How To Remove A Seized or Rusted Brake Bleeder Screw

[@TutorialGenius]

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[@TotalFreedomTTT-pk9st]

Okay - I did pretty much all the above- I also read the comments on this and other vids - I would recommend the welding rod or drill bit (about 1/8") soft iron - get gently hammered into the hole to make the bleeder 'tube' more solid - this worked since I put a ton of twist on it and it did not break - I used the heat / cold method - first I used the gentle heat and the acetone / thin oil mix - I could not get the 5/32 to work - so did the vice grip and then CAREFULLY jigged at it to make sure I did not break it - what we need is a special vice grip with a tiny HEX jaws or HEX jaw inserts for small bolt heads - eventually the POS began to give and then once it nudged a bit I heated it again and put more acetone / oil penetrant on it - then finally got it out - this caliper was still on the car and you have to be CAREFUL with the heat since the rubber boots and rubber seal are vulnerable - don't go crazy with the heat - good luck and thanks to Tutorial Genius for the ideas and support

[@markwest7258]

A maintenance guy back in the day taught me first remove loose rust with a wire brush then heat and shock the hot parts with PB blaster. Most of it vaporizes but what doesn't get sucked into the threads by capillary action. I live in New England where the weather is unforgiving AND we use lots of road salt. IF I were able to extract the bleeder screw I would replace with a brand new one

[@cardseco33]

Fantastic tip with the heat and cold water! I will be trying that today.

[@TutorialGenius]

Glad it was helpful! Good luck!

[@Robmeisterflex]

Dude, those tips are awesome. Thank you for taking the time to make this video 👍

[@TutorialGenius]

You bet! I'm glad it was helpful!

[@The_Gallowglass]

@@TutorialGenius Don't forget to add a little dab of anti-seize to the screws and maybe change out for new ones :D

[@TutorialGenius]

@@The_Gallowglass Yes, 100%! 😊💯

[@paullandreville5394]

Great tip on propane in cold weather climate and cold water on hot parts. Thanks.

[@TutorialGenius]

Glad it was helpful!

[@whitetiger8652]

Great idea with the allen key.

[@TutorialGenius]

Thanks! I like to think it's saved me a fair few times! haha

[@johnmccoy1254]

Yeah good idea to keep it from collapsing in on itself. But if I might suggest this here but maybe try something made of a softer metal other Allen keys or drill bits etc.just in case it needs to be drilled out for the use of an extractor then you can still do that. If the Allen key or drill bit breaks off in there you won't be able to drill into the drill bit which is now dead center in the hole ya need for the extractor. The hardened steel that the bits and Allen keys and extractors are made of are very very hard hardened steel. They never drill correctly and they love to eat gooddrill bits by. The handfull. Hahaa. Good luck. 👍👌✌️

[@UtwoBed]

Wish I had seen this before I snapped one off.🙁 But I would like to add... to prevent from ever having to struggle with a bleeder ever again, I put anti-seize compound on the threads of bleeders and all bolts.

[@TutorialGenius]

owww! sorry to hear! Definitely a good call on the anti-seize though, it's great stuff!

[@mycarrysun]

Just be careful with torque specs on anti seized bolts, the friction is less so therefore the expected compression under the same torque spec will be higher, potentially causing a snapped bolt. Depending on the size of the bolt and amount of torque this may or may not be a problem.

[@johnmccoy1254]

I know two things about anti seize and that is #1. It works great in & on a lot of applications. And #2. Is if you get in on your hands then it can and will transport itself immediately to your remote control at home. Don't worry you will find it in a week or so. And think wth how did that get there. Hahaa. No for real if ya get it on ya get a hand full of dirt or dust and fill it up with dry dirt or dust. It won't get everywhere as easy and it will wash off your hands just a lil'bit easier. 👌👍✌️

[@JustNelsinho]

Snapped a bleed nipple last week 😂

[@markhuyette8509]

Thank you for the tip and have a blessed day today 🙏

[@TutorialGenius]

You too! :)

[@sagitario12ish]

I did open the oil brake fluid box to bleed it lot of bubbles and work's wit no problem at the break time! Cose that parts is stuck.

