No pressure front brakes tank 250cc touring By rayeelaine (Read 802 times)

[rayeelaine]

Hi I am new to this forum. I have a used Tank 250cc touring that I am fixing up. Was running fine then starter died. Replaced starter, now runs but front brakes are gone. There was an adjustment on the lever, but it finally went all the way to the handle with no pressure.

I replaced the master cylinder but I am not sure I really bled the line correctly because there was still no pressure build up so I couldnt really force the fluid through. I did run fluid through until there were no air bubbles, but still no luck.
I do not see any leaks in the line.

And of course none of this is helped by the fact that it seems impossible to get any kind of repair manual on these scooters.

Any help is appreciated. I am anxious to get back on the road, I was having so much fun and saving so much on gas!

[Bashan]

Brake systems are brake systems, you don't need a specific manual. Anyway, Tank went out of business a long time ago so forget about factory support. Use any service manual in out library for brakes and it should work. Even a little air in the line will make the brakes do nothing, that's probably it unless you took the caliper apart. here's a couple videos from our Library:

[rayeelaine]

Thanks - I reviewed this vid last night before I posted. Thing is I cant pump the handle because nothing happens. It seemed like I could let it flow through passively with the handle held in - I have one of the little bottle set-ups like in the video, and thought I got all the air out. In this case, how do I make sure there is no air in the line? Will I suddenly get pressure on the lever? I will try this again today.

Looking at the manual I did find, taking the brakes apart looks way too intricate for me to feel comfortable with. Is it possible there is oil on the brakes themselves? Like it is leaking somewhere else that I cant see?

If I cant get this to work I will have to haul it on to a trailer and take to a scooter mechanic somewhere.

Thanks so much

[rob63]

Yes you`ll suddenly start feeling some resistance when you pump the lever, and it`ll slowly get better. Sometimes you have to pump the lever almost in slow motion at first until you feel pressure, can sometimes take 15 minutes or more. Leave the bleed screw tight and the master cylinder cover off, you should be able to see little bubbles pop back up through the fluid in the master cylinder.
If that doesn`t work, pull the lever to about half way through its travel and put a cable tie around it and the handlebar grip, then leave for a few hours and it`ll probably self bleed back up through the cylinder.

[jct842]

I went through a brake problem 2 weeks ago similar to yours. I had a brand new master that I had been able to get bled but noticed the line had a nick in it so I ordered a new line. I absolutely could not get the new line working. In my quest to find what was wrong....I should not have taken the new master apart but I did. To make a long story short I ordered another new master, but from a different supplier. Got the second master bled in 3 min. and all was well. The first came from parts for scooters and very poor in workmanship. The second came from scrappy dog and much better quality and way less money. live and learn. I have not tried to return the first as I lost the c-clip so I am out $34.95 plus shipping but I got brakes. john

[rayeelaine]

thanks Gents. I finally gave up on the new master, since it turned out that although it looked the same, it had a slight configuration change that made it not fit under the inst. panel - Aargh. I am getting it about buying parts for these things - sometimes its trial and error. That was the second one I had ordered.

Anyway, I persisted and did get pressure with the old one, after I had cleaned it thoroughly. I am however somewhat skittish about it since I travel on a lot of very steep hills including my driveway.

thanks for the tip on scrappy dog - I somehow had not found them in all my searches. I found several parts I was looking for and they seem really great to work with. So I ordered a new MC just to be sure and now I know how to bleed the brakes properly.

Really appreciate the support.

RE