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Stainless Steel Brake Hard Lines


Hairdo12

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Well one of my hard brake lines ruptured today...

 

I was wondering about installing stainess steel hard lines to all four wheels. I'm not too familiar with them and I haven't found any decent information on the internet to help with our cars in regards to using them. Can you even make an iso bubble flare with them? Can you use a standard run of the mill brake line flaring tool? Do you need any special unions or adapters? Can they just be put into the master cylinder and run to the brake hoses? I also heard they do not flex as much so there would be a more firm pedal. Can they be bent with a tubing bender as well or will they be prone to collapse?

 

I have another car to drive so I have some time... however I don't wanna be rolling on the ground on my back too much so I'd rather do it once and then never again.

 

Let me hear what you guys know. Thanks! (Gotta go defend the car now as all the Lumina haters are coming out of the wood work telling me to get rid of it :facepalm: )

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You can make flared ends with them, but its much harder. If you worried about these one rusting out, go and get the coated lines, they do not rust. i forgot what they are called, but its like a greenish coating. Stainless will not give you a harder pedal over regular line.

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What about this 2-wall copperized steel treated with galvanized zinc? Of is it just glorified steel lines with powder coating?

 

http://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS/555/63030/10002/-1

 

I'd say with an 18 year life in Buffalo... I got a good amount of life out of steel lines and would still use it. Just wondering about SS. More I read and price it out... I think I'm leaning towards not using SS.

 

EDIT: How many feet to do all four wheels? 25?

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i know napa sells that green coated line i was talking about, not sure if everyplce does, but thry come in pre made sections, and youll just need 3/16 unions to put it all together and just bend it.

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I would replace only the bad sections, There is no point in replacing any lines that are still good and clean....... and you should be using steel unions to join brake line, as they are pressure capable, and brass ones aren't.

 

 

The best thing I can tell you is to grease up all the lines under the car once you fix your real problem areas, as well as do a full fluid flush.

 

 

Don't forget the stationary brake test:

With the car running in park, wail on the brakes hard as you can a couple times simulating a panic stop. If something is going to break it should do so now and not in a real emergency when more is on the line.

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What about this 2-wall copperized steel treated with galvanized zinc? Of is it just glorified steel lines with powder coating?

 

http://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS/555/63030/10002/-1

Double-wall seamless steel tubing is the industry standard. Nothing special about it except the powercoat.

 

Which is to say that it's probably PERFECTLY ADEQUATE.

 

I have very little interest in stainless tubing; I've heard that it's very difficult to get the flares to seal because the tubing is so hard.

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You need a special flaring tool to do actual stainless line..

 

Normally a high quality hydraulic powered flaring tool is needed to do stainless line.

 

With any normal flare tool, you will NEVER be able to flare stainless line anywhere near properly. Its just too damn hard.

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I have decided to go with the basic zinc coated mild steel with the pv coating. I also bought the SS hydrolic hoses from tire rack... they were on a closeout sale and it said < 2 avaliable so maybe I got the last one? It was on sale for 77... thought that was a fair price for all four hoses.

 

I'm going to do all four wheels. The rupture occured right at the bend where the line comes down the engine bay and curves to go under the body. The other lines are in very sorry shape. The front hoses are original and I know there will be damage to the hard line if I try to break it free. The driver side front is the best line and even it looks pretty sad.

 

Any one ever replace the front passenger line? This one looks like it goes above a heat shield for the exhaust under the car. I wanna do the entire car without using a union... we'll see if its even possible. I've got all winter.

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You need a special flaring tool to do actual stainless line..

 

Normally a high quality hydraulic powered flaring tool is needed to do stainless line.

 

With any normal flare tool' date=' you will NEVER be able to flare stainless line anywhere near properly. Its just too damn hard.

[/quote']

 

Additionally, I have found it is much harder to tighten the lines, as the stainless flared end is so hard that it sometimes leaks until they are rediculously tight. I use stainless brake/fuel lines on all my 60s cars and have this issue. Of course the positive thing is that they always stay bright and shinny, and normally they never need to be taken off.

 

Steve

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25 foot roll was enough to do my entire car. And if your lines are leaking at your unions that are crazy tight, than you have over tightened them. Just make them snug, than about 1/4 of a turn and you should be good.

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25 foot roll was enough to do my entire car. And if your lines are leaking at your unions that are crazy tight, than you have over tightened them. Just make them snug, than about 1/4 of a turn and you should be good.

 

Not stainless hard lines.. The stainless is soo hard it isnt malliable enough to form to the flare and easily seal,

 

I propane torch can be used to anneal the end a bit, but its still a pain.

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