FAQ's - classictube.com - Bent on Perfection

Our lead time is determined by several factors. We check to see if it is in stock. Items in stock will take 3-5 days to ship. If it is not in stock, we need to make to order. We check to see if we have a pattern. We have over 50,000! If we don’t, we check to see if the customer can supply a pattern (old lines in good condition), a pattern, or a blueprint. Lead time on custom or non-stock orders is determined by the season and the amount of orders pending ahead of yours.

Our corporate offices and factory are located in Lancaster, New York; a suburb of Buffalo, New York.

There are two indicators when determining when to replace hydraulic tubing: The most obvious is when you perform a visual inspection of the exterior of the tube and find corrosion in the form of rust. Some locations that you should inspect are under the clips that hold the tubing to the chassis and at the ends behind the fittings, as the ends are usually susceptible to more damage and moisture especially at the wheels and where the tube attaches to hoses. The second is more difficult to identify. Brake fluid is hygroscopic, so it absorbs water at a rate of 2 percent each year. This also lowers the boiling point dramatically. Without regular flushing, the water will start to attack the inside of the tubing. Since the OEM steel tubing has corrosion protection on the outside only, the tubing has no protection on the inside diameter. When bleeding the brakes and finding rust colored fluid, you will know that the lines at are the point of deterioration to the inside of the tubing.

If there is any corrosion? Never. For the simple reason that if corrosion has started and one tube has failed, more than likely the rest of the system is compromised. Never use a compression union. This method is prohibited by the DOT. Otherwise, you can join an old line to a new line.

The key will be the successful disconnection of the old tube. Things to take note of: The tube nut is seized and/or the hex starts to round; The nut is seized to the tubing and starts to twist the tube when unscrewing. Those are indicators that it’s time to install a new tube. When trying to reconnect an old tube with potential fatigue, you can compromise the torque value to reinstall the tube properly and to achieve the correct seat pressure and seal.

Moving parts like parking brake cables, throttle linkage, cooling fans and clutch linkage can become an issue. Look at the range of motion in each moving component that might not be evident in a static position.

Stainless steel tubing, nuts, and gravel guard are impervious to salt and other metal-destroying elements your vehicle is subjected to. Equally important is that it will never change its appearance. It is a permanent replacement that looks great.

The diameter of the tubing to determine proper pressure and volume for fuel related tubing. This becomes an issue when plumbing the vehicle after a new engine installation, when the components have changed; displacement, intake size and style, fuel pump and carbureration. In our experience, there is a tendency to use too large of a diameter when it’s not warranted.

Our Quality Control department oversees the manufacture of all flare ends both inverted and bubble, the specifications we adhere to have been set by the Society of Automotive Engineers – SAE.

The best material is stainless steel, since it is the least prone to corrosion. The second best goes by multiple industry names but is a steel tube with a top coating composed of 95% zinc and 5% aluminum with an aluminum rich epoxy topcoat then topped with a polypropylene cover. Readers will be most familiar with the third type since this has a greenish color to it, which the OEM’s started to use in production cars in the mid 80’s. The earlier cars used Tinned Bundy Weld. Most people will be familiar with this term. This is the tubing that has the galvanized silver look that was used from the 30’s to the 80’s. All automotive manufacturers have a specification for the tubing they use on current production and it must pass a minimum required time in a laboratory salt spray test.

Corrosion is the biggest problem so replace them before there is a failure, which could be very dangerous. Heat is another issue, so determine where the heat sources are before replacement. Boiling fuel or brake fluid can cause serious problems and be hard to track down.

The following SAE specification, J512 APR97 shows the torque table for the nominal size fitting with a SAE double inverted flare. Through our internal tests we believe the following SAE specification is correct when the matting seat is brass. We have proved out both steel fittings with steel tubing as well as stainless steel fittings with stainless steel tubing. The results showed an almost exact concentric impression into the brass seat with both materials. But, this has been proved out using components with new seats. Master cylinders, wheel cylinders, flex hoses, unions, distribution blocks, proportioning valves, metering valves are all made from either brass, steel, cast iron or aluminum. So the torque table would be used as a guide. It would be up to the installer to verify the torque needed for sealing the associated materials to achieve a proper seat but without deforming the seat to a point where it won’t seal or striping the threads. Keep in mind the use of original or used components that have already seen a tube installed and the seat formed to the old tubing will need additional torque to overcome the previous impression in the seat to properly seal the new tubing.

