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Thread: Bleeding Surge Brakes

  1. #1
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    Bleeding Surge Brakes

    Well, I spent Saturday changing out my trailer springs and brake rotors and calipers. Now I need to bleed the brake lines...any tricks to surge brakes? It's not like I can have the wife pump the brake pedal and hold it to the floor. I don't have a vacuum pump either.
    "YIPPY-KAI-YAY"
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    On all the surge brake master cylinders I've had, there's a slot in the sheet metal housing behind the cylinder linkage you can stick a long flat bladed screw driver into that facilitates manipulating the master cylinder.......
    You still need two people to bleed the brakes unless you buy one of those kits for doing it w/one person.

    If you need more description, just speak up, but it's pretty easy.
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    gravity bleed

    To gravity bleed: Either jack up the front of the trailer, or go to a boat ramp. Open the reservoir and keep it full. Open the bleeders at the calipers and the heavy brake fluid will push any air out. I have done this many times. It sounds like it will not work, but it does. Just make sure the reservoir does not go dry.

    Flying Tomato

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    if your filler cap has a bleed hole in it you can get a compressor nozzle and just hit it with about 20-30# a few times while someone works the bleeder fitting.. i've seen a couple trailer builders that had those caps with the air chuck fitting screwed in it and they just blip it a few times with air and it's done..
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  5. #5
    mrfixxall Guest

    fixx

    i use a power bleeder,you can also move the emergency stop chain or cable..

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    I've always used the safety brake.
    Pull up on the safety brake and it locks in place. Loosen the bleeders, bleed the fluid, then re-tighten and release the safety brake.
    Repeat as necessary.
    Why is faster never fast enough.

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    Screwdriver's a LOT easier to use than the chain.
    George Carter
    Central Florida
    gcarter763@aol.com
    http://kineticocentralfl.com/


    “If you have to argue your science by using fraud, your science is not valid"
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    Quote Originally Posted by flying tomato View Post
    To gravity bleed: Either jack up the front of the trailer, or go to a boat ramp. Open the reservoir and keep it full. Open the bleeders at the calipers and the heavy brake fluid will push any air out. I have done this many times. It sounds like it will not work, but it does. Just make sure the reservoir does not go dry.

    Flying Tomato
    That made sense to me. Air will rise to the top. Anyway you can open a place that's on the highest part should bleed the system.

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    I do the Buiz thinh.
    Randy owner of Donzis since 1966
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    I never realized there were so many ways to bleed brakes.

    Barry, have you been out on the bay recently? I saw a nice Regulator with bad oil stains on the bottom yesterday ... right across from Shoreline Park on the island side .... I haven't been out on the Donzi lately because I'm never sure whether the booms will be open on Bayou Texar to get back in, and now I'm worried about the oil stains. My sailboat is over on Bayou Chico and I think I might pull it this week. At least I can use my HydraSport .... don't care so much about the oil stains on it and, anyway, it has bottom paint which could always be sanded off to remove the oil. Really sucks and I feel sorry for the businesses on the beach....

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    Quote Originally Posted by RPD View Post
    I never realized there were so many ways to bleed brakes.

    Barry, have you been out on the bay recently? I saw a nice Regulator with bad oil stains on the bottom yesterday ... right across from Shoreline Park on the island side .... I haven't been out on the Donzi lately because I'm never sure whether the booms will be open on Bayou Texar to get back in, and now I'm worried about the oil stains. My sailboat is over on Bayou Chico and I think I might pull it this week. At least I can use my HydraSport .... don't care so much about the oil stains on it and, anyway, it has bottom paint which could always be sanded off to remove the oil. Really sucks and I feel sorry for the businesses on the beach....
    The booms closing you off never occurred to me. What would you do if you were in a 16' boat and stuck out there?
    Never Kick a opossum at 40 mph!

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    mainly just an inconvenience .... there are places to pull out that are outside of the booms but I would have to call someone to come help me ..

