bigdogtech01
Well-Known Member
This subject has been mentioned before, but I'm bringing it up again because I ran into this problem tonight with a customers '94 Dyna.
There are three types of brake fluid... DOT 3, DOT 4 and DOT 5...
DOT 3 and DOT 4 are a Glycol Base fluid. They can be mixed together and will not harm anything.
DOT 5 is a Silicone base and CAN NOT be mixed with DOT 3 or 4....I took some pictures tonight to show you what happens when you mix the types together...it's like trying to mix Oil and Water...they will never blend together.
This customer lost her rear brakes and could not figure out why...as soon as I took the master cylinder cover off, I knew exactly what was wrong. Found a nasty jelly type mess. I flushed the system and filled with new DOT 5, and she's now good to go.
Be sure to read your covers...they tell the types on them...if your not sure of the type already in the bike, you can perform a test...otherwise, just flush system and put all new in...
This is what happens when you mix the types together...kinda hard to see, but if you look close, you can see the nasty mess at bottom and the DOT 5 kinda floating on top of it...
DOT 5 should look like this...with a purple dye added to it (dye does go away after time)
DOT 5 on Left...DOT 4 on Right...
What happens when you mix the two together...Notice the DOT 5 is floating on top...
There are three types of brake fluid... DOT 3, DOT 4 and DOT 5...
DOT 3 and DOT 4 are a Glycol Base fluid. They can be mixed together and will not harm anything.
DOT 5 is a Silicone base and CAN NOT be mixed with DOT 3 or 4....I took some pictures tonight to show you what happens when you mix the types together...it's like trying to mix Oil and Water...they will never blend together.
This customer lost her rear brakes and could not figure out why...as soon as I took the master cylinder cover off, I knew exactly what was wrong. Found a nasty jelly type mess. I flushed the system and filled with new DOT 5, and she's now good to go.
Be sure to read your covers...they tell the types on them...if your not sure of the type already in the bike, you can perform a test...otherwise, just flush system and put all new in...
This is what happens when you mix the types together...kinda hard to see, but if you look close, you can see the nasty mess at bottom and the DOT 5 kinda floating on top of it...
DOT 5 should look like this...with a purple dye added to it (dye does go away after time)
DOT 5 on Left...DOT 4 on Right...
What happens when you mix the two together...Notice the DOT 5 is floating on top...
