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Ganzo

Ganzo

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Hey guys whats up? I need advice on a couple of things. Please pitch in on whatever one or ones you like. Here it goes…

  1. my brakes suck lol. I got told i may need a residual valve installed but i think i first need to bleed them and be positive there is no air. You prefer vacuum or pressure bleeding? I have a cutting brake which ive never managed to make work with old fashioned purging. 
  2. I will be going to Rocky point, Sonora in about a month or 2 and i am looking at tires for my baja. It has a j35 with built bus box so i have some decent torque. The terrain that i will be on is a good amount of sand (it will be 3 full day cruises thru sand dunes) and also some dirt and hard pack. I currently run bfg at 33x9.5r15 tires on all 4 corners. I have been looking at the Desert Master tires size 32s or desert explorer size 30s. What would you all recomend. i have some 12” wide wheels to  use them on and i also have a pair of method but those are only 5’inches wide i believe and i got told i need a 12-15” wide wheel since it helps the paddle float instead of dig


  3. Thanks guys
 
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1. You need to make sure there are no air traps in the lines (like lines looping up, then back down again), including the turning brake.  If there is a high-point that doesn't have a bleeder on it, there's a decent chance that air-bubbles are returning to this spot if you're bleeding it the old-fashioned way.  Power bleeding will help, as will jacking up one end waaaay up to make sure air can escape.  I've also removed calipers on systems with 100% flex line to give the air a continual uphill run.  It's a major PITA on these cars.

2. 31s are about as large as I'd want to run on a bus box.  R&P won't like the leverage.  At minimum, you won't be able to fully use 33s since you'll always have breakage at the back of your head when charging terrain that needs some throttle to handle correctly (whoops, etc).

 
BTW, if your turning brake is mounted so that the back (where the bleeder screws generally are) is lower than the front (so you can easily reach it), you'll have an air bubble trap that won't leave until you correct the angle.  For example:

wilwood-340-14744-single-handle-upright-steering-cutting-turning-brake.jpg


Note that the bleeder is on the back.  If the cylinders are uphill towards the handle, air will be trapped past the "exit" for the fluid and will not escape under any amount of power bleeding.  Lowering the front so that the bleeder is the high-point will allow trapped air to escape.  This isn't an issue on a regular MC since the reservoir is there to allow the air to escape, and is probably the source of a lot of turning brake woes.  Yes, you can "double bleed" (brake pedal first, then turning brake) the system, but if the line runs downhill from the turning brake (or MC), then back up to the caliper (or turning brake), you'll likely just move the air-bubble back and forth since the combined cylinders don't displace more fluid than the line between holds.

 
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Rockwood said:
BTW, if your turning brake is mounted so that the back (where the bleeder screws generally are) is lower than the front (so you can easily reach it), you'll have an air bubble trap that won't leave until you correct the angle.  For example:



Note that the bleeder is on the back.  If the cylinders are uphill towards the handle, air will be trapped past the "exit" for the fluid and will not escape under any amount of power bleeding.  Lowering the front so that the bleeder is the high-point will allow trapped air to escape.  This isn't an issue on a regular MC since the reservoir is there to allow the air to escape, and is probably the source of a lot of turning brake woes.  Yes, you can "double bleed" (brake pedal first, then turning brake) the system, but if the line runs downhill from the turning brake (or MC), then back up to the caliper (or turning brake), you'll likely just move the air-bubble back and forth since the combined cylinders don't displace more fluid than the line between holds.
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Yea so my turning brake is higher than the calipers so there might be the issue. How can i get around that problem? you said pressure or vacuum bleeding wont help?

 
Ganzo said:
Yea so my turning brake is higher than the calipers so there might be the issue. How can i get around that problem? you said pressure or vacuum bleeding wont help?
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Does the turning brake have a bleed port? Is it “uphill” towards the bleed, or tilted up towards the handles? If it’s tilted up, you’ll have to unbolt the turning brake and tilt it ass-up so air can escape.  

If no bleed port, you can unbolt the calipers and put them somewhere uphill of the turning brake, insert something strong (metal, wood, whatever) between the pads the same thickness of the rotor, and bleed them the old  fashioned way. 

Should be flexible line at the trailing arm pivot to let this happen. 

 
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If the caliper bleed screw is the lowest point then should bleed without having to unbolt the caliper. Agree?

