Linked brakes issue and fork recomendations

[aklawok]

 So it has been 2 years owning my 07' CalVin now and has been mostly trouble free and a pleasure to ride. One of the skwauks from the PO. Was that the brakes needed a bleed, ditto. Late last season replaced and cleared entire system, all good. First.ride out of storage the brakes are soft again. Never has leaked. Short of removing the rear caliper again is this a common problem or just annual maintenance?

Second issue is front forks: I am not completely satisfied with the performance there and have maxed out it's adjustments, was thinking of replacing with heavier oil. I have done forks in the past but is there anything to watch out for or a specific process for the adjustable forks? All comments appreciated.

[blackcat]

I believe the splitter/proportioning valve on that bike has a bleeder valve, did you bleed that valve? The linked brake bleeding is always a bit difficult but once you have it bleed it should be fine and not a regular maintenance issue other than the normal flushing of the line. Start at the front caliper, then the s-litter/proportioning valve, then the rear caliper.  Good luck.

[bmc5733946]

For some unknown reason, at least to me, many Guzzi linked systems respond favorably to having a weight hung on their rear brake pedal overnight, especially after they have been thoroughly bled previously and just go soft. Something that can put some pressure in the system over time. I'm not an unreasonable man but I'll be damned if I know what gives with this stuff. I only know I has worked for me.

Brian

[moto]

For some unknown reason, at least to me, many Guzzi linked systems respond favorably to having a weight hung on their rear brake pedal overnight, especially after they have been thoroughly bled previously and just go soft. Something that can put some pressure in the system over time. I'm not an unreasonable man but I'll be damned if I know what gives with this stuff. I only know I has worked for me.

Brian

This also applies to the front brake master cylinder. When I replaced my T3’s lines with braided steel ones, I rigged up something that allowed my reservoir of brake fluid to be higher than the front brake master cylinder, and also put continuous pressure on the front brake handle. Leaving that arrangement overnight, along with pressure on the rear brake, produced a rock-hard rear peddle and outstanding braking.
A reason for the effectiveness of this kind of thing was discussed here a couple of years ago. The main thing is not to understand why it works, but to do it. Good luck.

[LowRyter]

just curious, are the pads worn?

[aklawok]

Brand new pads, replaced them when I purged the system last season. Thank you for the weight trick, still hoping for a chime in on the fork issue, have not found info specific for this kind of fork with the re/comp. Adjuster yet.
Just anecdotal but on my old CB900c forks it was actually necessary to draw the oil up from the bottom of the forks with a shop vac!

[dguzzi]

 I've been with bikes that needed to have the handle bar lever tied back overnight, it seems like a way to assist the lack of velocity of the fluid when bleeding. (maybe)