Things I didn't know about hydrolic brakes

Bicycling
1

Learned a few things today about hydrolic brakes:

  1. If you develop a squeal, check for leaking fluid.
  2. Brake fluid DOT 3, 4 and 5.1 are proplylene glycol based and are compatible** but have different boiling points (important when a vacuum is pulled).
  3. DOT 5, is silicone based and not compatible with 3, 4 or 5.1.

Some brakes use mineral oil too.

** Note, when I say compatible, I mean they will not interact chemically and/or destroy your seals. They will have different properties though and may not function the same.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOT_5.1
http://forums.mtbr.com/brake-time/what-fluid-should-i-buy-avid-elixir-cr-775641.html

2

Go to the sram website when working on their brakes. They have great you tube tutorials plus their manuals are all online.