RODS build........

[gazzagood]

glad you sorted it rod  hopfully we see some piccys of you racing round the play ground soon .  gaz

[ROD]

Not long now! Just gotta make safe the cobbled together wiring,oil in g/box and axle,bleed rear brakes ala the method Toad explained,put the rest of the exhaust on ,and away I go!

[panthershaun]

cool

[ROD]

Bit more sorted today....Went to pick up my early xmas present...Vapor digi speedo! Also got some machining done,made up some collars to fit my mismatched diam exhaust tube together.Will have it fitted and mounting brackets made from s/s tomorrow night.
 

[ROD]

Still sorting my brakes! Today I received some new braided brake lines to replace the copper ones I had fitted. So now I have braided lines on forks to T piece ,from T piece to T at rear ,and from the rear calipers to the chassis . I re made the hard lines across the axle.Fitted them all tonight.One prob I had was having to fit a single line banjo into a recess. I overcame this by fitting a double banjo bolt with a spacer that is exactly the same size as the round bit of the banjo ,but no hole in the side of it.(turned it up on the lathe) The spacer goes on first ,then the banjo line.  I also got hold of a couple of medium size syringes(to give meself a lethal overdose if it all goes tits up again! )so looks like I will be a little bleeder again tamara!

[Manky Monkey]

Come & finish mine when you're done with yours please Rod! Jealous of how quickly you've got yours built.
I used a spacer under the banjo bolts on the master cylinders of my trike. Seems to work fine.
Can we have some piccies to look at please.

[ROD]

Been a bleeder today No pedal whatsoever . Tried pushing the fluid thro' from the caliper etc etc. Last resort is Ive left it with the pedal wedged down to see if the air expels that way! BUT now the whole system is under pressure ,after about half hour, Im now finding all the banjo joints are weeping fluid!This didnt show up when I bled it . So now Im guessing if fluid can get out ,then air may be getting in when trying to bleed it?? Ive tightened up all the banjos ,but exactly how tight should they be? Is there a torque setting for them? This is driving me crazy!
  Any comments appreciated!
 
 Andy ,theres not much to show really from the last pics!

[Manky Monkey]

I'm always worried about over tightening brake unions, but it should really only be enough to crush the copper sealing washers. Try this Rod -brake union sealant from Frost auto restoration products.

http://www.frost.co.uk/item_Detail.asp?productID=8874&frostProductName=Brake and Pipe Seal (75ml)&catID=&frostCat=&frostSubCat=&subCatID=

[morrag]

Wedging the pedal down is unlikely to produce a force equivalent to your foot pressure! and as the system must not leak at foot applied pressure, then you have a problem with your joints, which must be sorted before you can move on, torque settings, nope, just nice and tight!.I believe that having so much air in your system must only mean that master and/or slave cylinders are "passing". This, along with your obvious joint probs. is where your trouble lies. I have never had your degree of trouble bleeding any hydraulic system, of any type, automotive or industrial, and I have lost count of the number,provided these basic requirements to avoid ingress of air, had been met,so go round it again! and if all else fails, seperate front from back and bleed independanly, to at least discover where the fault lies, Morrag

[ROD]

I agree Morrag! To be honest,Ive not had experience with banjo fittings previously,only on fuel lines. I 've bled loads of car systems,no probs, this is a big learning curve! As with all things'bike' Im having to learn new parameters! One reason I chose to do a car based trike was that I know cars,but the bike portion has been an eye opener  ,as I ve had to solve and learn some biker basics! Which I 'm making silly mistakes on! I like an engineering challenge,but this is really peeing me off!Today I'll re do each joint ,check the washer seats down etc. Apparently Dowty washers are the answer!
 So heres my system...
 front calipers to  specially made T on frame under headset = flexy s/s .The T has one bolt with bleed nipple.
 Front T to rear car type brass 3 way = flexy s/s . The bolt has bleed nipple.
  Mastercyl to same T=copper brake pipe as per car.male fittings
 Other leg of brass T to pressure adjuster  = copper as per car.
 Adjuster to brass T on axle =copper as per car .
 From T on axle to chassis=copper as per car.
 From chassis to Golf caliper =flexy s/s with caliper end fitting to caliper by a banjo.
 Ditto last 2 for other side.
 Only the banjos weep fluid under pressure

[morrag]

Rod, you have answered the question yourself, as I previously said, no leaks are acceptable under any pressure conditions, compatible to the system design ie. leverage values for footbrake pedal etc. If fluid can get out, then air will re tun into the system, its not a "biker" thing, its hydraulics, end off!so, recheck, your component parts seem adequate, so, copper washers on banjos and NO leaks. Then, if necessary, blank of the front brake part of the system and bleed back only, then, if OK, you know where the trouble lies,( and vice verse of course, if necessary), so give it another go using this route and I'm sure you'll get a result, Morrag.( ps. think of it rationally, a slave cylinder and master cyl. connected by a length of hyd. pipe, once full of fluid, how much air can it possibly contain unless your reintroducing that air at every stroke!)

[ROD]

 I called it a 'bike thing' as bikes have the banjo connections.
 Going to strip it again,and use new washers that I shall anneal myself.
 I think I mentioned in my previous post about dowty washers.They can be used ,but they must be the correct type of rubber,NOT NITRILE apparently!

[morrag]

Rod, Forget Dowty's, and you will find 'banjo' fittings are used extesively in all types of brake, or indeed any, hydraulic systems, so annealed copper is your route, and make sure your cylinder seals are not passing!  Morrag

[ROD]

Big Day tomorrow........
       Just got a few small bits to do ,then Im hoping to ride the beast! Not counting my chickens just yet tho'!

[Manky Monkey]

So the brakes are all sorted now Rod? Looking forward to seeing pics of the maiden flight.