Actron CP7835 Vacuum Pump/Brake Bleed Kit

I'm a real DIYer and really enjoy maintaining my vehicles. One item that most people overlook is flushing out the brake fluid every year or two. On a new vehicle the brake fluid looks clear like water but after a couple of years it starts to look like ice tea which means that it has attracted moisture which is normal for Dot 3 brake fluid. If you let it go the wheel cylinders and brake calipers are prone to corrosion and after so long they will start to leak which is not good. I purchased this Actron Vacuum pump/Brake Bleed Kit so I could flush out my brake lines when the brake fluid starts getting dark in color. If you have someone to help you they can keep the master cylinder topped off while you apply a vacuum to each bleeder screw. If you don't have anyone to help you, you can go to a hardware store and purchase a length of plastic hose the same diameter as the hose supplied in a length long enough to reach from the farthest bleeder screw to the master cylinder under the hood. That way you can monitor the brake fluid level in the master cylinder so you don't inadvertently empty it. The extended life span of the wheel cylinders and calipers will more than pay for the cost of this tool.

I bought the Actron Kit to bleed the rear brakes for my motorcycle. The Actron kit is made of metal and comes with the standard jar to hold your fluids, hoses, and that's about everything you need to bleed your brakes. The reason I bought this kit was because of the gauge on the pump so I could see if there was a leak somewhere in the system. I tried using the kit by connecting the black hose to the pump and the jug. From the jug there would be a clear hose to see if there are any bubbles in the fluid that you draw to the bleeder nipple. Unfortunately, I was never able to create a vacuum due to the flawed design of the jug. I tested every connection with the pump and gauge and I could always create a vacuum until I connected the hoses to the jug. This jug is also relatively small will probably not be able to hold that much fluid, and once the fluid gets to the top it will be sucked by the pump. Fortunately, the pump is metal and you're able to clean it. I had high hopes from this kit but it didn't work out for me.

This is a fine vacuum test kit, but garbage for bleeding brakes. I could not get a tight seal around the brake bleeders no matter how much grease I used on them and the cup. The cup is also very brittle and feels like it's going to break just putting the hoses on it.

I went back to my simple tube with a check valve in it and a second person pumping the brake pedal - works great. Save your money and don't bother with this kit.

The cover does not seal tightly on the cup,after putting grease between the two, I was able to draw a vacuum. The cup/cover should be redesigned,
a little larger would be nice as well.
Need to use a lot of silicone grease(included)on the bleeder screw threads to get them to seal.
After fixing those two problems,the pump itself works great.

It's not made in USA.(Which helps China and hurts the US)

"easier brake bleeding without the mess" - unfortunately, that was not my experience.

1) a lot of my time/effort even after using sealing lubricant was spent ensuring that air does not enter through the gaps between the cup and the cup cover. The design of the cup is flawed - shouldn't the cup cover atleast tightly fit the cup?.

2) air leaked through the threads of the bleeder screw, and there isn't any way to prevent it. I don't know if other kits prevent this problem. Fortunately, this problem didn't have a severe impact on the outcome.

3) the glass on the vaccum dial broke even under normal use.

I hope Actron fixes design flaw #1 and #3.