I Wanna Kick Myself!!

Mistah

Frequent Racer
May 30, 2005
361
0
0
Maui, Hawaii
www.mistahrecords.com
I'm fighting these stainless brakelines tooth and nail trying to flair them, and it just won't take a double flair! I call my buddies over and we're all stumped with consperacy theories from aliens to the Taliban. Wasted a length before throwing in the towel at 4am.
This morning I figure I'll head over to the local NAPA and get some 3/16 steel line and be done with it. Then BAM! I remember reading somewhere like years ago, YOU DON'T NEED TO DOUBLE FLAIR STAINLESS LINE!!!!!!! WHAT A DUMBAZZ!!!!! You need to double flair standard steel 3/16 line but not stainless. Man, I wish I thought of this before all that grief. I purchased a brakeline kit from Morrison, great kit with everything I need to do one car, but NO INSTRUCTIONS or a heads up on the stainless line. I never messed with stainless! I could'nt afford that crap before! I didn't even know it was included in the kit, I just thought the kit would save me some time, not cause me to swear like a drunk pirate.

Ok. It's kickin' my butt but cover me....................I'm going back in! :roll:
 

LS6 Tommy

MalibuRacing Junkie
May 15, 2004
15,847
1
38
North Jersey
You need to double flare any hard brake line. You'll have leaks, guaranteed. Whoever told you that was the dumbazz, not you. He probably confused 45* double flare for SAE hard brake line and the 37* AN single flares used on stainless braided line.

Tommy
 

Mistah

Frequent Racer
Thread starter
May 30, 2005
361
0
0
Maui, Hawaii
www.mistahrecords.com
LS6 Tommy said:
You need to double flare any hard brake line. You'll have leaks, guaranteed. Whoever told you that was the dumbazz, not you. He probably confused 45* double flare for SAE hard brake line and the 37* AN single flares used on stainless braided line.

Tommy

TOMMY YOU ARE CORRECT!!!!
I went to the shop and began trying to make a single flair after my last post and the d**n thing wouldn't even do that! It kept slipping out and not taking, so I cranked the Klien flaring tool real hard to hold the line in place and SNAP! I brokr the clamp bolt. WTF???!!!!! So I go over to NAPA to get a replacement flaring tool, and the guy at the counter tells me you should ALWAYS double flare. He says stainless is notoriously a PITA and tells me about a new (to me anyway) poly-coated brakeline that is strong like the old steel brakelines but is supposed to be easy to work with and resists kinking in tight bends. I take one and start bending it right there in the store. sh*t this thing is EXACTLY what I need! It bends without kinking, is easy to work with, and is totally poly coated for corrosion protection, and of course comes with fittings and is flared on both ends. I grab six 60" lines and head back to the shop. Completed the whole deal front to back with two buddies in an hour and a half with a prop valve and Hurst line lock. I wish I never messed with stainless brakeline. I wasted three days and nearly lost my mind trying to flare and bend it. Never again. Live and learn.
I will post pics as soon as I can.

Thanks,
Mistah
 

Screwloose

Pro Stocker
Aug 23, 2003
1,785
0
36
Minneapolis, MN
If you look closely at a flairing kit. It will say somewhere that is not recommended for stainless steel line. Its much much harder to flair then regular brake lines. I know from expierence. I got mine to actually seal but it wasnt easy and quite frusterating. I was using a regular flairing kit and didnt know at the time it wasnt made for SS. H ell, I got the kit from the same place I got my stainless steel brake lines and they didnt mention a thing about it.

I am really not sure where to get a flairing tool that is designed to do stainless.

Chris.
 

Mistah

Frequent Racer
Thread starter
May 30, 2005
361
0
0
Maui, Hawaii
www.mistahrecords.com
Man you right. It does say that on the inside of the case. I wish they tell you 'bout it when they sell you stainless. It's nice to have stainless, but it aint a show car. The longevity (Remember HAWAII) of it is cool, but the hassle of working stainless with a deadline working on the Bu 8+ hours after a long day at work just isn't worth it for me. We're walking into the house after 3am NIGHTLY.The car is on the ground now. I'm chasin down parts on a island where everything closes by 5pm, and nobody ever heard of half the stuff I need. I told one sales person AFTER 7 VISITS for brake line fittings,etc."If you ask me one more time does it has air conditioning, or 427......is that a V-6 or a V-8? I'M GOING TO TAKE A CRAP RIGHT HERE!"

