The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline '51 Chevy 3/4T brake line rusted - need advice

Hey Stovebolt Nation

I’ve had this proud ’51 Chevy 3/4T for about 20 years and it’s run off and on, but Covid has me looking for things to do-so I’m diving in and giving ‘Grover’ a good going over and improve some things.
The other day, one of my brake lines ruptured that runs along the rt side rail and feeds the back end and obviously my pedal goes to the floor now. All my lines look either original or replaced years ago but prob should not only fix the one line obviously, but should do them all. A few years back I went thru all the wheels and updated the wheel cylinders, so they are all ok

Question: I’m pretty handy as everyone is with old cars, and I’ve not made brake lines but looking on youtube-if I get a good kit, it looks pretty successful. Or is it better to buy a complete set from someone. I’ve thumbed thru some catalogs and see them in ‘original material’ or stainless. From $140-220 I’ll need Tees, flex/rubber line and fasteners also.
Would love any general advice or leads to who sells nice kits that fit pretty well. And if I should make my own lines. Which ever does better
Also, I will have to explore the issues of 3/16 vs ¼” lines maybe on the back end, any advice appreciated.

Best and stay safe
Clem

I got a complete set of pre-bent lines for my "37 from the Filling Station. Reasonably priced and fit well. Was advised by several people not to get the stainless lines because
they can be difficult to get to seal so they don't leak.

I had never done anything like brake lines before restoring my '50 COE and '37 half ton. I purchased a very well made and pricey flare tool from Fed Hill (fedhillusa.com) and used their copper-nickle brake line material. This brake line will not corrode, is even easier than mild steel line to bend and to flare. I have never had a flare junction leak. NAPA sells this similar brake line made in China that has thinner walls and weighs 40% less. For this reason I don't recommend it although I am not aware of any failures despite this.

As an example of how easy to bend, while working on the line on the rear axle I was contemplating how to make the big looping bend that goes over the differential cover. Finally, I just walked over to one of the massive rear brake drums on my 2 ton COE and with my hands wrapped a section of line around it, forming a nice looking curved piece. It is really easy to work with and will last longer than you will. Like '37 barn find says above I have been told that stainless is difficult to work with because flaring can cause cracks which you aren't aware of until you tighten the brake line nut and the flare junction starts to leak.
Kent

If you're careful removing the old lines from your brass Tee's and banjo fittings you can clean them up and reuse them.

So all you'll need is a roll of tubing (I think 25' will do the whole truck), new flare nuts to go in the brass fittings, a cheap tubing bender (optional) and a Double Flare Tool. Easy weekend job, just remove the old tubing and use it as a pattern...

Mike B

Like Mike B said, you should be able to save most of the fittings due to them being brass. I did my '57 two ton complete with a 25 ft. roll of 1/4 in. The copper-nickel is the way to go.

Copper Nickel pipe ..........assortment of threaded ends..........and this tool:

( tool maybe rented at no cost at the local parts store. The flare tool pictured is particularly good and making perfect flare every time. To the point it’s almost fool proof with nickel copper) It’s not dirt cheap and sold under few different brands and or names.


All the lines should be replaced if one failed ??????? If not carefully inspected ??????

If you plan to do more brake work in the future, and would use the tools again, buy them and do it yourself. If you want quick and easy, check out www.inlinetube.com They have pre bent kits for ~$150-$175. I used Inline tube, everything is pre bent, cut, flared, and has the right fitting. There is some experience, trial/error, skill to making double flares, personally, I do not possess that skill!!

Jon

I had rusted brakes lines on my off-topic daily driver last winter. They can be a bear... I bought pre-made pieces of Cu-Ni line with nuts and double flared ends. A couple of them were too long, so I cut and reflared them. One flare didn’t turn out so good so I redid it.
The line is easy to bend by hand, if not bent too tight. I found that the line can work harden if you need to reshape it after bent.

