No Clutch!

[Scud]

That looks like a good DOT 4. The boiling points are just a little lower than the Motul 5.1 that I used. Dry boiling point 509F vs 522F. Wet boiling 329 vs 365. I don't think the clutch slave will ever get that hot, but I like to use the same fluid in everything. 

I think any DOT 4 or 5.1 is probably fine. The key is to keep it fresh - not let it sit in there forever.

[bridge]

On 4/10/2021 at 2:42 PM, Tinknocker said:

Try zip tying the lever against handgrip overnight, and turn steering to  right. It's worked on my KTM's before. Btw, what do you consider a proper bleed?

That worked. Thank you Tinknocker. Thank you all for your excellent advice.
Now, my high beam, horn, and tachometer don’t work. The fuses are all OK. It’s a mechanical tach, correct? Where should I start to troubleshoot the high beam and horn?

[bridge]

YOU GUYS ARE GENIUSES! Everything on my Lemans works! 🙏🏽 Had my doubts about the relays. Now I have a working clutch, high beam, horn, and tachometer. Yes! 

[Lucky Phil]

On 4/12/2021 at 12:09 PM, Scud said:

That looks like a good DOT 4. The boiling points are just a little lower than the Motul 5.1 that I used. Dry boiling point 509F vs 522F. Wet boiling 329 vs 365. I don't think the clutch slave will ever get that hot, but I like to use the same fluid in everything. 

I think any DOT 4 or 5.1 is probably fine. The key is to keep it fresh - not let it sit in there forever.

 

 

Ciao

[Scud]

I just finished flushing all the hydraulics in the stable. Good to do them all at the same time out of a freshly opened bottle of fluid (or two as I needed).

This was the first time I did the clutch on Stelvio and I must say, I was dreading it. But amazingly, the clutch slave has no bleeder, only two lines. I followed the other line and found a bleeder at the end. All nice and high and easy to reach for one person. This makes me wonder if I could run on of these on a V11. I'm in no hurry, since mine already has fresh fluid.  But maybe somebody reading this thread is thinking "it's about time I flushed all my hydraulics." So take up the mantle for us and figure out how to run a remote bleeder like is on the 2017 Stelvio.

[80CX100]

46 minutes ago, Scud said:

But maybe somebody reading this thread is thinking "it's about time I flushed all my hydraulics." So take up the mantle for us and figure out how to run a remote bleeder like is on the 2017 Stelvio.

Hey Scud,     I'm not sure how the plumbing is configured, but my 2007 Griso bleeder valve is located on a remote line in the same place tucked up high on the left side under the seat. 

                      You're right, some type of simple T fitting down at the master cylinder running a nice high remote bleeder valve for the bubbles to rise to makes a lot of sense.

                       Bleeding the Griso clutch was a dream,,, bleeding the V11 down at the M/C trying to force the bubbles downhill was a nightmare in comparison.

[Scud]

There's no T or anything. It's just a hydraulic line screwed in where the bleeder valve would otherwise be. I think this could be done on the V11 if somebody just figures out the correct threads and finds a good routing for the line. I'd guess there's a pretty good chance that the OEM Guzzi line for Stelvio would work as-is. 

[Lucky Phil]

3 hours ago, 80CX100 said:

Hey Scud,     I'm not sure how the plumbing is configured, but my 2007 Griso bleeder valve is located on a remote line in the same place tucked up high on the left side under the seat. 

                      You're right, some type of simple T fitting down at the master cylinder running a nice high remote bleeder valve for the bubbles to rise to makes a lot of sense.

                       Bleeding the Griso clutch was a dream,,, bleeding the V11 down at the M/C trying to force the bubbles downhill was a nightmare in comparison.

There's no difference with the extension as it's not above the master cylinder. You're still pushing air down hill just the same as without the extension, same as bleeding brakes. The clutch bleed extension just makes it less tricky to access the bleed point.

If you're bleeding the clutch or brakes for that matter from scratch the easiest way is a syringe full of fluid, say 250ml and some plastic hose and fill the system from the Slave at the bottom. You can buy a plastic syringe for next to nothing. What most people fail to do ( esp on bikes with clip on style bars) is remove the master from the handlebar and tilt it so air trapped in the connection between the master and the hose is lower than the reservoir. Gently work the brake/clutch lever just to the point of take up and out comes the air. Or tap the lines with a screwdriver and the same happens. You'll never get that trapped air out with bleeding unless you use a big commercial powered pressure bleeder. Invest in a manual home workshop pressure bleeder (they are like $75US for a good one) as they are far superior to a vacuum pump/method and you can use it on your cars as well. The other advantage of a pressure bleeder for brakes is it removes the requirement to push the brakes full travel when doing a "manual" bleed which on an older car/bike keeps the master cylinder seals away from the area of the cylinder bore that doesn't normally get used which can have accumulated some corrosion and roughness. Ever manually bled a brake system only to find the master cylinder seals fail shortly thereafter? Thats the reason. If you flush you're clutch and brakes regularly you never need to bleed them anyway.

Ciao 

    

[80CX100]

4 hours ago, Lucky Phil said:

There's no difference with the extension as it's not above the master cylinder. You're still pushing air down hill just the same as without the extension, same as bleeding brakes. The clutch bleed extension just makes it less tricky to access the bleed point.

If you're bleeding the clutch or brakes for that matter from scratch the easiest way is a syringe full of fluid, say 250ml and some plastic hose and fill the system from the Slave at the bottom. You can buy a plastic syringe for next to nothing. What most people fail to do ( esp on bikes with clip on style bars) is remove the master from the handlebar and tilt it so air trapped in the connection between the master and the hose is lower than the reservoir. Gently work the brake/clutch lever just to the point of take up and out comes the air. Or tap the lines with a screwdriver and the same happens. You'll never get that trapped air out with bleeding unless you use a big commercial powered pressure bleeder. Invest in a manual home workshop pressure bleeder (they are like $75US for a good one) as they are far superior to a vacuum pump/method and you can use it on your cars as well. The other advantage of a pressure bleeder for brakes is it removes the requirement to push the brakes full travel when doing a "manual" bleed which on an older car/bike keeps the master cylinder seals away from the area of the cylinder bore that doesn't normally get used which can have accumulated some corrosion and roughness. Ever manually bled a brake system only to find the master cylinder seals fail shortly thereafter? Thats the reason. If you flush you're clutch and brakes regularly you never need to bleed them anyway.

Ciao 

    

Hey Phil,     Thanks for jumping in and clarifying the confusion on my part, I used the term "master cylinder", when I was actually thinking of and referring to the "slave cylinder" located down at the lowest part of the whole system at the back of the tranny at the clutch push rod.

     I think the factory manual actually recommends removing the slave cylinder and moving it manually to clear any trapped air, I'm not sure how much extra room there is on the early models but I know on my later model V11 with the extra frame cross bar reinforcement in that area and the swingarm limiting access I wasn't going to attempt that.

     I regret immensely not investing in a good pressure bleeder as you suggested when I first dove in to do the clutch bleed, the frustration from that job still burns, lol.