replacing brake lines

golf4283

Active Member

May 30, 2003

1,253

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39

Orland Park, Illinois

Mar 31, 2008

#1

• Mar 31, 2008

• #1

I was wondering what I should do about replacing my brake lines. I have the mustangsteve front 2008 mustang GT conversion and I have a versailles 9" with versailles discs out back. Can I go with a stock pre bent kit or should I get something else? I am going to be going with a mustangsteve powerbrake swap too and I just want to get something that is going to work and won't need much adapting to get it right.

 

88gt

Founding Member

Aug 2, 1999

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Drillers cabin

Mar 31, 2008

#2

• Mar 31, 2008

• #2

I have the Mustang Steve '08 front kit w/ Crown-Vic rears. I'm using original pre-bent where possible. For the connections to the new stuff, I'm adapting with off the shelf parts that are available.

I would like to find a flex hose for the fronts that wouldn't require more connections.

Hope some of this helps...

Jim

 

golf4283

Active Member

May 30, 2003

1,253

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Orland Park, Illinois

Mar 31, 2008

#3

• Mar 31, 2008

• #3

yea I just want as minimal crap to buy as possible haha.

 

rbohm

Founding Member

Apr 12, 2002

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tucson,az

Apr 1, 2008

#4

• Apr 1, 2008

• #4

my advice would be to make a template of the lines you need, and send them to www.classictube.com or www.inlinetube.com and have them bend up the lines you need.

 

golf4283

Active Member

May 30, 2003

1,253

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Orland Park, Illinois

Apr 1, 2008

#5

• Apr 1, 2008

• #5

I need every line to be replaced so I'm not sure what you mean by template?

 

S

silverbluebp

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Aug 13, 2003

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Apr 1, 2008

#6

• Apr 1, 2008

• #6

I replaced all of my brake lines and just bought different lengths of straight lines. Cut & bent them to fit myself, it's not that hard ;^)
Bought the parts at the local Carquest.

 

golf4283

Active Member

May 30, 2003

1,253

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Orland Park, Illinois

Apr 1, 2008

#7

• Apr 1, 2008

• #7

What tools will I need to do the job?

 

G

GOvert

15 Year Member

Jan 27, 2007

491

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north central Tennessee Valley

Apr 1, 2008

#8

• Apr 1, 2008

• #8

Brake tubing bender

You can use coathangers to make you templates. Lilse (spelling ?) Tools (purchased at Carquest) makes a bender that has a teflon curved piece you lay the line in before turning the threaded part of the tool to bend the line. After you make your templates, bend the lines to match. Cut off the excess line, reinstall whichever fitting you need to fit the pro vlave or rubber line etc and then double flare the end of the line or have it done. This task is a whole lot easier with the engine out of the car but if you engine is in you will just have to work around it.

 

golf4283

Active Member

May 30, 2003

1,253

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Orland Park, Illinois

Apr 1, 2008

#9

• Apr 1, 2008

• #9

Car doesn't have an engine right now so that is no problem. Should I go stainless lines or just regular steel? I have heard that flaring is difficult.

 

G

GOvert

15 Year Member

Jan 27, 2007

491

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north central Tennessee Valley

Apr 1, 2008

#10

• Apr 1, 2008

• #10

I've been using the standard plated line the either clean and clearcoat them or a double coat of "Cosmoline" (works for me) seems to keep them from oxidizing. Of course hang up the lines somewhere away from your stuff to coat them

 

Edbert

Founding Member

Jul 13, 2002

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Austin TX

Apr 1, 2008

#11

• Apr 1, 2008

• #11

The mild steel ones they sell at all the autoparts stores are a cinch to bend using the right tool. I took my lines to Brake Check and they flared them all for me for $10 (make sure your fitting is correct and on the line BEFORE you flare...duh) total.

If you use stainless steel lines I suggest you get them bent professionally.

I used factory fit stainless lines for 90% of my car, there were a few spots I wanted to change them (for the rear-discs mainly) and that stainless stuff is HARD, makes it tough to bend with common hand-tools. The other lines were a breeze by comparison.

 

golf4283

Active Member

May 30, 2003

1,253

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39

Orland Park, Illinois

Apr 1, 2008

#12

• Apr 1, 2008

• #12

Never heard of brake check. I will have to look at carquest. I am running 4 wheel discs and will take a look at what they have. are there different sized lines?

 

Edbert

Founding Member

Jul 13, 2002

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109

Austin TX

Apr 1, 2008

#13

• Apr 1, 2008

• #13

"Brake Check" might be a local chain, no idea really but they're just that...a chain of brake shops. I chose to use them since there's one close to my office, but I have no complaints. Their service was fast, reasonably priced, and their staff was curteous...what more can you ask for?

 

LMan

Founding Member

Aug 10, 2002

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Mom's basement

Apr 2, 2008

#14

• Apr 2, 2008

• #14

silverbluebp said:

I replaced all of my brake lines and just bought different lengths of straight lines. Cut & bent them to fit myself, it's not that hard ;^)
Bought the parts at the local Carquest.

