Morris Minor Owners Club

As the title states, has anyone fitted Brass bleed nipples as a direct replacement the the BZP ones? I found some here, http://www.namrick.co.uk/acatalog/Home_ ... s_150.html
The reason I ask is I was replacing a rear cylinder and also replaced the fluid, I found the tips of the nipples were corroding and wondered if a alternative was worth fitting.

Fit these over the bleed nipple and you will have no corrosion or nipple blockage problems.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/UNIVERSAL-RUB ... 1263712929

when ever i have replaced a brake cylinder they come with a "cap" \ "cover" inserted in the bleed nipple hole and the brake pipe holes, i use them as covers for the nipples, they are a tight fit which is exactly what you want and are effectively "free".. but 6.95 for twenty is nice and cheap

You can also use them to cover grease nipples to keep the dirt and wet away.

I usually fit stainless steel bleed nipples, guaranteed not to corrode themselves in and it's not as soft as brass.
I don't know if you can get them in imperial sizes to fit the Morris though.
What size thread are morris bleed nipples?

I would be wary of 'brass' anything... Very weak metal - all too easy to strip threads or even snap off I suspect..

philthehill wrote:Fit these over the bleed nipple and you will have no corrosion or nipple blockage problems.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/UNIVERSAL-RUB ... 1263712929

Sorry Phil, I should have been clearer, it is the tips of the bleed screw which screw down Into the bottom of the rear banjo and the bottom of the front cylinder. I already have covers for the exposed part of the nipples. I was thinking brass or stainless steel would prevent the tips becoming corroded due to there always being fluid in contact with the tip. Even after bleeding there is a residue left at the bottom.
The fronts are 3/8" unf and the rears 3/8" bsf. A light smear of brake grease on the threads upon assembly should stop them seizeing.

The main cause of the corrosion I believe is the use of different materials i.e. alloy for the cylinder and steel for the bleed nipple.
I am not a great believer in mixing metals that are in contact and personally would not fit stainless bleed nipples in alloy. Where two different metals are used but not in contact their use is acceptable i.e. certain types of disc calliper piston.
I do not think that we will ever get rid of the corrosion problem whilst two different metals are used and brake fluid has a tendency to attract moisture.
Having been in the past a sailing boat owner great care had to be taken not to mix metals. I have read in one of the boating magazines about a chap who replaced the steel bolts securing his steel keel with stainless steel bolts only for the keel to fall off at a later date because the two metals did not like each other
I have often wondered if a sacrificial anode fitted to the under side of a car from new would help reduce corrosion. Perhaps someone has already tried!

The zinc anode has been discussed many a time - works in salty water....but not much point on a car. It's effect is localised - so galvanising all over is THE answer. And yes - stainless V steel is a well known NO NO. The people who continue to sell sets of 'stainless bolts' for cars , know not what they are doing. Main reason the bleed nipple would be corroding (I've never seen this ?) is likely to be moisture in the fluid - bleed through new fluid... and a wee spot of red grease as mentioned above won't do any harm. Roll on the Silicone fluid 'misguideds' now.... :lol
Edited to remove 'maddies' which was objected to...... rightly too - apologies to anyone offended. Roy

maddies

Is this your term for everyone who fails to agree with you?

I'm taking the Clarkson approach to life now.... It is of course -a joke... The silicone fluid thing has been blown open over and over again.......

charlie_morris_minor wrote:when ever i have replaced a brake cylinder they come with a "cap" \ "cover" inserted in the bleed nipple hole and the brake pipe holes, i use them as covers for the nipples, they are a tight fit which is exactly what you want and are effectively "free".. but 6.95 for twenty is nice and cheap

What a crackin idea! thanks

Just replaced a rear brake pipe and the brass union snapped off in the rear cylinder, surprisingly easily. Came out fine from the brass union at the other end though. Steel bleed nipple had seized in as well. Replaced everything with lots of red brake grease on the threads and a silicone hose end cap over the nipple as well. This comes right down over the neck of the banjo to keep all the crud out of the nipple thread as well.

I cleaned all the bleed nipples with a wire brush before replacing the fluid. It was 2 years since I replaced the M/C so thats when the fluid was last changed.
The BMC manual states that the fluid should be changed every 18 months or 24,0000 miles whichever is soonest.
The point of my question regarding the bleed nipple was that they being in contact with the fluid and being steel could be a reason why brake cylinders fail, but it may simply be down to the fact that not everyone changes there brake fluid as stated in the service manual and not everyone uses brake grease when replacing seals or failed cylinders to help keep the crap out.

As for the dreaded "S" word that has been done to death already........

Yes, I bet very few do a fluid change at the recommended intervals. Although some poor souls probably do a complete fluid change when they have bleeding problems.