help a dumb noob with his brakes.

[ManagerMike]

Bleeding the brakes on a bike is just as difficult as bleeding a hydraulic clutch on a car; you have to force air DOWN against a fluid. The main reason it is easier to bleed the brakes on a car (vs the clutch or brakes on a bike) is the volume of fluid (or lack therof) displaced by the master cylinder.
The best solution is a vacuum bleeder. It can draw fluid down and out of the system faster than the air bubbles can travel up the hoses.
Lacking that, you either need a very fast manual bleeding technique, or as others have used on this forum, remove the calipers from thier mounts and raise them as high as practical to reduce the gravity you are fighting with.
If it were possible to raise the calipers above the level of the master, bleeding would be almost automatic.

Just trying to help you understand the reason you are having trouble so that you can devise a solution that suits your particular circumstance.

[silver_ride]

i went to harbor freight tools, picked up a bleeder pump kit, followed the instructions you've all given and the whole job took a whopping 10 minutes...thanks! but the action still feels mushy, slippery...i took it out for a 4-5 mile ride on surface streets (not above 25mph), i had it stopping just fine but can't trust it at higher speeds, obviously. i assume this is because there is still too much air in the lines and i'll have to bleed it more...correct? should i use the pump for that? the pump's lines are black rubber so it wasn't helpful in seeing any bubbles. also, i think the reservoir briefly went dry on my first attempt, before i got the rhythm of it down...so there you go...

also, during my previous attempts i spilled an awful lot of fluid on the brake discs, i cleaned it up as fast as i could but it still feels sort of 'filmy' from it...will this cause permanent damage to the discs?

another thing; i read in the service manual that front brake pads & rear brake pads are different, although they are exactly the same size. i got 3 sets of the pads my local shop ordered for me, all 3 are the same. this is one of the reasons i haven't messed with the rear brake yet. is there still any truth to that? are pads made of different stuff these days? the manual was written 20-30 years ago...

about my bold choice of an xs11 for a first bike...i got a really good deal on it, the guy was a friend-of-a-friend who is well-liked and trusted, i wanted a bike i could grow (obese) with, i wanted a project to tinker with on my weekends, i wanted to pick up girls (still waiting on that one), i wanted a good highway bike for road trips, i wanted to impress my friends who have smaller bikes, but most important of all, i got it because its BADASS!!!

it has been a challenge but i'm doing just fine on her...only problem i have is laying her down if she leans past a certain point when i'm slowly backing into a parking spot or whatever. she drops like a sack of potatoes...embarassing and harmful. she has some nasty scars from the first couple of days...i'm 5'8" and 175lbs so you can probably imagine the difficulties i've had with this fat bastard...

[natemoen]

Get some zip ties and tie the brake handle about half way in and let it sit overnight. Usually when you come back they have stiffened up. On the standards all the pads are the same, specials have different front pads .

[crazy steve]

...another thing; i read in the service manual that front brake pads & rear brake pads are different, although they are exactly the same size. i got 3 sets of the pads my local shop ordered for me, all 3 are the same. this is one of the reasons i haven't messed with the rear brake yet. is there still any truth to that? are pads made of different stuff these days? the manual was written 20-30 years ago...

Back in the day, that was true; Yamaha spec'ed out a different compound pad for the rear brake (and the factory rear pads were marked 'rear'). Those have been unavailable for years, and all aftermarket pads are identified for front and rear now. Don't worry about it....

[ManagerMike]

The fluid on the discs is not good for braking performance but will not harm the discs permanently. You'll need to pick up a can of brake parts cleaner from the local auto parts store and wash things down thoroughly, particularly the brake pads.
You may need to remove the pads and scuff the contact surfaces to remove any glazing that might have resulted from using them in the face of the fluid contamination.

[mharrington]

Make sure you DO NOT get fluid on your brake pads!!! They will no longer be usable as the material absorbs the fluid and becomes "Fouled" Using your hand pump brake bleeder make sure the master cyl reservoir doe not run empty and the hose you attach to the bleeder screw must be secure- usually the hoses do not slip on nice and secure as we would like but are rocking around and thus not air tight. Try to use one hand to really make sure your bleeding hose is kept on that bleeder screw securely. On bikes and cars a simple C clamp is used to press the piston back and make room for the new pads. On bike though place some wood in between the clamp and caliper to not damage the caliper body with the C clamp.

[cywelchjr]

Even if the brake fluid gets on the pads, unless it was a lot of it, I use purple power to clean things up and let it sit about 15 to 20 minutes (longer than I would on alloy) and then rinse, and have had good luck at it cleaning them up. They may squeal a bit, but will work ok, and will generally get better over a few weeks and likely even stop squealing.

[Gallaecus]

[QUOTE=silver_ride;340991]i went to harbor freight tools, picked up a bleeder pump kit, followed the instructions you've all given and the whole job took a whopping 10 minutes...thanks! but the action still feels mushy, slippery...i took it out for a 4-5 mile ride on surface streets (not above 25mph), i had it stopping just fine but can't trust it at higher speeds, obviously. i assume this is because there is still too much air in the lines and i'll have to bleed it more...correct? should i use the pump for that? the pump's lines are black rubber so it wasn't helpful in seeing any bubbles. also, i think the reservoir briefly went dry on my first attempt, before i got the rhythm of it down...so there you go...





you could try taking the line off at the master cylinder (the highest point)
fill the line with brake fluid and put it back on.

[skids]

You might get lucky and get the bubble to come out the spooge hole.

[silver_ride]

the brakes have actually stiffened up on their own, apparently. took a ride last night, intending to tie the handle half-open when i got back home, but they seemed good as new, stopped on a dime and can't squeeze the handle much past halfway...seems good to go. thank you all for your help.