoroughly.
Tie off tube at long end, a regular knot will work just pull it tight.
Pop off reservoir cap and slide open end of tube over the neck.
Clamp it tightly but DONT over torque it.
Also be sure to tighten the clamp around the base of the reservoir.
(Now here is the part that should be review for most of you, you will need a brake bleed kit, $7 at Auto Zone, secure this to the bleeder on the slave cylinder, make sure your connections are tight and be sure to add fluid to the bottom of your catch bottle to prevent any air from being sucked back into the system.)
OK, so your all tubed up and ready to go? Make sure your master cylinder reservoir is topped off, you do not want any air being pulled into the system as a result of low fluid levels.
Next you want to begin to pressurize the inner tube, dont overdo it, just add air in steps or stages (say 10psi) until you achieve just enough pressure to bleed out the air bubbles.
Now I used a cheap plug in air compressor with a built in gauge, the gauge never registered pressure but the tube expanded to nearly double its size when I decided to try the first bleed.
Having someone to help you from the cabin is nice but if no one is around you can slowly pump the clutch pedal by hand 3 or 4 times and then use a piece of pipe or a breaker bar to hold the pedal down while you go around to the front and open up the lower bleed screw.
Once the clutch fork has stopped moving tighten the screw back up, check all of your connections again to ensure that no air is leaking in, check the master cylinder for proper fluid level and then repeat these steps until pressure is achieved.
I had to repeat the steps 3 times before I felt confident in the pressure from the pedal. Once I got everything back together and the clutch pedal adjusted I had no problems starting up and running through the gears. She shifts like a champ and the process was quite easy to follow so I would recommend this to anyone who needs to bleed the system during repairs.
Ben