Brake Tube Tools

SySt

New Member
Mar 30, 2005
629
0
0
38
Burnsville, Minnesota
What are your guys' experiences/preferences for brake tubing benders, cutters and flare tools? I bought a cutter and bender from advance auto, they work good. However the flare tool I picked up from Advance just sucks. I can not get a centered flare at all. I have found other kits online and can get one from Snap-On. However, they all are the same type as the one I got from Advance auto. Please give me your input.
 

suprageezer

New Member
Aug 27, 2005
778
0
0
Southern California
You know I have bent many a quality store bought brake tube, but personally I would never take a chance on making my own when they are as cheap as they are, even stainless tubes are cheap. If you make one minute mistake it could cost you your life or worse yet you could hurt someone else. To me it's not worth the risk. I'm not sure I would even use these stainless braided hoses unless I covered them with some kind of tubing to prevent pebbles from chaffing a hole in the Teflon liner inside the stainless braid. Heck the stock ones last forever and I'm not making money from my cars braking abilities so when it comes to brakes and the street I kinda stick close to stock for my safety and others on the road. Just my opinion from experience.
Geezer
 

SySt

New Member
Mar 30, 2005
629
0
0
38
Burnsville, Minnesota
I plan on not only removing my ABS system, but also rerouting the lines inside the passenger compartment perhaps so that I can make make bias changes using an adjustable brake proportioning valve. The stock lines just are not going to be useful to me.
 

suprageezer

New Member
Aug 27, 2005
778
0
0
Southern California
Syst, you can buy new lines at your local autoparts store, they come in most useful lengths and on occasion you might need a coupler to put two together to get the lenght you need. I seem to even remember being told making them is illegal in CA, not that thats ever stop me from modifiying something on my cars LOL.
Geezer
 

bluepearl

New Member
Jul 21, 2005
326
0
0
pa.
SySt said:
What are your guys' experiences/preferences for brake tubing benders, cutters and flare tools? I bought a cutter and bender from advance auto, they work good. However the flare tool I picked up from Advance just sucks. I can not get a centered flare at all. I have found other kits online and can get one from Snap-On. However, they all are the same type as the one I got from Advance auto. Please give me your input.



I can assume you got instructions with you're tool. Follow them to a T. I have made hundreds of flares over the years and it just takes a certain knack. It is not majic. Take you're time, prepare the tube properly with no short-cuts. Practice on a few old brake lines. You will make a perfect double flare.
 

SySt

New Member
Mar 30, 2005
629
0
0
38
Burnsville, Minnesota
I know I can buy the lengths, but then I do not get to route the PRECISELY how I would like to. Also, I bought them in the short lengths and it was cheaper to buy the tube with two nuts then it was to just buy two nuts... I do not see how adding a couple would make it safer then doing your own flaring. Each termination of the tubing causes there to be another place for leakage. I doubt my car will be legal with an LS6 (variance needed?).
 

SySt

New Member
Mar 30, 2005
629
0
0
38
Burnsville, Minnesota
Alright, I ended up buying another flare kit from Sears this time. It cost about $16, $10 less than advanced auto... Anyhow, I tried just once with this kit and I am much happier with it. Not perfect but I should get better at it, and I will try to do what IJ did and put a flat step in between the flare steps.

Also, is there any really good way to straighten brake tubing. I bought a 25 foot coil of it so I will need to straighten it out.
 

bluemax

The Family Man
Mar 30, 2005
418
0
0
Orange County, CA
You could also buy aircraft aluminum 2024T3, 6061T6, or even thin wall stainless steel tubing. I'm a little leary of using tubing on my brakes that is so soft it comes coiled up. I was thinking about using the coiled stuff one time but decided that I would feel good about using it.

You'll need a mandral pipe bender to bend the stuff correctly. The stainless stuff you'll have to take it to a shop to flare it.
 

SySt

New Member
Mar 30, 2005
629
0
0
38
Burnsville, Minnesota
Why would I need to bring stainless to a shop to flare but aluminum and mild steel I can flare myself? From my understanding, stainless is considered a softer steel.