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So, I'm in the middle of restoring my frame. My hard brake lines are all shot, and I think I'm a reasonably handy guy, so I'm going to give it a go on making my own brake lines.

Trying to decide between Cu-Ni and steel brake line. I've heard the Cu-Ni is slightly easier to work, and I'm strongly attracted to its corrosion resistant properties, but I thought I would get some thoughts before I proceed.

Not that it should make a difference, but I'm working on a '37 115c.

Steel is a pain to double flare so anything that is better in that regard gets a vote here. High dollar European cars apparently have been using the cu-ni for years and seem to stop OK.

Several other forums on more modern cars mention buying tubing from FedHill and offhand didn't see anything negative reported. One concern might be the fittings and if the size you need is available for the size tubing. I don't think there would be any dielectric considerations if the size fitting needed were only available in steel but also something to investigate.

I live in the rust belt where steel brake lines commonly rust thru in 20 years. That is on everyday cars exposed to rain mud and snow year round.

On collector cars they last much longer.

How long do you plan on owning your car? If it is no more than 20 years I recommend you use regular steel.Your local parts store has brake lines in various lengths preflared. If you want to be pernickety about length you may have to shorten one but that only means making one flare rather than 2.

Well, I'm 29, and if I'm going to put the blood, sweat, and tears into restoring it, doubt I can think of a reason to sell it. My plan was to just get a 25' roll of tubing. I made 4 practice flares today, and I think I cracked the code- the 4th was nearly indistinguishable from the factory flare. This was on a scrap piece of 1/4" steel tubing.

I have one line that is too long to do in one piece unless I work from a roll, so my plan was to just do all six from the same roll.

Napa sells coated mild steel lines that are easy to bend and flare, and are polymer coated for rust prevention.

Good plan. Here is another trick I use. Take off the old line without bending it. Use it as a pattern to bend up the new line. I start at one end, make the flare, then bend and tape them together with masking tape as I go along.

The result is a pretty good fit, not perfect because the old one always gets a little bent up taking it off but close enough that with a little tweek here and there you can get it to look factory perfect.

I also tape up the end of the line before I install it, it prevents dirt getting in and stops the nut from sliding around.

To unroll the tubing and keep it straight step on the end of the roll and unroll it on the floor. It will be nearly straight and a little careful bending by hand will make it perfectly straight.

I'll double-check tomorrow, but I think steel is mandatory for brake lines in Penna. State insp. requires it.

Ken P writes:
"I made 4 practice flares today, and I think I cracked the code- the 4th was nearly indistinguishable from the factory flare. This was on a scrap piece of 1/4" steel tubing."

Was that a DOUBLE INVERTED flare u made or a single flare???? Brake lines must be double inverted flare. The double flare is not all that hard to make. The end of tube must be cut square with a tube cutter. Champfer the end of the tube. A file will work for that. Be sure to debur the ID of the tube after cutting it. Then flare it. Use some brake fluid as slight lubricant for flaring operation.

I would use the standard steel brake line because that is what has been used for so many decades. Go with what u know.

What has been referred to as "Cu-Ni, here, is perfectly legal for state inspection in PA, as I believe it is only a copper-nickel (electroplated) coating over steel. In fact, the part number was prefixed "CNC-", which I took as an abbreviation for "Copper Nickel Coated". It's been a couple of years since I've used the stuff, but it was only available in 25-foot coils of 3/16-, 1/4-, 5/16- and 3/8-inch diameters then.

I didn't care for the coated steel tubing that had been available previously, which was covered in a dark green polymer(?) material. It didn't seem fit in the flaring dies, and I also noticed the coating crack at the flare, which is a point that often leaks due to rust.

In contrast, the copper-nickel coated tubing fits the flaring tools the same as steel and is easier to bend. However, bulk coiled (non-coated) steel tubing is also easier to bend than the pre-flare straight lengths of steel tubing.

As I've routinely seen factory-formed steel lines rust out in much less than ten years around these parts, the copper-nickel tubing is a worthwhile investment for a daily driver.

However, I prefer to purchase 25-foot coils and/or pre-flared straight lengths of the plain double-walled steel type, as needed, for "recreational" vehicles and bend 'em myself. The key is to find some good bending tools. I have one for general purpose bends, but another that is specially made for tight bends.

Yet, just prior to installtion, I also like to pull the nut (fitting) back from the flare and apply a thin coat of Lubriplate to the outside of the tubing to help prevent rust that normally causes things to seize, later.

Quote:

Nope, I just put a bolt in the tube and bashed it with a hammer for a while. :) Of course it was a double flare, that's why I practiced! Any knuckle dragger can make a single flare. The two tricks I've found: de-burring the inside of the tube with a slightly over-sized drill bit works much better than the de-burring tool on my cutter, and putting the flare tool in a vice makes things much easier to flare.

I decided to go with a coil of steel tubing. My goal is to have a restored driver, not a concours car, but the Cu-Ni tubing is, well, copper colored!

Thanks for all the thoughts.