clutch hydro difficulty

Good evening.
I rebuilt the MC on my 64 B and left the slave alone as there was no evidence of any leaks there. I had a good pedal prior to the rebuild. I have bled this thing with just about every method possible, and still can't get it to pressure up. I'm beginning to wish I had left it alone and just pretend I didn't see the moisture up top.

Time to replace MC or try another rebuild kit? The kit I used had been in a drawer for a few years, but so have my socks and they still work.
If I do replace MC, any thoughts on replacing the slave or just wait until it shows evidence of a leak?

Pricing of a new MC seems to be quite varried, with B Hive the lowest for a Lockheed. I have not ordered from then before. OK experience?

Thanks for your help.
Kevin

Chances are you still have air in the system. Have you tried Jack's (twigworker), push in the push rod approach? That's what worked best for me.

http://www.mgexperience.net/phorum/read.php?1,599276,599290#msg-599290

Good Luck. I just rebuilt the clutch slave and mc. I gave up on rebuilding the brake MC and just went w/ a new one. Bleeding the clutch is way tougher than the brakes. Probably because you're fighting gravity almost the whole length of the run.

Paul

the best way to bleed a clutch slave is to push fluid IN at the slave and on up into the line and master.

Most slaves come with the bleed firring in the bottom and the connection for the line at the top. Many folks think this is wrong and the assembler screwed up. Nope, it's right because we are going to be pushing the air UP into the line and the MC and then to the atmosphere. If the bleed port is at the top you'll trap air and it won't work with my push method.

Get a 2 ounce (60cc) veterinary syringe and two sizes of plastic tubing: one fits tightly on the Luhr taper of the syringe and the other fits tightly over that tubing and over the bleed fitting. About $3 at a large pet store or veterinary/ranch supply.

with the MC empty (and the the bleed fitting in the proper position, the lower), fill the syringe halfway or a little more. Crack the bleed fitting (half a turn should do) and put the tubing onto the fitting then slowly...slowly, don't try to squirt it in real fast because you'll tend to aerate it and you don't want that. When the syringe is empty, reseal the bleed fitting and go check the MC. You should see fluid in the MC above the holes. At this point you can fill the MC (I tend to keep it not filled to the brim or even quite to the fill level).

You should be good to go. sometimes a minor amount of air can remain but it will soon work itself out with use and rise thru the hard line to the MC and then vent.

Trying to bleed a clutch slave with the push-and-hold technique is not always successful, as you have seen.

Use of a Mityvac or one of those things is in my opinion not as good as the syringe. At least the one I have has so many tubing joints that the joints leak and generates air leaks and general mess.

As long as I don't develop a dependency with the syringe, it makes sense to shoot up. In some ways, I still wonder if the rebuild fit is close but not close enough and contributing to the soft pedal by not pushing the fluid down to the slave and beyond with as much pressure as it should. I'll give the injection method a try tomorrow. Thanks everyone for your experince and ideas.

What you have is a pocket of trapped air in the cylinder. Just do the deed Paul referred to and you will be fine. Jack

I have already tried pushing in the slave rod, and while it improved slightly, not quite enough to do the job. I sure can go at it again.

take note of position of the line vs bleeder screw.

if bleeder screw is at the bottom (my method) then pumping the pedal won't get you anywhere. If it is at the top, then it should. eventually<G>

I always put the bleed screw on the side and the hose on the end, as the factory did. I don't know why they always are shipped the other way round but that is wrong going by the original part. I have done this for the past 20 years of working on British cars and have bled more clutch hydrolics than I can remember without any problem. In the event that you are having problems. It is very easy to over come. Take the bleed screw out. Put your finger over the hole and have someone pump it through 4 or 5 times after you start getting fluid. Then bleed it the regular way. On the final pump I push the slave push rod all the way in after opening the bleed screw, and close the screw bfore I let it loose. It will take all of a couple of minutes, and less than one can of brake fluid. That is only if your master and slave is in good working order.

This is the hardest system to bleed I've ever seen. I also do the push fluid in from the bottom method.

Did you bench bleed the MC?

Kevin,
If you end up replacing the MC Gordon at the B-hive is friendly and as good as any other parts supplier. Don't email him, call him on the phone. There are lots of other good parts suppliers, many are members on this site.

You might consider draining the circuit and restarting from the bottom.

Where do you go to find a veterinary syringe like was mentioned here. Last time I tryed to buy a syringe I got the third degree, I guess they thought I was an addict.
John

I think they are called Mityvac and they do work well for bleeding all things, If I recall Moss has them.

Go to a special medical supply house. You want the syringe without the needle. The place in my town is called "The Apothocary Shop". They sell special medical items to the public. Just ask for syringe 2cc or what ever size you want. You can also get the tubing there. I got some to add Silstop to my paint.