[@desertfox3860]

Those are some excellent tips!

[@TutorialGenius]

Glad it was helpful!

[@blairarcher8952]

Heat then let it cool then penitent then heat again .get it to expand and contract a couple of time .

[@thomasbartlett3409]

The ATF - Acetone works great on this sort of application...

[@TutorialGenius]

In fact, that was the first thing I tried haha! No bueno sadly

[@thomasbartlett3409]

@@TutorialGenius It's the next best to heat that I've seen. There are places where heat is not always the best solution , especially, in flammable or where components will ge damaged..

[@LarrytheLumberjack]

Thanks for the video!!

[@TutorialGenius]

You bet!

[@nestordupo845]

I saw tgis video last fall and tried ti removed the rusty nipple of me volvo and now its spring again and have ni luck ti removed it lol now going ti change the whole caliper instead. Maybe its better to buy a induction heater safer than flamable butain especially when u work near the tank.

[@raczyk]

Is anti-seizw or any type of oil recommended to put in the bleeder bolt after removal and installig the new one?

[@TutorialGenius]

If you live in a rusty environment, then I would put a tiny little blob :) (anti-seize)

[@amdarmn1633]

Thank you very much👍

[@TutorialGenius]

You're welcome! :)

[@notyrants]

Good tips mate. Cheers.

[@TutorialGenius]

No problem 👍

[@nicholasroberts6954]

One slight variation on this method is to apply releasing fluid and leave overnight. Then attempt to very slightly tighten and apply more releasing agent and try to release. If no joy, alternate gas blowlamp(pencil flame) /electrical heat gun and plumbers freezer spray.(Though you really should remove the caliper, and take out the rubbers and piston before applying heat). Also, insert a length of welding wire in the nipple to stop it shearing/collapsing (Better fit than an allen key) I often wonder whether its possible to reverse the electo-phorectic effect thats caused the nipple to jam... 12 volt car battery, positive to niplle, negative to caliper. Downside, it would probably take days rather than hours. Always replace the nipples with new and apply a thin film of marine zinc grease to the thread. Anybody tried a drill in hammer mode and applied the head only to the caliper near the nipple ? It would be interesting to know how hot the calipers near the rubbers would get using this method. Maybe a point-and-shoot infra-red device could be used to detect temperature at this locality. I believe the rubbers can tolerate up to 140c and the brake fluid slightly less.

[@raczyk]

When replacing the bleeder screw, how do you prevent from air getting into the system?

[@TutorialGenius]

You can pinch the brake hose, but it's bad medicine! I imagine you're in this neck of the woods because you're doing a brake job anyway? Bleeding the system doesn't take much effort. I have a video on it :)

[@waiting4aliens]

6 point socket or wrench. 5/16'' = 7.9375mm

[@donluedetmoonsone9573]

Great job. Thank you

[@TutorialGenius]

Thank you too!

[@rogersimmonsjr5579]

Thanks

[@TutorialGenius]

You're welcome!

[@laikeo5437]

thanks

[@TutorialGenius]

You're welcome! :)

[@dollaarz]

use a 1/2 inch socket and wrench instead of 1/4, 1/2 doesn't flex, and give better shock effect without breaking the nipple

[@chriss4365]

I got a bad rounded one on my truck cant get it off.

[@TutorialGenius]

Good luck!

[@Elkomy1991]

Well done

[@TutorialGenius]

Thank you!

[@David-fj5lz]

What about the actual internal rubber seals

[@TutorialGenius]

It's a good idea to replace the bleeder screw, but brake components are designed to get really hot anyway

[@Gizmo1992]

If you want to hit it with a hammer put a Deep socket over the top of it you have a striking area

[@TutorialGenius]

💯💯

[@halffast7799]

Vise grips and done.

[@TutorialGenius]

done meaning,,,, brake bleeder snapped? hahaha!

