Original 66 brake lines: do I need to replace?

[sstpeach]

So this question has been bothering me and I have not seen discussed. My 66 has the original brake lines and upon inspection appear good. No wear and tear, rub marks etc.....they look good.

Currently I'm replacing wheel cylinders and master cylinder while I'm doing my brake line. I'm splitting the one line from the front crossmember to a dual line to the new dual drum impala master cylinder. (I read a post on this earlier this week)

So without any obvious indication of wear to the brake lines, and hopefully within the next few days I will find out if the truck has any issue of building up pedal pressure I have to assume the brake lines are good and should be safe for operation. This truck has not been on the road for over five years...... Input please......

[Heater63]

Good question; probably they will hold up, but its easy to replace them now, and would provide some peace of mind. Definately replace any rubber hoses that don't look new.

Did you pick up the gas tank I left for you yet? when you do, there is some brake line attached to fuel line...play with it and I think you will find it is very brittle...its from '63...and I barely bent it and it would fracture.

I am running all new brake line and hoses; its not a place to skimp.
just my 2 cents.

[Tx Firefighter]

I haven't ever owned a truck yet that needed new lines. In our area, there is simply not the rust issue to contend with.

New hoses though, they pretty much all need them. The hoses break down on the inside even though they look good on the outside. This causes the brakes to do all kind of stuff like pull to one side or not release.

I once has a 69 truck that the front brakes simply wouldn't work. The hoses were swollen shut so much on the inside that they would pass no fluid at all.

Two new hoses from O Reilly cured all the problems.

[Alan's Classic]

I agree with TX and I have personnally seen brake lines (metal) rust from the inside out. Brake fluid attracks moisture and over the years that moisture will corrode the lines from the inside out. They look great from the outside. I've broken a brake line on 2 different trucks just by simply moving a brake line on the differential so I could wrap a chain around the axle to tie it down on a trailer. With the years of these trucks it's better to be safe than sorry. Replace the lines and hoses.

[sstpeach]

Have not picked up tank yet, I will call him here in a few hours. Got tied up doing some family stuff yesterday.

I already have the rubber hoses to the wheel cylinders which I will replace. My next bit of money was going towards the clutch/pressure plate etc to hang the transmission. I guess deep down I knew it was an issue which is why I posted, I was looking for reassurance.

[70k52wd]

Originally Posted by Tx Firefighter

I haven't ever owned a truck yet that needed new lines. In our area, there is simply not the rust issue to contend with.

New hoses though, they pretty much all need them. The hoses break down on the inside even though they look good on the outside. This causes the brakes to do all kind of stuff like pull to one side or not release.

I once has a 69 truck that the front brakes simply wouldn't work. The hoses were swollen shut so much on the inside that they would pass no fluid at all.

Two new hoses from O Reilly cured all the problems.

My front hoses were hanging free for two days before I saw brake fluid drip from them. TX just explained to me why. They must be swollen on the inside. It also made my brakes stick so bad that the front wheel wouldn't even roll under power. A higher power is looking over my shoulder, because yesterday I wanted to hook them up and bleed them, but my banjo bolts are wrong size(new calipers). And now I understand why my caliper appeared to be frozen. Something or someone is making me do the right thing and get new hoses...Now for the new lines. I love this forum...

[Tx Firefighter]

My first old truck was a 69 that I bought in 1991. I was a mechanic, so I pulled it into the shop and rebuilt the drum brakes front and rear. I used new drums, shoes, wheel cylinders, hardware and all of that.

I had some trouble bleeding the front brakes. Under hard pedal pressure, it would trickle a bit of fluid out when I cracked the bleeder.

I could never get the truck to stop well. I mean, both feet on the pedal as hard as I could to get the thing stopped.

Finally, I jacked it up one day and noticed that I couldn't turn the front wheels by hand. I cracked the bleeder valve and some fluid squirted out and I could then turn the wheels.

I picked up a couple of new hoses and the problem went completely away. It was amazing what having front brakes did to help my stopping effort. I had previously been getting only rear brakes to work I guess.

Anyway, the point to this epic tale is that I noticed when the wheel is turned left to right, the poor brake hoses have to go from near straight stretched out to nearly kinked. Those brake hoses had spent 22 years constantly going from straight to folded every time the steering wheel was turned. No wonder they were beat and needed replacement. What a crappy condition to operate under. New hoses were under 20 each and available at the parts store.

Rear hoses don't seem to suffer as much. I think it is because they don't have near as drastic of cycle as the suspension flexes up and down as the fronts do when the wheel turns left and right.

[mbgmike]

Brake hoses should be replaced pretty often. Not many people do it. The inner liner tends to seperate and block off the line. to test you do a Drip Test on them. You disconnect them and see how much they drip. They should be equal. Steel brake lines can last a long time but heck if doing everything else I would replace them also. It doesn't cost too much. When it comes to working on older vehicles it is better to be safe. I had a friend who restored an ol Mercedes from the early sixties. He killed a family in a head on collision when a suspension component broke on him. He reused alot of the old parts.

[chris91]

I think you need to replace them. I always do. It is possible for the to rust from the inside if moisture is in the system. The first thing I always do is replace the master cylinder all brake lines and at least the front wheel cylinders.

[protrash64]

I'll throw in my .02. You could flush the lines and see what condition the fluid is in. Dark means its been there awhile and may give you the motivation to change the lines. If it looks decent, they may be good for awhile and the lines arent rotting badly.

I would change them eventually if you are planning to put some miles on the truck.