The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Tearing up the brakes - any fatal mistakes?

Hi,

One wheel cylinder on my old 1940 ride had locked up, the hose next to it was almost swollen shut, and the brake fluid contained solid pieces. So I tore out the entire brake system including master cylinder, all wheel cylinders, break lines, and break hoses a few days ago.

Now I just bent new lines (from NAPA), connected them, and put all new hoses, wheel cylinders, as well as a new master cylinder in. Next weekend I will double-check everything I did and bleed the system.

TECH QUESTION: Are there any dumb and dangerous mistakes I should avoid? After all it is just a simple hydraulic system, right?. Is there anything I can do to seal it even better?

Thanks for any help,

C.Andyman

P.S.: I really tried the 'flare it yourself' brake lines on a roll (what a waste of time). But when I compared my home-made lines to the ones NAPA sells, I decided to trow mine away.

It sounds like you are doing everything right. I like to use the pre-fab line too. Just make sure you use fluid from a new bottle and change it every year or two and it will last a long time.

Use fully synthetic brake fluid.... keeps moisture and rust out of the lines

Sounds like you're on the right track.

I'm going to be finishing up my brakes this week and I'll let you know if I run into anything weird.

(I'm all for premade lines, too.)

You can never be too safe with brakes tires etc. Its yours and you familys life riding on them. Sounds like you have it covered.

Did you bench-bleed the MC? I'm no expert, but I understand you may end up with air in the lines if you don't.

Okay, I'm ready to be corrected.

Hey guys,
Are you all talking about the complete, pre-formed brake lines w/ all the fittings? C.Andyman said he bent new lines from NAPA but then came back with the forget trying to do my own flare fittings???
The Auto Zone will loan out a bender and a double flare maker. Thought that would be a satisfying afternoon. So not sure what everyone here is talking about. :confused:
Do you all have the part number from NAPA? Trying to get anything from the 16 year old counter kid is mostly miss.

Hi,

Before discovering NAPA, I had ordered a roll of steel break line, a pipe cutter, and a flaring tool from JC Whitney. The flaring tool only held the brake line if I stuck a screw driver in between, otherwise the flaring cone pushed it out of the tool. And the single flares it did looked worse than the old single flared break lines I had torn out. The flares had a rough surface and some of them cracked.

I was missing one single screw for the master cylinder. So I went to NAPA to get it. There I discovered the prefabricated break lines.

At NAPA I got some nicely double-flared steal break lines with the fitting already on (available in various diameters and lenghts). They also have all the connectors for distances longer than 60 inches or complex setups. What amazed me most was the cheap price. All you still need is a bending tool. If you are careful and have enough time, the lousiest bending tool will do the job (guess where I had ordered mine from). Usually, the distance you need does not exactly match the lengths you can buy. You can either try to find the closest combination of lines and use a connector. Or you simply use the next longer line and 'waste' some line creatively.

The guy at NAPA already calls me 'Mr. Trouble', but every time I go there, he can solve my problem and find the right part for me. Guys that spend 15 minutes to find the right part for you, even if it only costs $3.87, are hard to find.

C.Andyman

C.Andyman,
What diameter did you go with?