Hard line Brake lines??
 

Hey Ya'll,
I'm soo close to driving my 65 everyday. All thats left on the list is brake lines, rewiring brake lights, and new shoes. Has any of ya'll ever replaced the hard lines for drum brakes on these trucks? If so, where did you get the new lines?

Hopefully a build thread to come soon.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

Glad to see that you're getting close, I sure hope to be there soon. But as far as the question goes, you can get the stainless steel line and fittings in stock at almost any NAPA. I replaced all of them including the hoses and wheel cylinders which I also picked up there.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

3/16's line should work on all the wheel cylinders. You may have to adapt up to 1/4" for your master cylinder. Depends on what you are running.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

Luckily protrash remembered the sizes.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

Many of the aftermarket truck suppliers sell complete hard line sets. Try these:

www.classicparts.com
www.lmctruck.com
www.truckandcarshop.com
www.bowtiebits.com
www.oldchevytrucks.com
www.cpp.com

Good luck with completing your rig and getting it road-worthy. Keep us posted on your progress with lots of photos.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

About how much did yours run you at Napa? I know LMC has the kit for ~200.00 I'm definitely excited about getting it on the road. The other day when I got it running smoothly I took it for a drive around the yard, and this only fueled the fire. I'm so pumped about parking my jeep and making the 65 my daily driver. I'm gonna take some pictures when I do the brakes and some other work, so keep an eye out for those.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

I may be wrong here, but I believe that the lines from NAPA mentioned would be straight lengths of line that you would need to bend yourself. The kits that are available from LMC (among other suppliers) are ready bent lines that just need to be installed.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

The suppliers as mentioned, the lines are prebent. I got my lines from an Oreilly store and bent them myself. It was my first time bending and flaring the lines, but it turned out nice. Overall taking my time it was'nt too bad at all.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

As mentioned above, you can buy the line and a bending tool and bend your own. Just take your time and don't get in a hurry.

Here are a few more options, if you are looking for pre-bent:

http://sites.google.com/site/woogero...tolinks/brakes

-W

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

hey 65... man, im dealing with the same thing right now...i found straight lines as well as the tools needed to bend them on ebay for a pretty good price...figure thats the way im gonna do it, especially cause i dont have $200+ for pre bents...hope it works out cause i really have no idea what the @#$% im doin cause im a newb:lol:..but hey, gotta learn some how right:metal:...

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

oh, and how bout some pics???

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

I’ve always bent my own lines, and recommend learning the practice if you’re going to stay in the hobby. It will save you money now and on future projects. You can buy a lot of straight pieces of pre-finished tubing (preformed flares & fittings on each end) for the price of a vehicle specific fitted “kit”. In addition, some kit suppliers gently fold the longer lines in half after forming to allow more compact shipment packaging. It doesn’t seem practical this will result in perfectly straight tubing after unfolding, and some of the kits I’ve seen produce rather sloppy results. You can make tighter clearances yourself because you can fit the lines exactly to the chassis, or may want to route things differently than the factory. If you’re going to do several vehicles, mild steel tubing is available by the roll, and there is a reasonably priced rolling tool available to return it to completely straight.

It’s worth buying decent bending and flaring tools, since you’ll only need to do it once, and will be more satisfied with the results. The standard tubing that parts stores have supplied for decades has been mild steel with a galvanized coating. Many of the larger chain stores like Napa and Schucks are phasing this out in favor of the “green” or “black” hand-bendable type. It is suppose to be more rust resistant. Do some research to arrive at your own opinion, but I tried the green stuff once and will never use it again.

Many of the smaller local suppliers still have the galvanized type, and this is what I look for. I’ve been bending hard lines for over 40 years and other than an occasional bending goof, have never had a problem until I tried this new material. I found 2 problems – bending, and flaring. While using expensive roller bending tools, I actually folded two pieces of green tubing in half kinking the tube! Numerous attempts to form flares, produced results that were off center or misshapen. I quickly gave up using the material and decided to see if I could form a decent flare or bend at all. After using up the lines I’d already bought I realized I couldn’t use it. If bent by hand, and obtained in exactly the right length so you don’t need and new flares, it might work fine, or somebody with a different technique. A quick Google search will validate the two positions on this new material. Some people love it, and others hate it.

