I have a Gunson's Eezybleed which uses pressure from a spare tyre to push the fluid through the system but someone on a Volvo site (don't ask) posted this DIY device


4. Home-Made Pressure Bleeders.

[TV Pierce] You can make your own pressure bleeder. Power Motive's is nothing more than a garden sprayer with a brake reservoir cap attached to the end of the tube instead of a spray nozzle (they also add a pressure guage -- but it's not really necessary). The sprayer is about $10 at Home Depot, and a new reservoir cap should be $2-$3 at FCP Groton. Drill a hole through the cap, epoxy a tube fitting through the hole, then cut off the spray nozzle, and attach the reservoir cap. [Gary Gilliam] I made mine out of a cheap all plastic 4 liter ( about $13) garden sprayer, and an old master cap. I cut the hose just above the sprayer wand, attached a 5/16" brass fitting that is commonly used for repairing air lines: it is barbed on one end to stick inside the hose and has 1/4" NPT threads on the other. This was secured to the hose with a stainless hose clamp and a 1/2" hole was drilled in the extra master cylinder cap to receive the other end of the fitting. The fitting was secured to the cap with a 1/2" long brass NPT straight connector, adding a rubber washer on both sides coated in RTV for good measure.
I was going to add a pressure gauge, but never got around to it. It seems to work fine with just enough pumps to get things moving a bit.

the 'Power Motive' item

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David L


My greatest fear in life is that when I die my wife will sell my Mini and tools for the price I told her I paid for them!

Sounds like a good idea.

One thing you have to watch out for when pressure bleeding is that you don't use too high of a pressure because:

1. the master cylinder reservoir is not designed to be pressurised, and too much pressure may cause the seals to leak

2. too much pressure can activate the rear wheels pressure valve - making bleeding the rear wheels next to impossible

3. the higher the pressure, the faster the fluid is going to come out when you open the bleed valves - higher pressure equals quicker emptying of the reservoir

Better to use a tyre inner tube instead of the pump bottle, and only pump it to around 10 psi - the larger the tube the longer you can bleed without having to pump it up again. A 14" Holden/Ford tube fits the bill fine - not inside a tyre so that it can expand and hold more air.

I've just bled my brakes with a homemade device. What Dad and I created was a glass jar and drilled a hole bigger enough for the tubing to go in. The tubing was sourced from a old used Mortein Outdoor spray bottle. Filled the bottom of the jar with a bit of fluid, armed ourselves with with spanners etc and proceeded to bleed the brakes. As for the front drum the bleeding hole was larger then the rear with found a piece of old rubber tubing and placed it over tubing already there. This worked as a device but my problem is still the same, after bleeding 5 times already. Could be the master I don't know. But I still get floor boards first press of the pedal and only having pressed the pedal 2-4 times do i get pressure. I think I'll just bite the bullet and go see a brake expert.

If anyone has any other suggestions that can easily be done in a home garage please let me know.

The device above looks sweet same concept as what we built.

Are your front drums the type with two bleed nipples? - the second one is up the top tucked behind the steering arm.

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David L


My greatest fear in life is that when I die my wife will sell my Mini and tools for the price I told her I paid for them!

hi mate, I'm no brake expert, but have gone through all this and had success. more than likely brake shoe adjustment needed. If adjusting doesnt make any difference, check the shoes and the drums( may need machining and bigger shoes). Is fluid flowing the same rate from all the lines? maybe blockage in one. Is m/c ok. bleed it to check. i thought mine was honky dorry but it was stuffed. I feel your pain brother, may it be releived without fleecing you of large somes of cash
Cheers, Anthony.

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Dog Food! Most kids like it more than Broccoli.

You could also try isolating each wheel by clamping the brake hose with vice grips (use some rag to protect the rubber) that way you can find out if one particular wheel is causing the problem.

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David L


My greatest fear in life is that when I die my wife will sell my Mini and tools for the price I told her I paid for them!

Plug the master cylinder & try the pedal.
If it's not rock hard, then m/c is the culprit.

From your description, I would bet on m/c

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Too many cars, and too little time.