Fluid change

Gave the brakes new fluid.. Must say it was time.. At the bottom the fluid was like gel...

Also compressed the brake pads while the bleed screw was open.. Grey brake fluid came out..

Both front and rear got cleaned and bled.. Nice firm brakes now..

On to the clutch...






Having trouble bleeding it..
Will try to reverse bleed it first, then power bleed..

Probably some goo in the lines, or an air bubble..

Can’t get fluid from the master to the slave, no matter how much I press the lever

 

Couldn’t reversebleed it.. I’ll try the power bleed option later

 

I would disassemble and clean each part instead of just trying to bleed it.

 

I just tried it.. it changes gear?
Will it change gear if no fluid is present?

 

Sure. You don't need to clutch to change gears. Not a great idea but you can. Just stay off the throttle while shifting. The only tough one is going from a stop into 1st.

 

How “tough”?

It changes gear just like before.. effortless..

I think there’s fluid in the slave..

When I pump the clutch lever and hold it in, and then open the bleed nipple, clean fluid comes out, no bubbles...

But the fluid in the reservoir doesn’t drop as fast as bleeding the brakes.. it barely drops

 

you'll get a better slave bleed by removing sprocket cover and clamping slave fully retracted while bleeding. air can hide behind slave piston otherwise.

"raeva mi verker"

 

Went by the mechanic.. he said to leave it.. no air in it.. it also disengages when squeezing the lever while driving so it must be doing its job

 

Of course

 

Burp the banjo bolts.

 

i think it's better to remove the rez from the bar, hold it upsidedown and give a quick spray with brake cleaner to remove sticky debris.

 

Wow.. and I thought my clutch fluid looked overdue for a change.. haha.

Anyway, it looks like I'm having the same bleeding difficulties as you are on my new-to-me RC36. I changed my clutch fluid and tried to bleed it traditionally via the bleed nipple on the slave. The lever feels nice and firm, but the clutch won't release fully anymore. I struggle to rotate the back wheel by hand when the clutch is engaged, so the slave is definitely not extending completely.

I tried burping the banjo bolt on the master but no cigar. I'll try Squirrelman#1's suggestion to remove the sprocket cover and clamping the slave in the fully retracted position next, as it looks like I have some bubbles in the slave still.

 

So I was able to bleed the system completely by compressing the slave cylinder piston with a pair of locking pliers and trying again. Thanks for the tip!

Here was my setup.

 

Did you ude the lever to pump fluid through? Or a tool?

My mech told me no air was in mine, also, if I’m gear and I press the lever the rpm drops to idle..

But...

I would like to be 120% sure, so I’m thinking of fitting new kit..

What about the gasket? Is it needed? Or reusable?

 

I started by using the vacuum pump you can see in the picture, but in the end I just did it traditionally using the brake lever, because the vacuum bleeder was sucking air through the bleed screw threads.

What gasket do you mean? There appeared to be an oil seal in the slave cylinder, but I didn't change it, as it didn't appear to be leaking. The cylinder walls were quite nasty looking, though, but it works, so I left it as is. If your slave cylinder piston is sticking (not releasing fully as if the clutch is slipping), it might need an overhaul. Then it makes sense to change the seal too.

There was also a paper seal between the slave cylinder body and engine housing, but it doesn't really appear to seal anything.. just keeps debris away I guess.

Edit: Oh, and I didn't need to remove the sprocket cover to access the slave cylinder, just the upper and lower fairings.

 

Here's another picture showing the paper gasket and the sprocket cover still in place.

 

Yeah I meant that paper seal/gasket..

Looks reusable.. or else perhaps a small amount of liquid seal can be used..

I’ll think I’ll order a slave cylinder kit... need something to work on

 

You could easily cut it yourself - just get some gasket paper and draw the outline and internal diameter. I reused mine, tho.