[@stanandshermiscavage3626]

Why did u not put in a new one in

[@TutorialGenius]

Because it's a video for teaching. The caliper was replaced in a different video... for teaching

[@brucel76]

I would never take heat / torch to a caliper. One you can burn the brake fluid, the rubber brake line, or start a fire any flammable materials or damage the piston rubber seals. The cost of a new caliper is far less expensive if something goes wrong. Also on old brake calipers they can hang up due to rust and release when you take the pressure off the brake pedal.

[@TutorialGenius]

I disagree, but here's why: You know how hot brake discs/pads can get right? and the boiling temperature of brake fluid? (Which is why a fluid like this is used)... Well given that safety net, you're not using a torch long enough to remotely boil anything, especially through the caliper metal. I already highlighted in the video with regards to rubber, so i'll omit that here. If you live in a rust belt, you're not going to replace 4 calipers each time the screw is seized. That's not realistic. Imagine if you run a brake lube company in a rain/humid environment, and each time a customer comes in, you tell them they need new calipers.

[@brucel76]

Excuse me a little here. 1) I do not own, run, or work in auto shop this is only my opinion. I used to work in a heavy equipment shop and the one thing that taught us was safety first. I know the temps of brake fluid boiling point is. The issue is most of the time there is grease from tie rod ends ball joints plastics and who knows what other flammable substances is down around the calipers. Then if you get someone who isn't that familiar with cleaning off the area they are working in that is where fires can start. What I said is all about safety first. I would rather spend $40.00 for a brand new caliper than take a chance and have something go wrong. Also with new calipers you know that the pistons, slide bolts, the rubber boots are new. @@TutorialGenius

[@duke792]

Even if you heat the brake fluid, when you open the bleeder screw you will bleed out that compromised brake fluid and allow fresh through. With that said, heat around the screw, you need a pinpoint flame, nothing large. Keep a fire hydrant nearby, always mechanics 101 when working on any car.

[@mycarrysun]

​@@brucel76 not all calipers are $40 :) my calipers on my car would cost $2000 each side on the front...

[@mycarrysun]

​@@TutorialGenius I agree, the temperature of a caliper during normal operating temperature is extremely high and I doubt the flame will get it any hotter than that if you did it for the amount of time you said.

[@limamantapachitas]

Can you use a socket an impact gun instead?

[@TutorialGenius]

I would never use an impact gun on this

[@limamantapachitas]

I guess the bleeder could break?@@TutorialGenius

[@jacksmith2315]

​@@limamantapachitasyes, impact gun would snap the bleeder way to easy. There is a tool called an impact driver. You put a socket on the end and hit the other end with a hammer. You have a lot more control with that than an impact gun. That would be a good tool to use because it could shock the rust bond. But still would use the heat and cool method first

[@larividj]

It wasn't clear to me how you knew after the 3rd heating/cooling cycle that it "broke free"? Did you discover that by trying to turn it in between and, if so, how much torque did you use on the first, second, and third tries before getting it free? It would be good to see/understand these intermediate steps.

[@TutorialGenius]

To the point where if I applied more, the bleeder would start stripping, based on feel. I don't have an open ended torque wrench. IF you can repeat the process of heating and cooling, then there isn't much sense it pushing the torque to it's limit. Play it safe

[@mikeamphlett7913]

Good idea if you had warts😅

[@TutorialGenius]

😅

[@mikeamphlett7913]

Good video. But after heating. Just get an ice block and place on the nipple for about 1 minute. Works a treat

[@TutorialGenius]

Not everyone has an ice block or an ice maker, but yeah, I mean, I guess many other things could work too

[@limamantapachitas]

or you can use liquid nitrogen for wart removal

[@Killemkellz]

🔥🔥

[@15DurangoRT]

Penetrating "Grease"?

[@binagarten4667]

Penetrating Grease?

[@TutorialGenius]

👍

[@reyesben]

Well done. Didn’t know about cold water

[@TutorialGenius]

You're welcome!

[@carlhudson9001]

Andy rc?