I told that old tech his quick trick for bleeding brakes was bunk. I was dead wrong.

Guy named Larry showed me this method using a piece of aquarium tubing and a check valve from a fish pump. Took me 3 tries on a 1998 F-150 before I admitted it actually worked better than my $200 pressure bleeder. Anyone else have a seasoned mechanic prove you wrong with some backyard hack?

3 comments

3 Comments

holly_henderson861mo ago

Hell yeah, did the old timer give you that weird little smirk after it worked?

felix1471mo ago

Admit it, we've all been there. Watching YouTube tutorials feels like secret sauce until a guy with greasy fingernails and a bent paperclip shows you up in five minutes flat. That aquarium tubing trick is pure sorcery, I swear. Now I look at my expensive Craftsman bleeder and feel personally attacked by a fish pump. You going to stick with the hack or go back to the fancy stuff now that you know both work?

gavina7311d ago

Man I had almost the exact same thing happen with an old ford mechanic and a timing light. I was chasing a spark issue on a Bronco II and this guy shows up with a screwdriver and a piece of wire and has it running in like 2 minutes. Made me feel like a fool with my multimeter and laptop. Those old guys have tricks that just work and they don't care if it looks janky. I still use that screwdriver trick sometimes when I'm too lazy to get the proper tool.