Click to expand...

The man speaketh troof.

 

ultrastang

Founding Member

Feb 26, 2002

1,092

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37

Arkansas

Apr 5, 2008

#15

• Apr 5, 2008

• #15

[The bulk of this post copied from another thread you had posted in which I made a reply to]

This is a '65 that belongs to a friend of mine.
1. http://ultrastang.com/Images/Scanned/Steven/02.jpg

6 years ago, Steven loaned me this blue '65 so it could be used as a "guinea pig" for me to design/develop the Mk VII rear disc conversion on. Currently, I have this '65 back in my shop to experiment with some "modern" 4-wheel disc MCs I want to test and check out.
http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/7/stevenhaynes65ultrastanps7.jpg


In 2002, I had installed a 2.3L Fox Mustang brake booster and an SVO/Mk VII 4-wheel disc MC on the '65 during the time I adapted the Mk VII rear discs on it, and I fabricated the hard lines for the Mk VII MC:
http://img362.imageshack.us/img362/8145/ultrastangmastercylindean8.jpg

Everything removed to make way for the new MC and hard lines:
http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/7893/ultrastangmastercylindeyv1.jpg

Starting the process of making new brake lines:
http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/7999/ultrastangmastercylindeox7.jpg

Excess tubing cut off [this line started out as a straight 60"stick of 3/16" brake tubing]:
http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/7235/ultrastangmastercylindehr6.jpg

Final line fabrication:
http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/2100/ultrastangmastercylindele7.jpg
This is one of two lines ("In" & "Out") I had to make for a manual rear brake lock I installed inside the car.

Manual brake lock mounted and plumbed:
http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/686/ultrastangmastercylindemj8.jpg


Making new lines for the MC:
1. http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/4960/ultrastangmastercylindetz8.jpg

2. http://img369.imageshack.us/img369/4450/ultrastangmastercylindegs9.jpg

MC installed and plumbed:
http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/8523/ultrastangmastercylindevq7.jpg

The internet wasn't around at the time I learned how to make brake lines, so I had to teach myself. But, lucky for you, here are a couple of links that might make learning easier for you:
1. http://www.classictrucks.com/tech/0501cl_brake_line_basics/index.html

2. http://www.carcraft.com/howto/50919/index.html

With some tools [these are some of the ones I use to fabricate brake lines with:
http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/3787/flaringtoolsic5.jpg

and some practice, you will be able to make your own lines too and actually have custom lines that fit your application. Prefabbed lines often do not fit --especially if you have deviated the brake components from stock.

 

ultrastang

Founding Member

Feb 26, 2002

1,092

2

37

Arkansas

Apr 5, 2008

#16

• Apr 5, 2008

• #16

golf4283 said:

Never heard of brake check. I will have to look at carquest. I am running 4 wheel discs and will take a look at what they have. are there different sized lines?

Click to expand...

There are different diameter hard brake lines, but all I've ever seen on the early Mustangs was 3/16" diameter tubing.

The common (standard) size SAE inverted flare fitting, for 3/16" hard brake line, is 3/8"-24.

However, in the early Fords there could be 3 other (larger) sized fittings for the 3/16" lines:

1. 7/16"-24

2. 1/2"-20

3. 9/16"-18

It's been my experience that the parts counter people (for the most part) do not know line fitting sizes and more over, I have never come across a parts store yet (some may exist. I just haven't found any) that have any inverted flare fittings in sizes greater than 3/8"-24 for 3/16" diameter brake tubing. When you start asking for fittings, they get puzzled looks on their faces and when they don't have what you need, they generally point you to the adapters bin.

Adapters will accomplish the task of getting a line from point-A to point-B, but they don't have the clean, professional, look of a direct-connection fitting, and every connection point in a brake system is one more point for a potential leak or failure to occur.

If you elect to make your own lines, and if you need fittings larger than 3/8"-24, for 3/16" brake tubing, and if you cannot get them from your local parts stores, I do have new 7/16"-24, 1/2"-20 and 9/16"-18 inverted flare fittings available through my website. --So, it's there if you should need them.

 

Rusty67

20+ Year Stangneter

Dec 3, 2002

3,749

37

109

LA, CA

Apr 6, 2008

#17

• Apr 6, 2008

• #17

Unless you are really trying to keep the car in that original vien then I'd suguest eliminating that stupid rubber line at the center of the axle. Split the hard line and run it down the frame rails and if you need to yank your rear end you can just pull the real calipers and hange them somewhere and when it goes back together you wont need to rebleed the system.

If you are going to flair this stuff yourself, invest in a GOOD flair tool. The stainless stuff is VERY hard to flair, I've broken hand flair tools trying to flair stainless. I've also seen stainless flairs crack. If you are going to use the stainless hardline... pay a shop to flair it.