The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline brake proportioning valve and lines

Does anyone make a premade brake line kit for a '51 3100 series Chevy that has dual chamber master cylinder and proportioning valve added? Have put a disc brake conversion up front and would like to find ready made brake lines. Or a diagram of how to make lines.
Thanks, Ray

Brake lines are pretty easy to do yourself. Any auto parts place will sell you the steel lines, and you can buy a tube bender there too though the stuff they sell today is pretty easy to bend with your hands without kinking. You'll need a tube flaring kit and some flare nut wrenches. Even after buying the extra tools, you'll be saving money compared to the pre-bent stuff that probably won't fit right anyway.

Several vendors sell the dual master cylinder kits. You can probably find one in the links section. I'd tell you where I got mine, but I wasn't pleased with the customer service. I think most of them are the corvette MC with a special bracket for mounting under the cab. I didn't get the portioning valve, but I have drums all around.

The ready made kits are for original parts (master cyl, etc.) and won't just bolt on for you with the new disc system and new dual MC. You might as well bend your own

Like Cory said, you can buy a tubing bender, and a flare tool for not too much $$, and make lines yourself. I did mine and after a little practice, worked out pretty well.

I am in the middle of doing my brake lines for cpp disc brake kit and a cpp corvette dual master cylinder with proportioning valve. From memory, I used an autozone brake line part# PA 51 in a 3/16 size for the left front disc (fed from the left side feed of the proportioning valve. I have a part PA 51 and a part PA 20 (both 3/16) and a 3/16 coupler to get to the right front disc. I ordered a manual brake switch (not in line with brake line) which I need to pickup today from Autzone as well.

I have not gotten to the rear brakes yet, but I imagin it will be just as easy to find these parts at Autozone and I should have it figured out by the end of teh week (I will update this thread with that info).

The break line bender is nice to have for this work.

oh and if you go the route listed above, you do not need a flaring tool since everything is designed to take male threads, which the pre-made tubing comes with. I think all the parts above (3 lines, coupler, and manual break switch for a 53 chevy truck costs about $32)

I bought a roll of 3/16 for the front and a roll of 1/4 for the back and bent my own. This way they are exactly where I want them with no excess to contend with. Make sure you don’t get the spring benders. They won’t give you as tight a curve as the other. I got mine a few years ago at Home Depot along with the flaring tool and it wasn’t much money.

The only trick to bending your own is to remember to add/subtract the radius of the bending tool from your measurement.

Why is there diffent sizes of tubing used?
Do discs need the smaller 3/16?
Ray

The proportioning valve that you buy is going to dictate the size of your lines for you because it is already threaded for a certain size brake line/fitting. I am sure there is some science to it, but I just bought the size that fitted them and went forward.

The rear brake threads on my proportioning valve (I haven't done the back yet) is a larger size thread, so I am sure that it will match a specific size metal line. The rear brake line does serve both rear wheels - maybe that is why it's larger? (although a lot of people plumb their front lines off of one side of the proportioning valve and use 3/16 for both of the fronts)