SAE J512 Revised APR97 TABLE 8A-WRENCHING TEST REQUIREMENTS
NOM Tube OD ( In.)	Torque Requirements for Steel Nuts (N-m)	Torque Requirements for Steel Nuts (lb-in)
1/8	6.8	5
3/16	13.6	10
1/4	16.9	12.5
5/16	20.3	15
3/8	23.7	17.5
7/16	33.9	25
1/2	45.2	33.3
5/8	56.5	41.6
3/4	73.4	54.2

There are numerous ways, just try to use common sense. One thing is for sure, heat is the worst thing to be routed by.

96″ is the maximum that can be shipped straight. We recommend that a shipping bend be used to reduce the shipping cost.

Most of the popular cars and trucks are in stock. The more unusual vehicles we will manufacture to order.

The stainless steel nut will require approximately 15 lb./ft. of torque to seal. This is slightly more than the normal steel nut requires. Remember to check the seat where the flare will seal. If the seat is deformed you may need a new block, hose, etc.

Typically when joining tubes, Classic Tube strongly suggests using a brass union, this will cut down on the potential galling of the threads as well as give a nice soft seat for the tube flare to seal against. No issue with steel to stainless, but never use an aluminum fitting without some anti-seize (only on the thread).

When replacing old tubes with a new preformed replacement it's good to always match up to the original so as to aid in visualizing the re-installation and identify any obstacles. A common misconception is that stainless steel tubing cannot be double inverted flared. Since there are many different grades of stainless steel there are some grades that will not form. At Classic Tube we use USA made, annealed stainless steel tubing: A grade that is specific for bending and flaring. Another misconception is the use of Teflon tape. We only use tape on pipe thread. In a flare nut installation, the threads are doing the compression of the flare to the seat.

We ship the line in an oversize box approximately 10″x18″x66″ (the largest allowable by FedEX) with a shipping bend in the center section. This shipping bend is easily removed by placing the line on the floor, holding one end against the floor and pressing your hand slowly along the bend to straighten it out. No need to use tools. We have also included instructions in our boxes, you may also reference this video: https://youtu.be/OgYDzOpPAQs

Hydraulic Brakes:

Hydraulic Brakes were invented in 1918 in the California shop of Malcolm Loughead. He later changed his name to Lockheed. He and his brother founded the aircraft company of the same name. The Lockheed hydraulic brake first appeared on the 1921 Model A Duesenberg. In the 1930’s, hydraulic brake technology was still evolving. Much of the industry was using old-fashioned cable actuated brakes when Packard brought out its hydraulic brakes on the first model of the ’35 Packard 120.

Disc Brakes:

Disc-style brakes began in England in the 1890s; the first ever automobile disc brakes were patented by Frederick William Lanchester in his Birmingham factory in 1902, though it took another half century for his innovation to be widely adopted.

Modern-style disc brakes first appeared on the low-volume Crosley Hotshot in 1949, although they had to be discontinued in 1950 due to design problems. Chrysler's Imperial also offered a type of disc brake from 1949 through 1953, though in this instance they were enclosed with dual internal-expanding, full-circle pressure plates. Reliable modern disc brakes were developed in the UK by Dunlop and first appeared in 1953 on the Jaguar C-Type racing car. The Citroën DS of 1955, with powered inboard front disc brakes, and the 1956 Triumph TR3 were the first European production cars to feature modern disc brakes. The next American production cars to be fitted with disc brakes were the 1963 Studebaker Avanti (optional on other Studebaker models), standard equipment on the 1965 Rambler Marlin (optional on other AMC models), and the 1965 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray (C2).

Anti-seize and Teflon tape are not needed when installing your lines. The seat on the end of the tube is what seals against the brass seat in your cylinder or block. Make sure the seat is the correct size and has not been damaged.

Stainless steel fittings will not rust. Which means that if you need to remove them they will not rust to the brake line and will come off as easily as they went on.

Sorry, we do not include clips, however we do carry generic line clips that can be substituted for the factory clips.

Yes, though we need the original lines, a wire mockup, soft tubing templates, blueprints, or CAD files.

Yes, we can reproduce almost any line in OEM steel or in stainless steel working with the original lines, from wire, soft tubing templates, blueprints, or CAD files.

Starting in the 1950’s, manufacturers used a fiberglass sleeve with an asphalt coating to cut down on heat transfer. Around this time, OEM’s would ”sleeve” the outside for the tube to create a double walled tube in areas most susceptible to shock, vibration or damage. In later production models, the use of spring guards or armor guard was used to combat “sand blasting” of the tube by road debris. This was installed strategically in certain areas of the tubes that would see the most potential damage. Classic Tube uses all of these in our manufacturing process to duplicate the OEM component. Classic Tube also sells these items separately for the “do it yourselfer.”