Brake and Clutch fluid

[eesnas]

So I am good at messing things up... I let a bunch of air in my brake lines and somehow I think I drained the whole reservoir by accidentally squeezing the lever while the banjo bolt was loose.

So I need to get some brake fluid to replace the large amount I lost, is the fluid in the brake side the same as the clutch reservoir? Figure while I am at it I might as well top them both off, I have someone helping me to stop the downward spiral of damage I am causing. 

[battlecry]

Yep, they are the same.  Clean everything well.  The fluid is very corrosive to paint.

This may belong on Tech.

[eesnas]

Anyone know what kind of fluid I need? I never bought it before, is there a brand or certain type? Bike is an '04 620.

[BK_856er]

Any good dot4 will do the trick.  Does not need to be moto specific, but the moto specific ones tend to be better in terms of boiling point specs.  Some people like dot5.1, but you want to avoid dot3 and dot5.  Castrol LMA dot4 is a very decent fluid and available at any auto part store.  I've used LMA, and aso ATE Super Blue and more recently Motul 5.1.  Only use unopened containers to keep the moisture level to a minimum (tiny moisture levels decrease boiling point and promote internal corrosion, that's why we flush frequently).  HTH.

BK

[eesnas]

So all I could find was Prestone dot4, I searched around quite a bit for it actually... It says synthetic, is that okay?

I printed instructions off ducatisuite.com but it makes no mention of dual front brake procedures, I assume I just do each side separately...

[ducpainter]

brake fluid is synthetic by nature

[He Man]

howie mentioned it in another thread, and it turns out brake fluid is and always was synthetic. no such thing as anything else. they just market it as synthetic to make money on those who dont.

[eesnas]

Thanks guys...

Now I got my new bars mounted and the brake seems to have resistance, I have no doubt there may be air in the line but for now is it safe to just top off the reservoir?

I am having some maintenance next weekend or the week after but I will need to ride it about an hour to get it there, just as long as it's safe to ride can I put it off?

[He Man]

depends, can you find neutral, and is there enough force to stop the bike at speed? if yes then your fine. if no, then you know the answer to that one.

[eesnas]

So the brake seems to be working fine, haven't tested at high speed but it seems like it will be okay. The weird this is last time I peeked at the reservoir it looked dry. My plan is to just top it off and see how it goes.