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BOSS Brakes

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I went to put the speed bleeders on this weekend and noticed that my front Brembos had an inboard and out board bleeders. I didnt know this, as my Cobra R Brembos only had one. Did you guys change both of them or just one. I asked around and most of the GT500 guys changed both of theirs. I am ordering some more so I can do both.

Any info would be great! Thanks!
 

PeteInCT

#LS-378 - So many Porsche's, so little time....
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Since it's a 4 piston caliper, 2 on each side of the rotor, there are two bleeders. You should replace both. When bleeding the brakes start with the inboard bleeder closest to the engine, then do it's counterpart on the outside (street side) of the caliper. Some other things to remember with the Russell bleeders if that's what you have. The length of the threaded sections are longer than stock, so you should not try to get them seated as deeply as the stock bleeders. When tightening, the first turn or so on them is easy, then the Loctite engages and it's harder to turn. Once the bottom of the valve seat touches inside the caliper you will feel more resistance to tightening - you should stop there. You can tighten them more if you lean into it but you will do damage to the caliper as well as the bleeder. Once installed I'd recommend driving the car and do some hard braking, then go back and check all bleeders for leaks. If installed properly they should be fine. I have been running with the Russell bleeders for about 25 track days with no issues whatsoever.
 

ArizonaBOSS

Because racecar.
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Yeah I like the Russell ones as well. They also make a shorter one that is closer to stock length but either version works fine. There is no spring etc to get stuck like the Earl's versions.
 

PeteInCT

#LS-378 - So many Porsche's, so little time....
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Interesting, I didn't know they had shorter ones also. I ordered the ones they said was appropriate for the Boss. Do you have a part # ?
 

ArizonaBOSS

Because racecar.
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PeteInCT said:
Interesting, I didn't know they had shorter ones also. I ordered the ones they said was appropriate for the Boss. Do you have a part # ?

Let me look when I get home, I ordered an extra set; I believe they are in my "track box".
 
Thanks guys for all the input. Great advise. Here is the part number from Russell.

Mustang Disc Brake Speed Bleeders (10mm X 1.0 Thread - 33mm Long) Pair 1994-2012

Russell Part Number: 639630

Pair of 33mm Long (10mm x 1.0 Thread) Disc Brake Speed Bleeders for the following Mustang applications:

- 2000 Cobra R Brembo (need two packs per car)
- 2007+ GT500 Brembo Calipers (need two packs per car)
- 2011-2012 GT with optional Brembo Calipers (need two packs per car)
- 2012 BOSS 302 Brembo (need two packs per car)
 
So would this be a recommended upgrade for those of us getting into open tracking? I am assuming yes, i am just not looking forward to adding yet another thing to my to do list. :-\
 

PeteInCT

#LS-378 - So many Porsche's, so little time....
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These are by no means required. If you track a lot and use aggressive brake pads you tend to bleed the brakes a lot. This makes it possible with one person versus two. That's all.
 
http://www.amazon.com/Russell-639630-Domestic-Speed-Bleeder/dp/B0014BBFVM

These the right ones? I didn't think they would be this cheap. If so, this is a no brainer since i go to most track events solo and don't like to bother people too much.
 
Be careful screwing them in. My brake issue eventually seemed to be a bleeder cross-threaded from the factory which required a new caliper. Calipers are very soft.
 

drano38

Wayne
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I have Speedbleeder brand ones on my Boss.
Same concept, different company.
So far, no problems.
I got the Stainless version.
Size is 1010S (S is for the stainless version).
Recommend you also order spare bleeder dust caps since they're only $.10 each, and a bottle of thread sealant, since they say it needs to be re-done about every 10 bleeds to ensure a good seal.
http://speedbleeder.com/
I went to Sears and got an inch-pound torque wrench and now torque mine after bleeding.
 
That site says a pressure bleeder is $300 lol

I bought the cap and use a cheapo pressure can from Ace hardware. It is like $10 for a replacement can and you just pop the cap on. I know a couple people who have had speed bleeders pop at the track, though I have seen a couple regular bleeders fail too probably from over tightening. Or if you get a vacuum pump, you can use it for the clutch too but I find the pressure one seems to work better for the brakes.
 
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Newb Questions

Hey guys, I am new to this.

Why are you guys bleeding your brakes?

What is the benefit of getting aftermarket bleeders?

Does the manufacture say how tight they should be? Torque?