This thrash is slowly eating away at me and makin' me meaner than cacktus underwear, Not good. I can't remember where I put stuff, or worse the help can't remeMber where they put stuff......like the brake pads for my new Aerospace front brakes. Got the backs alright, but no fronts. It's nuclear around here lately, and I need to take a deep breath. It is now 3:39am. We just got home. Have to be at work at 8am. I think I'll grab a Dr. Pepper and go watch "Rudy" for some motivation before I turn in :roll:

Thanks for the advice,
Mistah
 

Mike

Pro Stocker
May 27, 2003
1,709
0
36
New York
So Mistah ! Want to get rid of your car yet ? I still keep going from one problem to another. I bought the SS kit from Inline tube for my 81. Me being a dope, didnt think far enough ahead. The lines for the rear wont fit the new Moser 12 bolt that I bought. So I call Inline tube. The tech guy tells me that you cant cut SS tubing with a tubing cutter because it work hardens the tubing as you are turning it and that will cause it to crack when you go to flare it. He told me to use a saw or cutoff disc instead. But the lines are the small problem. Read the post on the Moser rear in the drivetrain forums. It seems like nothing is going easy on this build. I wanted to be done for Super Chevy at Maple Grove this year and thats in a week and a half. And Im not even close. At this rate I may not be done this summer. Im getting so frustrated !!
 

Mistah

Frequent Racer
Thread starter
May 30, 2005
361
0
0
Maui, Hawaii
www.mistahrecords.com
Mike that's funny you should say that............CAUSE I FAWKING WANNA SLAM IT!!!!!! Everything that can go wrong has. I can't find stuff, my parts stores keep finding new ways to say " Sorry sir, we don't have that in stock at this time...". It's getting to the point when I show up they all find something else to do. Now my wife makes parts runs for me, they LOVE her. Ever measured a bolt that was a 1/4" too long only to cut it and find out it's now a 1/2" too short? This ROSWELL sh*t IS GETTING OLD. Don't wanna even go there with the stainless........I wigged out the other night after I broke the SECOND flaring tool at 2am (READ: Parts stores are closed) and flipped the parts table with everything on it.....tools, parts, nuts, bolts, and the trans go down and EVERYWHERE, After I calm down, I realize how quiet it got as people are helping me pick stuff up, I feel even more like a dumb azz when I see my wife on her hands and knees picking up stuff because of me. NOT COOL. But wait it gets better. In my little outburst, I managed to bend my clutch-turbo oil pump coupling "spider" which connects on the input shaft of the turbo 400 and fits between the three fingers on the pressure-plate to drive the trans pump to keep line pressure high while the engine is running. It's not available anywhere anymore, and the only one I have. I also bent the special extended T/O bearing as it is pressed onto a sleeve. It's now trying to make a left turn. Then I also broke the bench vise at the same time. It's only 70 lbs. and about 50+ years old, and has been in my family since new. Then if that ain't enough, I just paid 30 bucks to have a male 3 way brakeline fitting flown in overnight from Honolulu, and the CSR trans shield is on BACKORDER EVERYWHERE 'til a day after the tune-up race I was planning to debut the car at next friday. STILL WANNA PLAY WITH RACE CARS???????

So, yeah I went home and was seriously thinking on becoming a Tibetin Monk and giving it all up. I kept hearing the theme song from Pinks! "Walk Away......" and beating myself up about the whole ordeal. With no transmission shield there's no go. I began trying to straighten out the "spider" in silence the next day. I'm scared because it's made of brass, and I don't want to break the 30+ year old piece, with absolutely no spare parts. Then my wife who is still looking for the missing front brake pads(I ordered a new set already.....just in case. Didn't tell her yet....) says" Honey what is this box that says "Clutch-Turbo Spare Parts" on it?" I open it up and there's a new spider looking straight at me , along with a new pump drive, New T/O bearings, and basically everything I need that you just can't get anymore. Right then from across the shop my buddy says there's an old unopened dusty box back here that says "Trans Safety Blanket" on it. We open it up and yeah, there's a BRAND NEW Chute Metal trans blanket in there with a tag sewn on that reads 1991. I call the track tech guy and explain my situation and he says I can use it for next week ONLY if it is brand new and hasn't ever been used, and only for time runs only, not for competition. I just cannot believe my new found good luck. Where did those parts come from? I can't remember a thing about them and like everybody else on here, we know what we have and don't have in our parts inventory.I am just speechless. We're back in business........for now.

So sorry for such a long reply. It's the only place where I can let off some steam before I commit myself to the G-body racer's nuthouse. I'm already startin' to talk to myself. Man they make it look so easy on TV :roll:.

Pray for me Mike, and I'll do the same for you too.
Good Luck!
 

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