Vfr 1200f 2011 brake bleeding issues

Discussion in '7th Generation 2010-Present' started by Chris to pher, Mar 7, 2020.

  1. Chris to pher

    Chris to pher New Member

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    Stripped the front brakes as they were binding. Pistons out and cleaned, seals out, cleaned lubed and everything replaced. It was all in pretty good condition. Everything back according to the service manual. Even bleed nipple sealed with Teflon tape. Bled in the order shown in manual using a vacuum. Single front piston for rear brake working fine. However I can get absolutely no compression on the front lever. I have gone through a litre of fluid trying to bleed the system, it seems to just pull the fluid from the master through the hoses and straight out the bleed nipples For the two fronts, as I said the linked back brake piston seems to be fine and I have good compression. I have tried everything including re stripping. Tried leaving the brake lever on all night and still nothing. The fluid is completely clear so it’s all new stuff coming through. I can only assume that a fault has occurred in the master cylinder. No air bubbles coming out of the master cylinder. Either something has broken in the cylinder mechanism or something has got stuck, however, if something got stuck surely there would be a little bit of resistance on the lever but nothing at all. I have got no leaks anywhere in the system.
    I know the calipers are in good shape as I used a compressor air line to pop the pistons out.
    I have ordered a master cylinder repair kit in case that may help.
    Am I missing a trick here, is there another bleed nipple that I don’t know about? I have spent three days trying to sort this.
    Never had any issues doing brakes in the past on other bikes.
     
  2. fink

    fink Member

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    A couple of things to try.
    Put span on the widest setting.
    Push all the front pistons back in and use a bit of wood or likes to prevent them being pushed out whilst bleeding.
    Once you have "bled" system if still getting nothing.
    Either
    1- Unclamp master cylinder from bars and hold so the ball end of lever is upright re- clamp onto something ( I have an old bar, but a tube of similar diameter will do) and activate lever to remove any bubbles trapped at banjo joint.

    2- Crack banjo at master cylinder and pump lever, retighten. use the necessary precautions with brake fluid.
     
  3. Chris to pher

    Chris to pher New Member

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    Tried all of the above and nothing. When I say there is no compression I mean literally that, there is no resistance at all ,apart from the spring load.
    Thanks for the advice though.
     
  4. fink

    fink Member

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    Had same on my vfr initially.

    Master cylinder seal would be my next thought.
     
  5. Chris to pher

    Chris to pher New Member

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    That’s what I thought, so I stripped it down and everything is tip top. Having stripped that down I cannot see how that would cause my problem and not leak.
    There has been mentions of reverse bleeding but also that it could cause problems with the ABS modulator.
    I am now scouring the internet for resolutions - no luck so far.
     
  6. raYzerman

    raYzerman Member

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    Reverse bleeding will not hurt the ABS... the fluid is bypassing through it, only when ABS is used does it go through different channel. Check for plugged port that lets fluid out of the reservoir, but sounds like it might be OK if you sucked fluid through it. I'd try the rebuild kit anyway so you have new rubber sealing as it should.
     
  7. Chris to pher

    Chris to pher New Member

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    Will give it a go. Frustratingly there are people that have had a similar issue, but no one says how they fixed it other than to say”all done now and good brakes”
     
  8. fink

    fink Member

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    Yes I would agree. Nothing worse than reading or helping and not finding out the final outcome.
     
  9. Diving Pete

    Diving Pete Member

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    Reverse bleeding or pressurised bleeding is where I would try next. Using a large syringe is remarkably effective.
     
  10. Chris to pher

    Chris to pher New Member

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    It’s my last resort and I have one on order.
     
  11. Wahlstrom

    Wahlstrom New Member

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    This worked for me:



    Small quick lever compressions for about 10 minutes, and you’ll see a lot of air bubbles coming out..
     
  12. mcenthusiast

    mcenthusiast New Member

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    Excellent video! Thank you for posting.
     
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