[lardo5150]

Is there a difference in these, or are they the same?

https://www.jensonusa.com/SRAM-Avid-Hydraulic-51-Dot-Brake-Fluid

https://www.worldwidecyclery.com/products/sram-5-1-dot-hydraulic-brake-fluid-4oz

 

[ninjichor]

One's got Avid's old branding on it. The other has SRAM's.

As far as I know, they gotta meet certain minimum requirements to be able to label it DOT 5.1--can pretty much buy any reputable brand's 5.1 fluid, but beware previously opened (non-vacuum sealed) containers of DOT will likely lose performance. The DOT fluid reportedly absorbs the moisture/humidity from the air, and using such fluid can result in brakes that feel increasingly spongy.

I generally just get DOT 4 for around $5 (12 oz) from most any store's auto section. Can refill the small 4 oz bottles and make them air tight to limit performance loss, compared to having a large container with a lot of air space. Many cases where the min requirements are exceeded.

 

[One Pivot]

Dot 4 can exceed dot 5.1 standards. Dot 5.1 is sort of a gimmick.

https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/su...GqaeeFHaBG4Z4G0eG_wClo2AHGyIubLsaAkaxEALw_wcB

Dot 4, 509 degree boiling point.

 

[lardo5150]

Dot 4 can exceed dot 5.1 standards. Dot 5.1 is sort of a gimmick.

https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/su...GqaeeFHaBG4Z4G0eG_wClo2AHGyIubLsaAkaxEALw_wcB

Dot 4, 509 degree boiling point.

Are you saying you can use Dot 4 with Code RSC?

 

[Aglo]

Are you saying you can use Dot 4 with Code RSC?

If you download the Service Manual from SRAM you will see that's written in there that you can use DOT 4 and DOT 5.1, you can't use DOT 5.

 

[Lone Rager]

^^^yep. Any reasonably fresh DOT 4 or 5.1 (not 5!!!) is fine. I buy automotive stuff.

 

[One Pivot]

Dot 3 is actually fine too. Hayes did/does use dot 3.

Dot 3 exceeds maguras fluids boiling point by about 100 degrees! But we basically never hear magura owners complain about overheated fluid.

For bike brakes, our pad material typically overheats first and we get greasy brakes. This reduction in performance feels like a firm lever, but no braking power. This means the pads have lost their coefficient of friction to heat, but the fluid is still well under temp. This is enough to stop most riders, its scary as hell to ride with a death grip on the levers and a bike that keeps moving!

Im not saying to intentionally seek out and use the crappier dot 3, but if you need brake fluid, a nice fresh bottle of 5 dollar parts store DOT 4 is way more than sufficient. Valvoline makes an excellent DOT 4 thats available everywhere... but still, you're not going to overheat whatever you put in there.

 

[Miker J]

FYI, whatever I can easily find, DOT 4 or 5.1 works well. Also, I've been finding that using tightly sealed, but previously opened cans (that have a tight top), have worked fine for me. That said I do probably bleed brakes more frequently than the average bear.

I'm sure I'll get burned by doing this some day, but I'll keep doing it till then to avoid wasting left over fluid.

 

[IRideBikesUSA]

FYI, whatever I can easily find, DOT 4 or 5.1 works well. Also, I've been finding that using tightly sealed, but previously opened cans (that have a tight top), have worked fine for me. That said I do probably bleed brakes more frequently than the average bear.

I'm sure I'll get burned by doing this some day, but I'll keep doing it till then to avoid wasting left over fluid.

I think what you can do to avoid the water seeping in from the air is to put it in smaller bottles that are filled to the brim, after you are done bleeding your brakes. Then there is no air contact to let water in.