 
Exactly what everyone said  on bleeding - But I would add you should bleed "through" the cutting brake that is to say hold the brake in either position open (depressed) as you bleed that side - the air should pass through the brake to that wheel and only a bit will trap at the bleeder on cutting brake and you can remove it easily  - doing same with other side should yield good results.  The residual valve is only needed if the calipers are above the master cylinder and can somewhat help if you  bounce around alot - 

One other thing is if you really can't get a good pedal - you should start over by starting with bleeding the MC before anything else -  if you do not do this no matter what else you do you will never get a good pedal - I bench bleed every MC before starting it makes all the difference in the world 

Tires wise BFG's are nice tires but the heaviest  and they arte really hard on the bus box, CV's and bearings especially on heavy wheels. 

if you not going to street drive it (DOT) a great wheel tire combo is running a Tensor 32's (very light) on a spun aluminum rim-  This is the choice of many Baja racers (especially 5/1600 cars) using Bus Boxes  - they do really well in sand and silt and great on hard pack and they are reasonably priced  DS or DSR - DS is a better choice for most - they will not be as flat resistant as the BFG's (nothing is) but they will help accelerate faster and way easier on the drivetrain.  Less rotating mass  and sprung weight depending on your suspension is also a good thing If you want a similar but more robust tire the Yokohama Geolander 33  (which is really a 32) is slightly heavier than the Tensor  and they don't wear out nearly as fast .

 
Exactly what everyone said  on bleeding - But I would add you should bleed "through" the cutting brake that is to say hold the brake in either position open (depressed) as you bleed that side - the air should pass through the brake to that wheel and only a bit will trap at the bleeder on cutting brake and you can remove it easily  - doing same with other side should yield good results.  The residual valve is only needed if the calipers are above the master cylinder and can somewhat help if you  bounce around alot -
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Could you elaborate a little more?

 
The thing is i cant get a really good brake pedal bleed since that bubble is somewhere in the system (top line of cutting brake)

another question should the cutting brake bleed port be opened when the cutting brake is actuated? It may be a dumb question but i just want to be sure

 
Start bleeding from the farthest caliper from the master cylinder, and work your way towards the closes.  Do not open turning brake bleed screw.

No you would pump it up like you normally would during manual bleeding, on one side then hold it, open bleeder screw, and close before releasing turning brake handle.  Repeat until no air comes out, and then switch to other side of turning brake, and repeat process.  Make sure that you check your brake fluid level regularly and keep topping off so as to not introduce air back into the system.

 
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From experience, The Desert Master is the most underrated tire out there. They dominate in the sand and do really well in other terrains as well. If you havent experienced them before, Its time to try them. We run them up in the mountains and they do well in dirt, snow, and mud as well, way better then we ever anticipated. Their pretty awesome for an all around tire, especially if sand is in the equation. 

 
lincster said:
If the caliper bleed screw is the lowest point then should bleed without having to unbolt the caliper. Agree?
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I think this comment was misunderstood  he is not saying that the bleeder screw is at the bottom of the caliper.  he is saying that if the bleed screw (that is at the top of the caliper) is at a  lower position than the master it could gravity bleed.  which is correct

other things not mentioned is the position of the bleeders and calipers,  i have seen them mounted upside down and even at 12 o'clock and there fore impossible to bleed. with out temporarily relocating them.  show us some pics of the system, brake lines, calipers and maybe something might pop out at us

 
John@Outfront said:
I think this comment was misunderstood  he is not saying that the bleeder screw is at the bottom of the caliper.  he is saying that if the bleed screw (that is at the top of the caliper) is at a  lower position than the master it could gravity bleed.  which is correct
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You r correct John. 
That is what I was trying to say. 
Thanks for clarifying. 

 
HP.Habits said:
From experience, The Desert Master is the most underrated tire out there. They dominate in the sand and do really well in other terrains as well. If you havent experienced them before, Its time to try them. We run them up in the mountains and they do well in dirt, snow, and mud as well, way better then we ever anticipated. Their pretty awesome for an all around tire, especially if sand is in the equation. 
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I have a stock j35, full weddle 091 trans. The desert master 32s wont make it bog?

 
John@Outfront said:
I think this comment was misunderstood  he is not saying that the bleeder screw is at the bottom of the caliper.  he is saying that if the bleed screw (that is at the top of the caliper) is at a  lower position than the master it could gravity bleed.  which is correct

other things not mentioned is the position of the bleeders and calipers,  i have seen them mounted upside down and even at 12 o'clock and there fore impossible to bleed. with out temporarily relocating them.  show us some pics of the system, brake lines, calipers and maybe something might pop out at us
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I will take pics this weekend. My cutting brake sits higher than my calipers but not higher than MC. 

 
HTElectrical said:
Start bleeding from the farthest caliper from the master cylinder, and work your way towards the closes.  Do not open turning brake bleed screw.

No you would pump it up like you normally would during manual bleeding, on one side then hold it, open bleeder screw, and close before releasing turning brake handle.  Repeat until no air comes out, and then switch to other side of turning brake, and repeat process.  Make sure that you check your brake fluid level regularly and keep topping off so as to not introduce air back into the system.
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When you pump the handle, does the pedal have to be pressed down? If yes then i have done it this way and i cant get any pressure at all from the handle when im actuating the top actuator on cutting brake

 
AFAIK, there are no dunes at Puerto Penasco.  There  is the hill near Cholla Bay....and it is not particularly hard to climb.  Those tires are big enough.

I lived in Ajo oncst, and used to get down there fairly regularly.

 
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