Brake line, opinions needed.

[annettemarie]

The other day i had to MASH down my brakes to stop ( sudden traffic stopping) and when i did this i blew a hole in the brake line. As i look i can see its rusted and needs replacing. Its a 88 Suburban 4x4. Im having trouble finding pre bent lines at a reasonable price. should i go with pre bent? bend my own? use steel braided? I need some SEASONED square folks to round table this with

 

[Big Chip]

Did you try www.inlinetube.com? You can bend your own without too much trouble but if you are going to patch it DO NOT use compression fittings please!

 

[annettemarie]

I have a set in my cart at inline tubing. I see LMC has something also.

 

[Doppleganger]

I'd also flush the whole system - if it was that far gone, you may have rust in the lines. Going to have to bleed them anyways.

 

[fast 99]

If just trying to get by for a short time you can make a line, double flare.

If it was my vehicle inspecting all the lines would be on my list. Look closely where the brackets attach. Of course, replacing all of them including the hoses would be safer and best.

 

[Corvette Ed]

I found pre bent stainless steel lines ( complete set ) for my Avalanche on Amazon under $100.

 

[R Carnella]

I don't remember where i bought my pre bent stainless brake lines but i do remember a holy crap moment when finding this on both front brake lines...
The pic makes it look obvious but it was actually hard to see, from the top they looked ok. This is where the line comes through the frame and meets the rubber hose.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[rpcraft]

You can. Do you have the tools and the experience that you trust yourself? If so then go right ahead.

 

[Trucksareforwork]

Had this happen on an old Cadillac I owned years ago. Pedal went from firm to squish in a moment. Brake fluid everywhere. Scary.

 

[annettemarie]

Thank you ALL for your input. Good call Doppelganger I will heed that advice. I have ZERO experience in this, but hey that's where you guys come in. This was supposed to be NO WORK needed sub ( haha) again my inexperience has cost me. I'm a quick study though. I bought from inline tubing the whole kit and mounting clips kit. I felt like I needed to run it past all you gentlemen first though cause I hate making mistakes and if I can learn from someone else then give me a seat!

 

[justhorns]

I do it professionally and make my own to fit. You only need a good bender (cheap) and a great double flare tool (not so cheap). Prebent long lines come bent into knots to ship them..don't use stainless line, as it is too hard for home tools. A good flare tool has dies and a fixture that is held in your vice. One note of caution- put the fittings on the line before flaring it, as the fittings don't go on afterwards.

 

[Jeff Lewis]

Spend the bucks. Replace all with NiCopp. Bend them yourself.

 

[Rickf]

I had to do a lot of straightening of the pre-bent lines to get around the cross-members, fuel lines clutch linkage & front leaf spring mounts. I would only go with pre-bent again on a stripped down bare frame.

 

[Grumpy]

Everyone has solid advice for you. I will add this: buy a length of line and PRACTICE making double flare ends on something you won't need. This will be quality time spent learning and confirming your skills. After not having to make a double flare for a few years, I myself have made a practice run just to clear up the cobwebs.

 

[Dan Brown]

Like the one answer, buy copper/nickel tubing, a decent double flaring tool and bender from Eastwood or the internet, and go for it. YouTube has lots of good videos on doing this yourself. And, yes, either replace all your brake lines, or, at least inspect the ones you don't replace.