brake line flare wrenches

[inphx]

If you wanted to replace this brake proportion valve on a 47 year old caddy ... can you share the optimal tools and process?

For example pb blast or liquid wrench week(s) before?

Heat on the nut, assembly ... or on the line?

Theres's 5 nuts and i'm guessing 1/2 wil be a pain.

On the pecking order of the actual tool .. is there a a continuum with snap on at one end and Harbor freight at the other - ... is there a technique with a mid range wrench expected to work out well or the only risk reduction being getting the higher end tools?

I have time to let things soak since its a project car.

Thanks for advice!

 

[Ricky Joe]

Kroil. I had an Oldsmobile that I had similar issues with. Three days of periodically putting Kroil on it and it was free. I still had to be gentle, but it works better than anything else I’ve used in 45 years. I have a couple of gallons of it. My career is with antique cars. I swear by it.

For the wrench, I have to say Snap-On is the best, but any good quality brand, such as Mac, Easco, K-D, New Britain, should be fine. The issues with the wrench spreading is more on the larger sizes, in which case, I would recommend Snap-On, but with the small sizes you will probably round the fastener first. Best way to avoid that is Kroil!

 

[Fedwrench]

It's old but, it doesn't look that bad. Nothing appears to be corroded. The hexes still look good, nothing rounded. I agree to use the penetrating fluid of choice and line wrench that fits tightly. I think you'll be ok.

 

[plinker]

CRC makes stuff called freeze off, smells like Kroil actually, I've had good success with it on brake lines in the past. The lines dont look bad to me per say, soak them a little and they should just come right apart once past the initial "snap" when turned with a wrench. Up here they are normally rusted to the point of the nut not spinning around the tube and line replacement is next.

Snap-on for flare nut wrenches in general. I do have a Carlyle set that has done ok, not used much though.

 

[jubilee]

You can hold a small piece of dry ice on fitting for a moment. Will loosen effortlessly. Recommen gloves and insulated pliers.

 

[Firebrick43]

Snap on flare wrenches are one area that I have found no equal to. I tried proto, bonney, sk, and craftsman and none fit and spread less than the snap on

I normally don't push them but snap on flare wrench in the size you need is worth it. I bought older ones on ebay for about 15 dollars per size and only got the three sizes that I use.

 

[inphx]

Thanks.. usually my issue is the tubing itself twists with the nut. Hopefully the kroil can release that.

 

[ecotec]

I have Snap-on’s, MAC’s and Proto’s. I always use the Snap-on one’s. Really for no other reason than I paid a lot for them and a dollar or less apiece for the MAC’s and the Proto’s.

That master cylinder looks like it is in nice shape. I have seen so much worse. Ricky Joe already covered this pretty well. A couple sprays of Kroil and that should come apart easily. The fittings are on at least four threads. If you do not want to do the job right away, spray each nut with Kroil, loosen each nut 360 degrees, spray each nut with Kroil again and tighten them back up until you can do the brake job.

 

[Komet]

Snap-on line wrenches have had a 100% success rate on nasty rusty brake fittings for me. Do hit them with penetrant first.

 

[mmggdd]

Vise grip 4lw. Works better than a flare nut wrench

 

[bob15]

Vise grip 4lw. Works better than a flare nut wrench

Why ruin the fittings with your hack vise grip suggestion? With a tubing wrench, those nuts will come right off as they aren't corroded. Put vise-grips on them and they will be screwed up forever.

 

[mmggdd]

How would you screw up the fittings with a 4lw?
Have you actually tried them?

 

[bob15]

How would you screw up the fittings with a 4lw?
Have you actually tried them?

I own the Peterson-made 4lw's, but have you actually see what they can do if over tightened? They can deform the nut.

 

[908Jim]

I don't think these look bad at all. Spray some pb blaster well in advance of starting the job, get some quality line wrenches, and have at it. As was previously stated, line wrenches aren't an area you want to cheap out on. You can get old school round letter snap-ons on ebay in the sizes you need for a reasonable price.

