I know that's standard, but my question is about the colour. All the guff I've read on the net would suggest that DOT 5 is always purple. If this is correct then I don't currently have DOT 5 in it, in which case I'll flush it and fill with DOT 5.1, being as I can get that just down the road, as opposed to making a trip to an HD shop, which are all the other side of town. I guess that's probably the easiest thing to do even if I do currently have piss coloured DOT 5 in it.

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Sounds like 4 or 5.1 is in there.

Can you ask the previous owner? Or whoever serviced it last?

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08 Specialized Langster

I could ask Prozac, but if someone in the know can confirm, or not, that DOT 5 is always purple, I won't have to. At a guess Maz was probably the last person to service it, several years ago

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I've not seen any DOT5 that isn't purple, but I am fairly wet between the ears.

So what would I do?

1. Check previous receipts / service history, or
2. Check with previous owner, or
3. Strip the system, split the caliper, remove and clean the pistons, remove and clean the seals, clean the recesses using a brass wire brush in the Dremel, replace the seals after applying silicon grease to both the seals and the recesses, replace the pistons (I like to apply silicon grease to the sides, the excess, some may say 'all' will be scraped off the the seals), reassemble using copaslip on all the threads and do a similar job on the master cylinder (you'll need some svelte circlip pliers) then bleed with 4 or 5.1. I'm pretty sure you will notice a big difference in performance.

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08 Specialized Langster

I normally do 3 (both S1s and the X1) as most of my bikes never come with a service history...

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08 Specialized Langster

I guess I should do 3 as well

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This was useful

http://www.steelsoldiers.com/showthread.php?7031-Brake-fluid-how-to-tell-which-kind-you-have-DOT-3-or-DOT-5

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