if i pull the level back first time it is a bit soft, after i pump them it is hard like it should be. i have bleed the brakes but still nothing. next step is to try filling it with some break fluid. The clear dot to check has to be black right? if not that means its low on fluid? its clear most of the time so im gonna try that. I can use any dot 3 fluid, doesnt have to be polaris right? i searched about this and a person had the same problem but had to get the master cylinder replaced......


my question is after i add some fluid and if it still dosnt work, is there anything more i can try before takin it to the dealer? and if i add some fluid do i need to rebleed the breaks?

 

Do you know how to bleed brakes? How are you doing it? I would say that you have air in the brake lines...and when you pump the brakes it is hardening up..or you need more fluid.

 

exactly

you have to blead them properly,,,,being certain the reservoir never runs low(to let air in), as you blead the old fluid/air bubbles out.

you need to have someone put light pressure on the hand brake, as you loosen/tighten the bleaders.

the key is to be sure the bleader is tight before the brake lever is released (sucking in air)

I guess im not really good at explaining it (i just read what I wrote)

oh well

 

Same here Bing...its kinda hard to explain....but it is much nicer to do with another person.

 

when i did it, i had to do them myself so what i did is tape the brake to the handbar so it is like someone pressing them....


you say "being certain the reservoir never runs low(to let air in), as you blead the old fluid/air bubbles out." im a newbie to this stuff, so from that statment it sounds like bleeding the breaks is removing ALL old fluid and replace it with new fluid? i thought that bleeding was simply letting the air out using the bleeders?


i am pretty sure i did bleed them right. notice that the problem was always there, just i blead them to hopefully fix it.

i am gonna try adding some fluid next, do i need to top it off, or should i drain all the old stuff and put new stuff in?how would i drain it? just bleed it till fluid stops coming out? then just keep adding new fluid till it starts coming out then close the bleeder or what? no need to respond on how to drain it if all i gotta do is fill it up.

any dot3 fluid is ok?


thanks

 

You can bleed the old fluid out if you want, probably not neccessary though. When you do it you have to pump the brakes a few times and then hold it....then another guy has to crack the bleeder. You do this on all of the brakes, and may have to do it more than once. You are supposed to start with the brake that is farthest from the fluid resevor(back brake). When you are bleeding the brakes your main concern is that when you are opening the bleeder...that the brake resevor(or where it sucks fluid from) isn't running empty. It is really hard to do alone, I would find a friend....the duct tape thing isn't going to work right. Keep asking if you have more ??'s.

 

ok it has 2 bleeders and i was confused the first time i did it too. how do the 2 function? i was told one is for the hand brake and the other is for the foot break? is this correct?

 

I can't really explain that, I think you are correct in that one is for the foot and one for the hand, so you'll have to bleed both bleeders. You also have to do the front brakes too, if you want the squishiness out of the hanle. And remember to pump the brake when you are bleeding it, pump it up then crack the bleeder...then do it again, and maybe again. The pumping pushes the air to the edge of the line, so when you open the bleeder it escapes.

 

from what you explain,,,,you are way off

heres how it goes assuming you have a full reservoir, and the cover plate on the res is removed (so you can add to it)

1) put pressure on brake (gently)
2) crack bleader, and watch fluid run out as the lever depresses
3) before lever bottoms out,,,,,close bleader completely (to prevent air from sucking back in the caliper)
4) once bleader is closed,,,,release lever and give a gentle pump or two to suck fresh fluid from the reservoir
5) re-fill reservoir as it gets low

so,,,its squeeze lever, crack bleader, squeeze fuild out, close bleader,,,pump handle,,,top off fluid

6) repeat this process several times on each caliper,,,in order to replace all the fluid in all the lines

You may even hear and see air blowing out with the old dirty fluid

You really never want to introduce air into the lines,,,,,,,because then the air needs to be removed,,,,or it can cavitate and become a problem



When someone is helping,,,I usually get a set of commands going to assure quality

"PRESS"
"HOLD"
"RELEASE"
"Pump" (the guy cracking the bleader is shouting this to the guy pumping the pedal)

8-10 times per caliper,,,depending on how long the line is,,,should be fine

you should also feel the brakes tighten up as you go

 

yes

however sometime the seal between the two can go bad causing fluid to blow by

This can be diagnosed if you press both the foot lever and the hand lever at the smae time,,,,,,then release one,,,,,if the other softens or moves,,,you have a bad seal,,,,and you should use both levers for 4 tire breaking.