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BianchiVirgin
Über Member
- Location
- Norn Iron
If you unbolt the caliper will that give you enough slack to work with?
I like Skol
A Minging Manc...
- Location
- Sunny Ashton-under-Lyne
If the brake hose runs through the steerer then you have no choice. The bearings cannot physically be replaced without breaking into the brake hose.
No unfortunately as I want to pull it down its pulling the cables from the shifters. Terrible design .
It's a much cleaner design and does look better however as you've noted it does have it's disadvantages. To be fair to Trek it's what the consumer wants and I've no doubt that you first saw it as an advantage.
The downside is that for mechanics it does take a little longer to perform maintenance. My suggestion is to disconnect the hose at the caliper end of the brake, and pull it out through the fork. Being a closed system the fluid will remain in the hose and master cylinder whilst you swap the bearing out, you can then reconnect the hose to the caliper and you shouldn't need to rebleed the system.
From memory Shimano recommend a full fluid replacement every two years, so you could take the opportunity to do a full system bleed anyway.
Ok thanks. I cant see how fluid wont come out of the hose when disconnected. Bleeding the system isn’t a big deal really but the potential pain of pulling that hose through the fork and getting it back again through the entry/exit point will be a pain unless I can get something tied off on it as a guide
Because it's a closed system with a narrow entrance the surface tension of the fluid keeps it in - same way that when you lift a straw out of a glass of water with your finger in the end the fluid stays in the straw. You may get a small amount of air in the system afterwards but it should be manageable.
You could tie some cotton around the end of the hose and let that be your guide back in, but keep in mind you don't need to pull it all the way out as you only need to get it far enough down to remove the bearing over the top of the steerer. If careful this should mean the hose is still in the fork leg and not need guiding in again.
I like Skol
A Minging Manc...
- Location
- Sunny Ashton-under-Lyne
Having just googled s picture of the bike I see this is not possible. The hose needs to be detached from the caliper and pulled out completely to remove the bearing/s. The bearings are effectively threaded into the hose like pearls! Silly design.
Bollocks, of course, I'd forgotten about the hose threading through the bearing, I'd have figured it out when when I got to it most likely if it was me
.The cotton would still work to aid rethreading though as you could use a hoover to pull it through, same way you'd do it if dealing with internal cable routing.
iluvmybike
Über Member
Some brands have a coupling in the brke line so you can detach it easily for this very reason. Have you checked if yours has this?
Ajax Bay
Guru
- Location
- East Devon
And that would work how - with hydraulic brakes?
There are quick release couplings for low pressure hydraulic systems, though I've never seen any small enough for a bike brake hose, but there's no reason why it wouldn't work.
iluvmybike
Über Member
They look a little bit like the inline adjusters you can fit on gear cables. But here is a video which shows it:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PE-wbt6Ab_s
Broadside
Guru
- Location
- Fleet, Hants
I’ve got them on my bike, never had cause to separate the joint, but I understand they can be undone quickly and reattached without draining and topping up the hydraulic fluid.
Don’t shoot me for this bit but as it’s a sealed system you can break the line and the fluid will stay in place much like a straw with a finger on top.
Don’t shoot me for this bit but as it’s a sealed system you can break the line and the fluid will stay in place much like a straw with a finger on top.
