brake line flaring

[brider]

Just educated myself on do-it-yourself hard brake line fabrication by reading the archives, and I still have a question:

Do I need to double-flare the lines, or will a standard single 45 deg flare work without cracking the flare on a raw 3/16" line I get from NAPA?

Second question: Are the raw tubes I buy going to be stainless, or do I have to specify stainless? Do I NEED to use stainless? Seems like it would be easier to flare a non-stainless line. What are non-stainless lines made of?

 

[xjnation]

Yes, double flare them. SS is not necessary by any means. Most lines are aluminum.

 

[1973Guppie]

use just basic brake line from your auto parts store, recently I saw that they had some newer line in my local kragen which was black, guy told me it is easier to flare than the silver stuff and he was right, another trick is to NOT use the tubing cutters that come with the flaring kits, the way they cut the tube they work harden the metal and make it harder to get a good flare, I use a cutoff wheel on a grinder, for me this made all the difference and allowed me to get a good flare.