Buggered clutch slave?

[badmotogoozer]

I was replacing the fluid in the clutch system last night using a speed bleeder. Worked excellent until I tightened it down. Pulled lever and didn't hear the clutch actuating. Took a look and saw fluid still coming out. Took out SB and saw that the tip (internal end) was deformed. Examined original bleeder and noticed it had a flat botton. not pointed like the SB. Put it back in and the clutch worked fine again (I think...)

 

Question is - did I bugger something up in there? No idea what the internals look like... If I did I'd like to know before I put the SA back on...

 

thanks,

 

Rj

[Guest Gary Cheek]

If the original bleeder is sealing up ok there was very likely no real harm done. Since it is not leaking now I would just keep an eye on the area for a while. If you are real paranoid you could take it all apart this winter to be sure.

[Mr. Bean]

Sorry I can't tell you if you busted something in the clutch slave...I do know however that you can get the SB to fit ok by grinding down the pointed end to match that of the original bleeder. I noticed when I got my speed bleeders that it was longer than the original and was pointed as you described. I took a Dremel to it and duplicated the flat face of the original and now it fits and works just fine.

 

Randy

[pete roper]

Buggered clutch slave? It all sounds extraordinarily byzantine to me!

 

The way the sealing works is that the little 'ole in the bottom of the nipple is occluded as the nipple seats as it is screwed into the caliper. If the receptical that it screws into has a *flat* bottom, (God, this gets weirder and weirder!) and the nipple is pointed, (Can it get a lot worse?) then when the nipple is tightened down there is no way the two flats on the flanks of the bottom of the nipple, (Yup! Seems it can!) and the caliper base can mate, (See!) and form a fluid type seal.

 

Grinding the tit, (Groan!) off the end of the nipple, (Fnarr, Fnarr...) should allow the assorted parts to seat together, (Like in a church!) and not allow the egress of fluid, (Like a wet dream.).

 

Pete

[twhitaker]

My SB worked fine even though it replaced the flat bottomed original. I must have gotten lucky.

[badmotogoozer]

Pete - I"ll try to get a pic of the SB so you can see what I mean. I'm worried that by tightening the SB down tight enough to deform the internal tip of it may have damaged whatever it is inside that the SB was hitting. Is it a moving part? Might I have cracked the housing internally? I figure if the bleeder was deformed, whatever it was hitting will also be deformed or damaged.

 

I've got the old one in now - next time I change fluid I'll grind down the SB and install it permanently. Getting the SB to seat, as suggested, will be enough to get a fluid seal. I'm worried about damage I might have done to the slave internally.

 

Thanks to all who responded. I am of a mind to pull it apart so I don't worry about my clutch seizing out on the road or fluid leaking somewhere it shouldn't be... But I'm not sure I'd even be able to see the area in question if I took it all apart.

 

 

Rj

[gh67]

Pete - I"ll try to get a pic of the SB so you can see what I mean. I'm worried that by tightening the SB down tight enough to deform the internal tip of it may have damaged whatever it is inside that the SB was hitting. Is it a moving part? Might I have cracked the housing internally? I figure if the bleeder was deformed, whatever it was hitting will also be deformed or damaged.

 

I've got the old one in now - next time I change fluid I'll grind down the SB and install it permanently. Getting the SB to seat, as suggested, will be enough to get a fluid seal. I'm worried about damage I might have done to the slave internally.

 

Thanks to all who responded. I am of a mind to pull it apart so I don't worry about my clutch seizing out on the road or fluid leaking somewhere it shouldn't be... But I'm not sure I'd even be able to see the area in question if I took it all apart.

 

 

Rj

badmoto,

I had the same problem a few years ago (and posted to the forum) when I went to replace my bleeders with SBs. Had no problems on any of the calipers but the exact same issue as you with the clutch slave bleeder....that being a buggered up SB tip and leaking slave. To make matters worse the littel ball bearing in the slave stuck to buggered SB when I removed it and the damn thing went bouncing accross the garage.....another story of cussing in itself. I said screw it and use the original bleeder on the slave with a vacuum gun to bleed.