 

[Bad Eye Bill]

How would you screw up the fittings with a 4lw?
Have you actually tried them?

4lw = 4 letter words?

 

[mmggdd]

These hacks tested some tools.

 

[2ndGearRubber]

Snap on are the best IMO.

Those lines and nuts look pretty nice, so I doubt you'll have issues. Put some.heat to the tube nut an quench with water a few times if the line won't break free. You don't need to make it glow, just be mindful not to blow a hole in the line.

 

[KnurledNut]

Those lines on that 75y.o. Arizona caddy look better than most 5y.o. cars around here...

 

[Dave455]

If I have a job like that I tend to wire brush all the loose crud off first, then soak all the threads in whatever you fancy. WD-40 seems to work o.k. 50/50 ATF and acetone maybe a frac better. If you can do that for a week, great!

Another vote for Snap On flare nut wrenches. There really is nothing better among current production (although Hazet are close I reckon). If you can get any movement on the nut, work it back and forth rather than trying to take it straight off.

I’d avoid heat. If you use enough to make a difference the pipes will get hottest first, and just twist.

Personally, I think you will be o.k. Corrosion is your worst enemy, but you don’t seem to have much. Worst I ever dealt with were some aluminium cooling line fittings that were corroded like you wouldn’t believe, and had been mullered by some gorilla with an open ender. The Snap on still worked.

 

[Tool Using Animal]

For brake lines, you can't beat the Hazet 612N brake line wrenches. They have "webbing" over one side of the hex which adds a lot of rigidity and keeps the ends from flexing under load.



Also, crow's foot line wrenches have more material around the hex and should be less likely to strip a fastener than regular line wrenches.



I wish TTC would do a test on these ...

 

[silkman]

Hazet 612N is great (I have it) but I doubt you'll find inch sized ones the OP needs for his project.

 

[Kscardsfan]

2nd the suggestion for Kroil and/or some other penetrating oil. I don’t have any Snap-On flare wrenches, but they constantly get the most votes for corroded brake line work. I have a weird collection of Matco, Mac, Armstrong, and SK flare nut wrenches that haven’t done me wrong yet. But since I don’t have Snappy maybe I don’t know what I’m missing either.

 

[toolenthusiast]

If you wanted to replace this brake proportion valve on a 47 year old caddy ... can you share the optimal tools and process?

For example pb blast or liquid wrench week(s) before?

Heat on the nut, assembly ... or on the line?

Theres's 5 nuts and i'm guessing 1/2 wil be a pain.

On the pecking order of the actual tool .. is there a a continuum with snap on at one end and Harbor freight at the other - ... is there a technique with a mid range wrench expected to work out well or the only risk reduction being getting the higher end tools?

I have time to let things soak since its a project car.

Thanks for advice!

Southern hands typed this post.

Any mechanic in the rust belt would be ecstatic to see a car that clean!

 

[mikedodge]

It looks pretty clean it'll probably surprise you. The lines on my 60 year old lincoln had some rust but nothing was seized going into something solid. 2 of the lines to hoses did need a bit of heat but it was also limited where you could grab onto on the hose side.

 

[inphx]

Thanks guys! It was easy peasy. I had pb blaster on hand and sprayed it a few time this week til i had time to work on it.

Not sure if i got the brake warning plug boot all the way on - but it clicked and i think rubber is over first lip.

 

[dchawk81]

Thanks guys! It was easy peasy. I had pb blaster on hand and sprayed it a few time this week til i had time to work on it.

Not sure if i got the brake waring plug boot all the way on - but it clicked and i think rubber is over first lip.

That's what I did on my '86 to replace the master cylinder. Sprayed PB and by the time I got to it weeks or a month or whatever it was later, it worked through and made the job easy. My line wrenches are nothing special Tektons.

It's not that bad when you have time on your side.

If I did this kind of stuff all the time I'd invest in the Snap-on set. I think they'd spread less.