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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - NEW BRAKE LINES

Going to fill and bleed the new brake system this week has anyone any tips on doing it, or is it just fit the eazybleed and bleed each one starting with the longest run.
mark heyworth

Keep an eye on the fluid level in the master cylinder and keep topping it up.
Daniel

Have you considered using silicone brake fluid? Almost fit and forget and doesn't wreck the paint if you spill it.
Jeremy MkIII

Jeremy now you've opened Pandoras box.
Are you not aware that Silicon fluid cannot be used in brake lines if there is a bend in them; in flexible brake lines if they flex; or with a Servo. God forbid if you use them with rubbers with the wrong bendeyness coefficient.
Alan
Alan Anstead

I noted some years back that the only 'commercial/professional' use of silicone fluid was in US vehicles in Antarctica with no problems being encountered.
Difficult to understand What effect a pipe bend would make ?
S G KEIL

SG - Whosh! over your head! Alan is renowned for his excellent dry sense of hunour.....
David Smith

I think Alan is poking fun at the Never-silicon crowd. The more extreme and transparently absurd the theory/ conspiracy is, the greater the trend to believe it

A bit like the Republican Party and its support of the Donald......
Dominic Clancy

I read a comment where the writer said that he didn't know that there were that many stupid in America until the 2016 election.

On another note, there is a gold mining ghost town called Bodie in east central California (just east of Yosemite Nat'l park) where in the late 1800s they were installing electricity and people were wondering if the wires made a turn, did the electricity follow the wire or did it keep going straight. I'm sure the Donaldits would believe that it went straight if he said it did.
Martin

Mark

Along with what you suggest, my tip would be prepared to do the bleeding two or three times as well as make sure the rear brakes are adjusted properly (i.e. just eased off from locked solid and the same both sides).

Also be careful to jack up the rear one side at a time so you do not have oil leaks from the rear axle over your shoes (brake shoes, but do not them on your footwear either!).

Check the new lines are screwed in properly but not over tightened or cross threaded which would be leak issues.

Pump the tyres to the correct pressures so you can see issues with brakes when doing cautious test drives when the brakes seem firm. Also are your ball joints fine?

There is probably also something sage to say about handbrake being off and something on the handbrake rods/adjuster being free but cannot remember.

Patience and a bit of luck and getting current practise in on doing brake adjustment and bleeding I have found helps. I am not sure if leaving the front driver’s side corner of the car up on an axle stand overnight helps with getting bubbles out (something I did in desperation for clutch bleeding) but I was happy to try.

If it is not going well, stop, have a cuppa and come back another time. Even days later.

When brakes are adjusted and bleed properly you will know, just as soon as you will if not. If you cannot face jacking the car up again, stop at this point and come back another day when you are fresh. Leave a note under the wiper saying - do not drive, brakes to bleed and adjust.

Cheers
Mike

PS I know there are some gifted individuals on here that can do this in a blink of an eye, so I seem to be making a fuss over nothing. Best tip - find someone like them to help!
M Wood

This thread was discussed between 12/09/2021 and 24/09/2021

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

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