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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Copper brake pipes

I'm having to make up a couple of brake pipes and have started with a ready-made length which I am attempting to fit in the gap. It is taking a fair bit of bending, straightening and rebending particularly as it is a little too long and so I have to take up the slack. My concern is whether working a pipe like this can cause problems with work hardening and subsequent undetected cracking.
Graeme Williams

Bit of a how long is a piece of string question Graeme. Yes it will happen but depends on how often and how much you are bending/straightening it...

Pure copper does work harden quite significantly but can also be annealed quite easily with a blow torch. Whether this is something you would want to do on your brake pipes is another matter!!

My only suggestion would be to closely inspect the pipe once done at the inside and outside of the bends you have made.

Or do some dye penetrative testing! :-D

Malcolm.
Malcolm Le Chevalier

To anneal copper, just get it red hot and quench !

But like Malcolm said, unless you have gone mad you'll be alright, I made a copper clutch pipe with three 360deg stress relief turns and then remade it a few times, it's done about a thousand miles ok.

Malc
Malc Gilliver

I've annealed copper and copper based alloys many times but wouldn't want to try it with something as critical as a brake line without something like an argon purge to stop internal oxidation creating contaminants for the brake fluid. I think I would ask the supplying tube manufacturer what they recommend but wouldn't hold my breath in this litigious age.
David Billington

It's a real horror running the pipework around/under/over existing kit under the bonnet and I am finding that it is problematic to bend it in situ so I have to keep removing it, bending it, putting it back and so on. I am currently wondering whether a couple of long braided flexibles might be the easy answer. Anyone see a problem with that idea although I am not familiar what would be done to incorporate the girling nut/bubble flare - some form of banjo fitting perhaps?
Graeme Williams

the easiest way to do it is to use the old pipe as a guide, and make all of the bends on the shop floor (gradually tape the two together as you go)

Then, when the new one is an exact copy of the factory one, simply install the fully bent, nutted and flared section to the car.

By the way, if you can get copper-nickel tubing, it has a larger safety factor than copper, if you are concerned about strength after you have done all of that bending. It is also more resistant to kinking, which is nice.


Norm

Norm Kerr

Gday Graeme we can't use copper in Oz (not legal) so I made mine from steel which bends surprisingly easily. I found it much easier to copy the existing lines (Norm's method)and then find a friendly brake chappy to do all the flares, which cost me $20 aud (about 15 quid) Problem solved. Cheers
Rod
PS heating the pipes red hot to anneal them may result in surface flaking on the metal which then may find its way into the cylinders and calipers.
R W Bowers

Unfortunately I don't have any "originals" to copy. I am fitting a servo so the pipework is all new.

Graeme Williams

Make a dummy pipe with a wire coathanger or a length of welding rod. Then use that at the bench as a template for the new one.
Guy W

Always use CuNiFer on BRB... easy to work like Copper, but much more stable chemically.

A
Anthony Cutler

Graeme,

I made all my own flexis on the sebring , have a look at rally design website for the fixings , real easy to do .
Give me a shout if you need any help

Cheers
Andy
Andy Sebring

Thanks Andy. Just spoken to them. Very helpful so I'll nip down there.

Graeme Williams

This thread was discussed between 10/09/2013 and 11/09/2013

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