Watched a rusty brake line turn into a clean install in under 3 hours today

I had this 2010 F-150 roll in this morning with a rusted-out brake line near the rear axle. The whole thing was crusty and leaking bad, so I figured it would be a nightmare. But I got the old line cut out and flared a new one using my cheap HF flaring tool, and it actually held pressure on the first try. Took me about 2 hours to bend and route it cleanly, then another 45 minutes to bleed the system right. There's something satisfying about seeing that old corroded line swapped out for a fresh nickel-copper one that bends so nicely. Has anyone else had good luck with those pre-flared lines from the parts store, or do you always make your own?

2 comments

2 Comments

xena_kim9d ago

Heard nickel-copper is way easier to bend than steel, totally worth it.

oliviahenderson8d ago

My buddy Mike tried bending some nickel-copper for a boat railing project last summer. He said it took about half the effort of steel and he didn't even need a torch to get it to curve. The only catch was that it cost him almost double what steel would have, but he still thought it was worth it for how clean the bends came out.