Draining Hydraulic Brake Cables and Leaving them Empty

Triathlon Forum
1

I am changing a group set, there will be a three to four week gap between removing the old and replacing the new- the one being removed is new, and being replaced by another new one.

Are the hydraulic cables ok to be left empty having had fluid in them for a month?

As far as I can tell - the cables for tiagra / 105 are the same - so given the ones that are currently internally routed - can I leave them in and just attach new levers / calipers to them when I receive them and not have any problems?

Thanks

2

Ideally you should replace the olive at the end of the brake line. They get compressed when you tighten them and therefore might not fit in a new shifter.

3

But I can keep the cable? And just replace the end? No problems with leaving them empty?

Thanks

4

I wouldn’t know why not, but maybe I’m missing something. To prevent contamination, I would put a small plastic bag over the ends (or something similar).

Note that you will have to cut a small bit of the brake lines to install new olives.

5

thanks- thats helpful
.

6

Shouldn’t be any problems draining the hose; if you detach both lever and caliper it’s going to drain anyway

You can re-use the hose if it is long enough. You will probably need to cut 1cm off each end to install new barbs