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    Quote Originally Posted by RPD View Post
    I never realized there were so many ways to bleed brakes.
    Barry, have you been out on the bay recently? I saw a nice Regulator with bad oil stains on the bottom yesterday ... right across from Shoreline Park on the island side .... I haven't been out on the Donzi lately because I'm never sure whether the booms will be open on Bayou Texar to get back in, and now I'm worried about the oil stains. My sailboat is over on Bayou Chico and I think I might pull it this week. At least I can use my HydraSport .... don't care so much about the oil stains on it and, anyway, it has bottom paint which could always be sanded off to remove the oil. Really sucks and I feel sorry for the businesses on the beach....

    No, I haven't been out since the oil hit the bay. I too am disgusted with the oil situation. I'm concerned with hitting a patch of oil and ingesting it through the water pump. It is so thick, I'm worried it will clog up the water passages in the coolers and engine. I guess it might be time to install fresh water cooling. "Salt Away" has been very good to the engine so far, but now this is different, its worse than salt water.

    I may start towing the boat up to the Blackwater River in Milton. The ramp at Shoreline Park is boomed off, but they have a gap in it that they will open on occasions. The ramp at the end of the Pensacola Bay Bridge here in Gulf Breeze is one I don't like to use. The ramp is so shallow I have to get my truck wet to launch and retrieve there.I will probably watch the Blue Angels Air Show from the Elks Lodge Balcony or the Sandshaker balcony.

    Thanks everyone for the help on bleeding the brakes! Now that I have new springs and brakes, towing somewhere to find clean water to boat in will be safer.
    "YIPPY-KAI-YAY"
    1993 Donzi Classic 22 by Chris Craft...
    White with Yellow stripes...
    502 King Cobra...
    Its hard to be humble when you own a Donzi. (In my humble opinion).
    To hear it run...click the link below...
    http://s922.photobucket.com/albums/a...er_media_share

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    Barry .... the problem with Blackwater is there isn't really anywhere to go except up and down the river .... back in the early 70's when Texar was getting lots of bad press, we skied up there all one summer... I hated the taste of that fresh water (give me E coli and a little salt anytime), and the snakes and alligators were bothersome ... then I skied for several years over in Satsuma, AL, and got used to the snakes and alligators but still didn't like fresh water ....

    This weekend, I'm spending Friday night on the beach at our condo across from Shoreline to avoid the morning traffic .... we have some friends from Mobile coming to the show so I will run across to the yacht club in the HydraSport to pick them up .... hopefully, there will be as big a turnout as usual, the beach businesses really need it!

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    Quote Originally Posted by RPD View Post
    Barry .... the problem with Blackwater is there isn't really anywhere to go except up and down the river .... back in the early 70's when Texas was getting lots of bad press, we skied up there all one summer... I hated the taste of that fresh water (give me E coli and a little salt anytime), and the snakes and alligators were bothersome ... then I skied for several years over in Satsuma, AL, and got used to the snakes and alligators but still didn't like fresh water ....
    This weekend, I'm spending Friday night on the beach at our condo across from Shoreline to avoid the morning traffic .... we have some friends from Mobile coming to the show so I will run across to the yacht club in the Hydra Sport to pick them up .... hopefully, there will be as big a turnout as usual, the beach businesses really need it!

    I got ya. I've lived here since 1961 and have never boated on the Blackwater. Been down it in a canoe many times. Have a good time watching the "Blues". And I like the "taste" of salt too, mostly on my Margarita!

    Hopefully we will get a break and somehow this oil mess will be resolved soon.
    "YIPPY-KAI-YAY"
    1993 Donzi Classic 22 by Chris Craft...
    White with Yellow stripes...
    502 King Cobra...
    Its hard to be humble when you own a Donzi. (In my humble opinion).
    To hear it run...click the link below...
    http://s922.photobucket.com/albums/a...er_media_share

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