I’ve never used stainless lines as they require different end flares, fittings, and tools. Stainless cannot be double flared like mild steel because of the risk it will split.

If you do decide to bend your own lines out of mild steel, pick up a couple of extra lengths, since it is inevitable one will be formed with the bend going the wrong way ruining the piece. Once ruined for the job intended, this can now become a shorter piece somewhere else, or used to make a pattern when mocking up other tricky bends. It also helps to use coat hanger wire or welding rod if you have it available to make patterns for everything requiring tight or multiple bends. Some of my lines have up to eight bends, and there’s nothing as much fun as getting seven of them right and screwing up the last one by bending it in the wrong direction. With numerous bends on the same line it’s easy to do. And one last tip – get in the habit of taping the fitting to the line ahead of where the flare will be formed. There probably isn’t a car guy alive that hasn’t formed a perfect flare at some point in their life, only to realize they forgot to put the fitting on first. Here are a couple of examples of brake, fuel, and vacuum lines that can be formed at home, that cannot be obtained in a kit.

http://img340.imageshack.us/img340/301/100f.jpghttp://img340.imageshack.us/img340/100f.jpg/1/w1024.png
http://img203.imageshack.us/img203/241/solenoid01.jpg

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

I think my next project I`ll use Cunifer lines, tried one piece that a friend had left over, and worked extremely well, plus they`ll never rust...
http://store.fedhillusa.com/?gclid=C...FRYiagodcDcO0A

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

Rich 5150 69, thanks for the tip on the Cunifer lines. That seems to be easier and more time efficient.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

markbo1...thanks man for the advice and pics! (and not to step on 65vol's thread and change subjects or anything) but any other advice on how to make old drum brakes as reliable as possible?

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

New wheels cylinders, new shoes, and new brake hoses and you should have very reliable brakes for a long time. Check your adjusters to make sure they aren't seized or have worn star wheels.

I'd convert to a dual circuit master cylinder myself. That gives you much improved safety margin in the event of a master cylinder failure.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

Also be sure to turn the drums or replace if badly worn, so the new shoes have something smooth to wear against. And buy good quality brake shoes. Some of the cheap versions are hard as a rock and will quickly accelerate drum wear. After you've done all the things TX Firefighter recommends, the best way to get long service life out of drum brakes is to not abuse them as a driver.

Long, soft, easy stops on a regular basis can double or triple the life of both the linings and the drums. Use transmission gearing when descending long hills to avoid overheating the brakes. Repeated panic or hard stops can easily produce blue spots in the drum friction surface and will tend to glaze the linings. Once the drums are blued and linings glazed braking requires even more pressure to stop, which further accelerates wear.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

cthanks for the advice guys...also, i havent been able to really inspect the whole brake system yet but the whole reason i looked at this thread is cause my brakes dont work and the pedal goes to the floor with no response...there doesnt seem to be any leaks and there is new fluid in the master cyl. so, cause im a newbie, i cant really tell off the top of my head what it might be...any ideas?

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

You may need to bench-bleed the master cylinder. I also suggest, in addition to Kevin's suggestion of a dual chamber master cylinder, installing a factory power brake booster. This upgrade really enhances the stopping ease on these trucks, as long as the other components are well serviced and maintained.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

markeb01:

Very nice detail in the engine bay. Thanks for sharing.

Re: Hard line Brake lines??
 

hey tony! that was gonna be my next question...i wasnt sure if a brake booster was only for disc brakes or if its compatible with both...i was gonna pick up a reman. master cylinder from the local parts store for about $20, but now that i know about the dual chamber, id rather go with that...where do you think the best place to pick one up is?...and when you say bench bleed, do you mean take the master cyl. out and bleed it separately from the lines or bleed it through the lines?

oh and by the way tony...when the 63 got to the house,just cause im a little jaded after the 66 bucket... i checked the frame, inner fenders, radiator support and tore up the carpet in the cab/firewall and.....NO ROT!:bann:...not even anything more than what can be taken down with a quick sanding (well, the cab and most of the frame at least):metal::metal::metal: lol