CaliMR, dont understand your post. Why do you need a pressure can?

Thanks guys!
 

PeteInCT

#LS-378 - So many Porsche's, so little time....
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Welcome to BMO !

Why are you guys bleeding your brakes? We bleed the brakes to remove any trapped air and mositure in the lines that settles near the calipers. After heavy braking at the track you can notice the brakes get a little low on the pedal and a little 'mushy'. Bleeding them will alleviate that (assuming you don't need to fully swap out all of the fluid).

What is the benefit of getting aftermarket bleeders? The speed bleeders some of us use (like myself) allow the whole process to be done with 1 person vs. needing two. The speed bleeders have a valve that let fluid out but don't let air back in when you take your foot off of the brake pedal. The valve only comes into play when the bleeders are manually opened. When closed they act like normal OEM bleeders in the closed position.

Does the manufacture say how tight they should be? Torque? Good question. They are somewhat delicate so even with that info you want them very snug but surely not too tight.

CaliMR, dont understand your post. Why do you need a pressure can? Some guys like to use pressure or vacuum bleeders. If you are swapping out all of the fluid it makes things a little easier. For a quick bleed it's not necessary.
 
sadil, there are 3 basic ways to bleed: manual, vacuum, and pressure.

Manual, you pump the brakes then hold it down and a second person bleeds the caliper. One drain will probably not be enough for each caliper, so you have to close the bleeder then have the other person pump and hold again (only have it open while it is being held with pressure, or it will suck air back it) and repeat as necessary.

Vacuum, you hook a vacuum pump (they are like $15) to the bleeder with a piece of rubber hose and apply vacuum while you have the bleeder cracked open. It is also needed to bleed the clutch as per the Ford instructions since our clutch does not have a bleeder nipple, though many people just pump it a lot. I personally don't like using the vacuum on the bleeder because it never seals perfectly between the hose and bleeder nipple and in theory may suck some air around the bleeder. But many, many people do it this way.

Pressure bleeder you use a pump can that has a hose attached to a cap for the master cylinder. You pump it to put pressure on the bake system (mimicking pumping the brakes) then bleed the caliper. I bought a pump from Ace Hardware for like $10, and the cap is about $30 iirc from Motive, and I used the hose built into the pump. Motive has a pump but it is more expensive. Both the Ace and Motive pumps have a suction tube inside that sucks up fluid you preload the pump bottle with so it fills the MC back up as you bleed it. BUT both also use a long pump that sits close to the bottom of the bottle so you can only put in a little fluid otherwise it dips into it and sucks up some into the pump body, which is pretty much impossible to really clean out well so you end up with old fluid in the pump that will mix with the new fluid the next time you do it and will be gooy and can plug calipers. So either put a little fluid in and keep topping it off (every couple nipples) or do what I do and just buy a new $10 bottle each time from the hardware store. Just clean it out real good before you use it with denatured alcohol (Motive's suggestion on what to clean with).


The clutch is bled by hooking the vacuum to the MC instead of a nipple, and leaving it on a minute, then removing it and pumping a bunch of times, then use a turkey baster to suck out the gunky fluid, then pour new fluid in, then repeat until no gunky fluid comes out. I use the same cap with a hose attached as I use for the pressure bleeding of the brakes. You can make your own cap with an oem cap by poking a hole and sealing a hose in there if you don't want to buy the Motive one.


That is sort of an overview of the ways to do it. I prefer pressure for brakes, but all three methods end up with the same result. Personally, I have found regular bleeding of the clutch to greatly reduce lock outs, kick outs, and grinding but that is just my experience with it. I'm sure lots of people have never bled their clutch and have no issues. I also find pumping in this car does very little to restore a soft clutch pedal, and basically nothing once it starts to stick. Pumping the brake pedal makes the MC leak.

And again, be very careful with tightening the bleeders. If you over tighten them, you may end up needing to helicoil them (if there is room on these calipers) or drilling them bigger and using an adapter. Calipers are very soft, the bleeder is relatively hard, and the caliper will lose the battle every time. I actually over torqued a caliper mounting bolt on my Bronco the first time and that was a mess to repair lol
 

PeteInCT

#LS-378 - So many Porsche's, so little time....
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Great detail Cali !

I also agree on the challenges with the vacuum approach. I do not use one but my shop does. Every time they do I find there's still some air in the lines. I'm old school on this and just to it all manually. I own a Motive pressure system but never use it :D
 

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