Hayes PRO Bleed Kit

There are lots of instructional videos and instructions out there for all the older Hayes models, but the Dyna system is new and not so well supported. Note that my kit did not come with the promised easy instructions, just a crude drawing of the parts.What you will need to do this correctly:Clean space, and a lot of it, because if you drop a little bleeder screw or something the Mechanic Demons will see to it that the part bounces an improbable distance and directly into any pile of debris so that it is hard to find. You know this is true so don't get lazy and work in filth. Also note that some brake fluid will drip and so you need to lay out a sheet of plastic if you care about your working space.A hex wrench set and a Torx T10 bit. Most of the bike tool all-in-one tool kits have these, but of course separate mechanic's tools are always easier to use.Gloves as you will get brake fluid on you, rags with alcohol to clean the parts and water-soaked rags to clean up fluid spatter on the paint. Needle-nose pliers are good to remove the cotter pin that holds the brake pads in on this model.The Hayes brake setting tool is something I recommend: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001CK0JEO/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i02If you are going to remove a hydraulic line, get this bag of fittings: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001CK0JEO/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i02And of course this kit. Note that this is the newest and most expensive kit offered and is the right one to get.Here is how to set it all up: The big bottle is to catch the overflow from the reservoir (the brake handle part). The small one is to squeeze fluid through the caliper, up through the hydraulic line and into the reservoir. This is opposite of the way you bleed an automotive system.There is a wire spoke in the kit. Thread it through one of the holes in the cap of the big bottle and then bend the end over. This allows it to hang on the handlebar.Rig up the tubes for the top bottle by using the long hose and attaching the long aluminum fitting to one end. Slide the tube pincher clip onto the tube and then the plastic fitting that twists into the bottle cap. The bottom little squeeze bottle uses the shorter aluminum fitting and the attachment to the bottle, but not a tube pincher clip. Use the second longest tube for this. Fill the bottle with fluid, almost to the top.Remove the caliper and remove the pads from it. Do not think you can work cleanly and avoid getting fluid on the pads. If you do, you have to replace them.Remove the little Torx bleeder screw and put it in a safe place. Thread in the aluminum bleeder and attach the bottle.THEN, loosen the brake lever/reservoir assembly so that it can be rotated. You might also have to loosen and move the shifter over and out of the way. Of course you will have figured out that the left one is for the front, the right one for the rear...Remove and save the Torx screw and screw in the long aluminum bleeder and attach the overflow bottle. You may have to rotate the handle around to get access, but once it is all attached rotate it down so that the aluminum bleeder is pointing straight down.Squeeze the lower bottle and force fluid up though the system and out into the catch bottle. You will see lots of bubbles at firs, then finally clear solid fluid. At this point, rotate the handle down so that the aluminum bleeder is pointing straight back, parallel to the ground. Keep squeezing and a few more bubbles will come out. Snap the handle four times and a few more bubbles come out. Keep pressure on the squeeze bottle and snap the pincher clip shut.Detach the squeeze bottle and replace the Torx. Do the same at the reservoir.Clean all the brake parts with the alcohol and clean your hands as well. Wash off any fluid on the bike. Install the brake pads. Install the caliper assembly onto the bike so that it is parallel to the rotor and there is equal clearance on both sides of the rotor. This is not like a car where the calipers float in and out, aligning themselves automatically. On a bike they are rigid and must be set up exactly. The Hayes brake tool mentioned above is very useful here. Position and tighten up the brake lever and shifter assemblies.You are done! I did it this way and everything was perfect the first time.Note the sequences are important. Do it exactly in the order I outlined or all the fluid will rush out. The pincher clip is part of this scheme. Took be awhile to figure out how this bleeding technique could possibly work and the secret is indeed the sequences and the use of the clip, the key to everything!Hayes gives you the torque values for all of those delicate Allen screws and aluminum parts. Most of them can be set pretty well by simply bottoming them out and then a very slight grunt. You can invest in bits that will fit onto a torque wrench and do it right.All this is complex, but doable. Wait for the day that anti-lock technology comes to bikes...!

I ordered this kit to bleed my Hayes Sole hydraulic disc brakes on my Felt mountain bike. I was a bit nervous about how it would go (after reading some of the other reviews) but I could not be happier with the results. Although I feel I paid for a bunch of fittings I did not use, the basic parts that I did use worked great. Once I figured out what to use (and what to not use) the actual bleeding of the brakes took me about 10 minutes for the rear and 5 for the front.Lets go over what I used:1) Both bottles2) Two pieces of hose3) One of the fittings for the master cylinder4) The spoke (I used a piece of tape to adhere it to the bottle)5) Brake fluidI was able to connect one the filler bottle hose to the fitting on my calipers, so that made the process a lot easier and neat. I just made sure to break the fitting loose before connecting the hose and then I hand tightened to keep fluid from leaking out until I connected the hose. On the top by the handle, I used one of the small silver fittings to go into the hole where I pulled out the plug. I then attached the empty bottle with the hose to that fitting and hung it on the handle bar.When I was ready to start I simply loosened the fitting on the caliper about 1/8 of a turn out and squeezed the bottle with the fresh fluid in it. Shortly after that old fluid and a bunch of bubbles came out of the other end and into the bottle. One video I watched said to cycle the brake lever a few times. I did that for the rear and it doesn't seem to have done much. I kept squeezing the filler bottle until clean, bubble free fluid came out of the other end. Then I tightened the fitting on the caliper with my hands, carefully removed the hose from the nipple and then I tightened it down with a small socket. On the other end I removed the fitting from the reservoir and popped the plug back in right away. I think a tiny drop of fluid came out. Before this my handle went all the way down to the grip and the bike would not stop. Now, with no other adjustment to the brake pads, the lever only comes down about half an inch before the brakes lock up.For the front I did the same, except that I didn't cycle the brake lever at all. I got all of the air out of the line and now it too locks up with within an inch of pulling it down.If you're careful you can do this without making a mess. If you think you will you can remove the pads as some people advise.One thing to note, the master cylinder reservoir filling hole is normally pointing forward during normal use. You have to rotate it up before you do this. Otherwise I suspect things will be a lot messier. You can loosen and rotate it up, or, if you have a bike stand that can do this, you can rotate your bike up 90 degrees to have the brake levers pointing up. I did this when I did the front because didn't want to loosen the bracket (my rear one was a pain to break free and I wanted to save myself the trouble).All in all not a bad kit. A bit overpriced in my opinion, but IT WORKS and at the end of the day that's what counts to me. The box is nice and will help keep everything together for future use. I gave it four stars because of the bunch of parts I didn't use and the lack of directions. I hope this review helps someone. If you're on the fence about this go for it. It's cheaper than what I'm sure a bike shop would charge and you can have your brakes done fast and at home. Glad I bought this!