snapped bleed nipple how to fix it ?

[robster247]

Ive taken my calipers off my mk2 1.1 and when loosening the bleed nipple it snapped flush with the caliper so cant get mole grips on it :-( could I drill it out re-tap it and put a bigger nipple on it ?

[robertt]

This has also happened to me.

You have two choices, the first is to try get the remaining bit of the nipple out or replace the whole thing.

As it happens I replaced the caliper however it is possible to get something called an Easy Out or Stud Extractor tool (machine mart do some along with others - Irwin do a range). With these you drill a hole in the stud and turn in a bar formed with a coarse left-handed thread at one end and a square end at the other to fit a handle on. As you turn the bar in the stud should loosen. Because the blead nipple has a hollow centre a stud extractor can go in fairly well.

You could also try carefully drilling it out with increasing sized bits then clear the threads on the caliper with a tiny punch. Also because the nipple is usually rusted in heating it up a bit with a gas welder torch can help free it first.

Try google this because it is encountered many, many times by others - I found some useful websites and other forums for help on this one.

[coleman258]

If its not to siezed in there, what I did I smashed an alen key in and undone it that way.