If you want to consider stainless steel ready-made gas lines ($$ - but last "forever"):

Classic Tube
(good luck using their on-line catalog)

Inline tube
I think this is 1950 3/4 Chevrolet truck SS lines - $170?

Thanks Barn Finder, was thinking of ordering the SS but as folks have seal prob will do the reg lines, and order a set, thanks for the heads up !!

Thanks All In the end, I made of made a mistake but I ordered a complete set from LMC Truck and a prebent Stainless set was only $150 and since my lines were rusted and I hope they dont leak at the fitting ends. One wheel cylinder is leading on the backside so will replace that. My master is rusty, but doesnt leak and the inside looks perfect-like new so will keep this for now.

Fingers crossed I dont have to cut and make fittings with stainless, hopefully they dont leak. I'll try to be careful. I imagine if they leak I'd make a new line out of Copper Nickle with a good double flair tool.

Also need to adjust and lube up my emergency brake, this only has a single master cyclinder, and no porportioning valve. If it leaks and loose pressure no way to stop this heavy truck. It was scary moving it with my little nissan truck and towing it into the driveway to work on it as the rusted pipe popped and I lost all brake ability and I ran into my other truck, Thankfully I hung a big tire (no rim) between the two to act as a cushion and no harm done to either rig. But it did scare me the wt of the truck

Waiting for it to arrive, will update you all after I go at it.
Clem

Good luck Clem, You know you can get lines at places like O'Reilly's. They are "bend your own" but work very well and aren't expensive. I had to replace a couple a few years ago and paid $7 for one and $11 for a longer one. They come with fittings and are already flared.

Wow, really Jon, cheap and quick. Next time I'll prob go this route, hopefully the SS ends all seal well -Clem

I replaced all of the lines on my truck several years ago. Inline Tube is about 3 miles from my house, so I used them as a source. Great people, outstanding customer service.

Since they did not offer a pre-bent set for my application, I ended up just purchasing the SS tubing, and fabricating them myself.

A couple of things I learned:

1) When attaching the lines, it is a good idea to snug the flare nut down, loosen it, then incrementally tighten it and loosen it a few more time before tightening it for keeps. This helps center the tube flare into the corresponding fitting, and greatly reduces the likelihood of a leak. I had something like 20 connections (tandem rear axles, Hydrovac, etc.) and had no leaks.

Inline has a Tech Support page with a video that describes this process here:

Tech Tips

2) Make sure that the SS tubing you use is annealed - which is softer than regular SS tubing, making it easier to bend, and less susceptible to cracking when flared.

3) Try to be as accurate as possible with your layout and bends. Unlike conventional steel tubing, it is almost impossible to "fudge" even a small error with SS. Use welding rod, coat hangers, or even old pieces of steel tubing to make patterns.

4) If you do have to flare it, use a good flaring tool. Even though it is annealed, SS is still pretty tough. I was having a lot of problems using my old flare tool. I borrowed a Master-Cool hand-held hydraulic unit and it made a HUGE difference. A perfect flare every time. Worked so well it actually made the job fun.

5) Prior to a flare, do not cut the tubing with a tubing cutter. Use a fine tooth hacksaw instead, then square up the cut with a file. Deburr the outside edge of the tube, and gently clean up the inside opening with a countersink. The reason for the hacksaw, as opposed to the tubing cutter, is that the tubing cutter work hardens the tube, making it more difficult to flare. I was always taught that using anything other than a tubing cutter was a form of butchery, so this was admittedly a stretch for me. But it does work.

I also used SS to replace the fuel lines. Worked great. Never have to worry about them again.

Good Luck !!

Best Regards....

I've found that a thin cutoff wheel on an angle grinder works a lot better than a hacksaw on thin wall tubing, and doesn't compress the tubing or work harden it. Just be careful- - - -cutoff wheels work a lot quicker on fingers than they do on metal!
Jerry

Good advice.