Brake line flare feedback please

[nick7405]

Below is the flaring made for one of my brakelines and they all turn out the same. Would like feedback cause it does look thinner then the ends that came with the brake lines.


Tool I used was the eastwood flare kit that mounts into the vice.


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[edwardb]

I too have noticed the flares from the Eastwood tool look slightly different than the store bought ones. Have a sharper corner on the outside versus the more rolled outside corners of the pre-made versions. Mine have always sealed fine with that difference, so that doesn't necessarily concern me. But what I am seeing with your flares is the inner portion that's folded into the opening isn't adequate. That's where the main sealing occurs, and there should be more folded material down in that area. Hope that makes sense. If you look at the fitting the flare and tube nut attaches to, you'll see a cone shape area where the line makes contact. That's the sealing surface on the mating end, and your lines should have a full exposure of folded over brake line to contact there.

Suggestions: Make sure the ends are cut square and deburred on both the inside and outside. When you set the line in the die and clamp into the tool, leave some of the end sticking out and don't tighten the clamp all the way. Then use the "operation 0" tool to push the tubing flush with the dies. Maybe yours are inside the dies which is leaving the fold too short? Once there, make sure to get the clamp good and tight so the tubing doesn't push back into the die. That too could leave the flare short. Then do the proper "operation 1" and "operation 2" tools to make the flare. Pull the handle firmly but don't crush it. I've found it's easy to overdo the crimps on soft material like mild steel or Cunifer, and they can get deformed. Especially with the "operation 2" tool. This video from Eastwood is excellent: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftYuP-5jj4o.

Apologize up front if this is information you've studied and understand. But done properly your flares should look more like the ones in this video. Especially notice how the inside of their flares are folded over much more than yours. Good luck.

[NAZ]

Just to echo the advice above, it's easy to over-do the forming process and flatten out the flare. You make enough flares with your tool and you'll get a feel for how tight to make that last operation. It just needs to be fully formed not crushed to the point of thinning the flare. Get a length of tubing that you can play with and try a half-dozen flares with different degrees of force until you get one that looks about right.

[Papa]

Well, I can't say whether or not your flares will cause you any problems, but here is what mine looked like following the three step process outlined in Eastwood's instructional video.

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=84535&d=1524420303


https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=249&v=9yZYIG9Dmak&feature=emb_logo

Be sure you are using the correct end of the die block for the 45 degree flares.

[CDXXVII]

Below is the flaring made for one of my brakelines and they all turn out the same. Would like feedback cause it does look thinner then the ends that came with the brake lines.


Tool I used was the eastwood flare kit that mounts into the vice.


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It's hard to tell for sure but it looks like your tube is slipping in the blocks and you are not getting a complete double flare. The videos posted should give you something to gauge your technique against. Step 0 requires only slightly snug blocks but the rest of the actions require that you really tighten the blocks down so they do not slip. The flare on Papa's look more like the flares on stainless lines. Stainless lines are what I used and they end up looking a bit fatter. Your material looks like the stock soft steel lines and should flare rather easily. It's really important that your cut ends are square and also that you use some lube on the crimp end.

[Joecobr]

I used a much cheaper tool to make my flares. It was hit and miss on the first few trials until I started to chamfer or file down slightly the outer edge of the tube before using the tool...perfect every time after that.

[nick7405]

Thanks for the feedback everybody. I watched that video from Eastwood a few more times. Only thing i did different between before and after was I didn't crank on the handle so hard. Before i would pull back hard until I knew it hit the end of the die and would give a little umph.

Second time around I tightened the hand wheel that tightens the die alot harder and didn't pull the handle so hard and results were great.121392121393121394

Thanks again for the feedback.