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Brake Fluid Epiphany

2K views 23 replies 11 participants last post by  XvtxCrewzr 
#1 ·
While changing the brake pads and changing brake fluid recently in my 2 Harleys and other bikes, I had an epiphany of sorts.

When I was a much younger lad, of sorts, DOT 3 brake fluid was the best option. DOT 3 is amber or yellow in color. Then, came DOT 4 brake fluid. DOT 4 is clear in nature. After changing out the pads, I opted to switch to DOT 5. DOT 5 is purple.

Then it hit me, like a brick on the side of the head. Since we think of, and talk about our bikes using the "SHE" definition. Brake fluid is like anal beads. They go in, in different colors. But, always comes out brown.
 
#5 ·
DOT 3/4 when mixed with DOT 5 will create sludge in your brake system. When heat is applied the brakes will lock up. Hope it doesn't happen at speed.
 
#10 ·
As long as you flush it very well, it should be ok, I changed mine by mistake, bought a manual on cd and it said use dot 5, should've just paid attention to the cap and saw it said dot 4. But flushed the entire system several times trying to get the air out and have no problems at all.


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#14 ·
"The Sky is Falling" "The Earth is flat, you'll fall off" " "Lions and tiger and bears, Oh My!" :eek:

Yo Dobber, how long ago did you do it? If it's still working great but you might want to order some parts in advance and prepare to do a total rebuild/clean and flush during the coming off season.

I assume it's a Brembo system. There's a thread here with some Honda part numbers for replacement caliper seals. HD doesn't sell rebuild kits for the Brembo calipers and Brembo won't sell them direct. You might want to order some along with a master cylinder piston kit which I think you can get from HD.

There's no reason the metal parts can't be adequately cleaned and reused. The rubber seals/parts should be replaced. I won't speculate on the lines but if you flush them well I would reuse them.

The early V-Rods with Kelsey/Hayes brakes used DOT5, I have it in my 04 B and think it's great, doesn't remove paint like DOT3 or 4. Not sure why they switched but they don't mix. There are guys that have put new Brembo calipers on their early bikes and run DOT5.
 
#24 ·
a month or so ago I was going out for a day trip,up into VT and NH for the day...my clutch was kinda spongy. I looked into the resevoir and saw I was low on fluid. It was early in the morning and I was in a rush. Went into the garage and only found DOT 3 brake fluid.
Not reading the owners manual I said WTF..and added the DOT 3 to the resevoir and did a 350+ mile trip that day with no ill effects.

A few days later I read a post here about mixing different types of fluid where every reply was...WARNING!WARNING!DANGER!!DANGER!!
I desided I guess I ought to change the juice and put in the proper stuff. When I went to the local NAPA store snd told him what I did he said "better change that s*** ASAP coz it'll turn into cement and screw up all your seals..Lucky for me it all turned out ok..no leaks or clutch slave failure. I DID however,run a 24 oz bottle of purple stuff thru the system to make sure everything fresh again.
 
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