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Is it possible to bleed hydraulic disc brakes without buying a kit? If so, how would I go about doing it?
I have Shimano BR-M355 brakes, but the question is also applicable to other manufacturers.
What would I need to be able to bleed these brakes, and how does the end result compare? In the UK a Shimano kit is approx. £30 [Sept 2016] including brake fluid.
It depends on your brakes.
Some models need nothing more than a couple of short lengths of plastic hose, a cloths peg and syringe. Others need fittings to attach the hose(s) to the brakes, and you may or may not find something else to do the job in a hardware shop.
Kits are mostly relatively cheap and probably cost no more than individual bits purchased from a shop. Some kits are expensive (Avid comes to mind) - probably because you have no choice and have to buy it for the proprietary bits needed to do the job.
Yes, the model is very important; if you can tell us we could help you with more precise answers.
On the other hand as mentioned above, it is very important to check the fitting, and probably this could come cheap if bought off Ebay (or similar). What is often expensive is the oil or lubricants if bought from the company making the brakes (Sram, Magura, ...). What you need to do is check online on forums or on the specification of the brakes what fluids they use, and then just buy the generic Dot 4, or other, from your hardware shop, or online. There you'll save a lot.
I did it in the past and it is bombproof as a system.
Hope it helps
