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Brake Bleeding Help

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Old Oct 11, 2012 | 08:05 PM
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Default Brake Bleeding Help

I'm at my wits end with these damn brakes. I don't know if there is something I am over looking or what.

After putting the engine back in, I bled the brakes the manual way. The old fluid was flushed out and there wasn't any bubbles. I took the car out for a drive and the brakes were a bit soft so I bled them again. Took the car out and they were still soft. I was able to get the ABS to engage, but barely. So thinking that I got the air out of the ABS block, I bled the brakes again. This time though there were tons of small bubbles in the line and they just kept coming. Same thing on each brake line. This made me think the master cylinder I put in was bad. I picked up a new master cylinder today, bench bled it, installed it, then bled each line but the tons of small bubbles are still there! I pushed the car out of the garage and started it and the pedal was really soft for the first inch or so then really hard.

Anyone have an idea? This is the only thing keeping me off the road
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Old Oct 12, 2012 | 12:47 PM
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buy or borrow a power bleeder.
bleeding brakes by manually pumping the pedal only works when there is no air in the system or the only air is at the caliper. When you have air upstream pumping the pedal does not move the brake fluid fast enough to push air through the lines. The master cylinder is higher than the calipers so air bubbles keep floating upward in the line and won't ever make it to the calipers unless you flow the brake fluid fast enough through the system.
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Old Oct 12, 2012 | 02:07 PM
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From: Shelby Twp, MI
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Originally Posted by 1 FMF
buy or borrow a power bleeder.
bleeding brakes by manually pumping the pedal only works when there is no air in the system or the only air is at the caliper. When you have air upstream pumping the pedal does not move the brake fluid fast enough to push air through the lines. The master cylinder is higher than the calipers so air bubbles keep floating upward in the line and won't ever make it to the calipers unless you flow the brake fluid fast enough through the system.
This is what I was thinking too. Thanks for confirming. I purchased a Motive power bleeder last night.
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