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Bending Brake Line

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Raymond

Raymond

Jedi Hopeful
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Hi


I have broken one of my brake lines and my mechanic cant get to my b for a week. so im wondering how hard it it to bend brake line?
im just thinking of replacing the broken line. its the pass front line
i figure a hour or two to get the old line out an hour to bend the new one and perhaps a few hours to get the replacement in

thanks everybody
Ray
 
From what I remember doing with my uncle, bending brake lines is a relatively simple task if you have the proper tool.. What we used looked like two handles and a curved portion of metal where they attached. The metal to bend was put in when the two handles were all the way open, and then they were forced closed (with significant muscle) until the tool showed it was at the correct angle. I imagine it'd be made easier still if you had the old brake line to use as a template.

Oh, and make sure the slide-able fittings are on the brake line before you bend it (and on the correct side of the bend).
 
im thinking of taking the old line out first so i can measure size and use as a template for making the correct bends



thanks
ray
 
Ray, the 3/16" tubing used for brake lines can easily be bent by hand without kinking. You can buy various lengths with the correct flare on them at any good parts house. It'd be best to take the old line with you when buying the new one to make sure the flares and fittings match.
Jeff
 
and if'n you want a bender, they're not expensive. I think the one Moss carries is less than $20. I'm sure you ought to be able to find one at any reasonable auto parts store or tool store.
 
I did it by hand, slow and steady is the way to start. I tried bending the old one first after I got the template marked on cardboard just in case. Bending the old one gave me an idea of the resistance level I could expect to find on the new one. Not a big deal and won't take you nearly as long as you think. Hard part was snaking the new one in. I'd rate it at about a 4 on a 1-10. Good point to pay attention to the fittings.
 
A tubing bender will give a nicer bend, but you can do it by hand. Just go slowly to avoid kinks. You will get the feel for it quickly. Sometimes it's even easier to do the first bend, then attach the line, and bend the rest in place. The old line may not necessarily be a better routing than you can do yourself.
 
a friend is loaning me a bender
and i was just going to use a piece of string to measure the line after i have it out of the car


Thanks Ray


oh and Hi Jeff
 
Howdy, Ray. Glad to see you're making progress on the "B". Have the girls been enjoying it?
I've been too busy to work on any of my stuff!
Hope to get back up that way again.
Jeff
 
the kids say hi

i took a week off to go to the Iola old car show and get my B going again


next time you are in the area stop by or i just might have to get myself up to Michigan


ray
 
Lots of good advice here.

Bending tube is easy. You'll find all kinds of round solid stuff laying around the house to make the radius bends (ketchup bottle, PVC tube scraps, conduit, anything round. Although I have one, I can count on one hand the number of times I've used my tubing bender. Just measure (and measure again) and then gently bbbeeeeennnnndddd around the form.

Be certain you have the correct Bundyflex/CuNiFer tube with the right ISO flares on the ends.
 
you can purchase a nice tubing bender for Less than $15.00 at Autozone And the A.Z. dealer here says he has the Brittish Lines and fittings and can match what you need.
 
Hand bending is preaty easy. Just go slow and don't kink anything.
 
What are you planning to use for the nuts that hold it to everything else?
 
Well if you cut the line in the middle and use a us standard coupling you can get the old nuts on the ends.

Now I did not do that but considerd it.
 
well the auto parts store had adapters to go from the standard 3/16 line to the
3/8 size to mate up with the oem stuff


im going to order the proper brake line from tony in a few weeks
this quicky repair was just so i can put around town


Thanks for all the info
Ray
 
Too bad you're not down here - I'm disassembling a car right now & you could pull the old ones off it.
 
I bought a tubing bender at Sears and the tubes from Tony. The results were very nice. I used the originals as models.


5-14-06-NewClutchMCLine002.jpg

5-14-06-NewClutchMCLine001.jpg

5-13-06-NewBrakeMCLine001.jpg

5-20-06-Allbacktogether002.jpg
 
Looks identical to the "RIGID" tool I have, Vinnie. Bet you paid less. Good on ya. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif
 
im still getting an intermittent extremely soft peddle

tomorrow im changing the oil and rebleeeding the brake whole system
while checking for leaks
 
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