Tight Radius Brake line Tube Bender

[D'Animal]

I have searched and searched for a brake tubing bender that will give me a tight radius. The problem I was having is the long nut on the Metric 3/16" Japanese brake tubing would not allow the end to fit far enough into the bender part.

I saw the one from Summit Racing and thought that would be a good one. Well I was on the Snap On truck getting some heavily abused items taken care of under warranty and asked what he had. He had the same tubing bender that Summit had, it just said Blue Point on it and cost $12.00 more than the one from Summit. With postage, the Summit one would have been more.

I ground just a bit of the bender portion and now I can bend the tight radius I needed.

The top picture is where I ground the tool out.

The middle picture is how far the long nut fits into the bender.

The bottom picture shows the radius using an American Quarter on the inside radius and an FJ 40 Trunion bearing race on the outer.


I'm happy with the results.

 

[LAMBCRUSHER]

Good tech. Thanks D'an.

 

[Tools R Us]

That tool is made by Imperial. If you don't have a snap-on dealer handy or don't want to pay their ransom, search Imperial and the part number, they are commonly available. If you need really tight their 3/16" single size bender (364-FH-03) bends to a 7/16" radius! They make great benders, flair tools, cutters, etc.

Their catalog:
https://www.flowline.net/Customer/flcoin/customerpages/specpages/364-FH-03.pdf

 

[Poser]

Dan-


This bender:

H E R E <---- this is a link


Sold by A.E.D. is the best bender for brake tubing and has the smallest radius available. I use it over all other benders in the drawer....


It was discussed in THIS THERAD along with a couple other really great brake line tools...


Like this:









Eastwood <---- this is a link



It is really all that, and a sack of fries bud.

 

[D'Animal]

The Eastwood 25304 looks like a great tool. I think I need one and $219 is really not that bad considering the price of good tools.

Thanks for video!

 

[bosscat800]

That Eastwood Tool looks like a WINNER! After spending many hours trying to build new brake lines for my 69 fj40 and failing most of the times, I will be buying that tool for sure. Wished I would have known about it a couple of years ago. Thanks Poser!!! And thanks D' Animal for starting this thread!!

 

[Poser]

Twenty seconds, MAX, and I have PERFECT FLARES, EVERY TIME.


That is priceless.

 

[e9999]

yup, that Eastman affair deserves a spot on my mantle...!

 

[Blue77FJ40]

I like the mastercool 71475 universal kit. It's expensive, but puts out a perfect flare. No vices needed and works well in the field. Mastercool has videos on their site.

Mastercool Inc., Flaring Tools

Thanks for the tip on the bender, Poser. I will be picking one up.

 

[Poser]

I like the mastercool 71475 universal kit. It's expensive, but puts out a perfect flare. No vices needed and works well in the field. Mastercool has videos on their site.

Mastercool Inc., Flaring Tools

Thanks for the tip on the bender, Poser. I will be picking one up.

Own it.




While it is nice and can flare more things, it still does not compare to the Eastwood unit for ease of use or speed and the mastercool unit works significantly better mounted in a vise.


Besides, who does not have a vise in the field with them?

 

[Poser]

yup, that Eastman affair deserves a spot on my mantle...!

Who/what is Eastman?

 

[fj40charles]

Who/what is Eastman?

Eastman Imperial used to make flaring and plumbing tools many years ago.

Eastwood flaring tool is very nice and worth $219. Thanks for the link Steve.

 

[iron_giant]

so how do you guys like the pliers?

D

 

[Poser]

so how do you guys like the pliers?

D

They are fine. Eastwood sent me a free pair when I purchased that flaring tool, but I have not used them other than to hold a line in a tight spot to get the B-nut started...

I have not used them for bending/forming...

 

[D'Animal]

Own It!

The Eastwood 25304 looks like a great tool.

LOL

Thanks Again Poser.

..

 

[Tools R Us]

...
H E R E <---- this is a link


Sold by A.E.D. is the best bender for brake tubing and has the smallest radius available. I use it over all other benders in the drawer....
...

Who/what is Eastman?

Imperial, AKA Imperial Eastman, now Imperial Stride an old school prime tool manufacture, been around forever. A big part of their biz is OEM, private label product, sold by wagon jobbers, etc. Some of the OEM's spec things like extra polishing before plating, dipped handles, but other than that the Imperial and OEM tools are functionally the same.

If you follow the above link to the race store, the bender is $62.82.

If you go to the catalog that I linked above or this link. Stride Tool Inc. - Imperial® Lever Type & Swivel Handle Tube Benders For Soft Copper, Aluminum and Thin-Walled Steel The Imperial part number for that tool is 364-FH-03.

A quick google search for Imperial 364-FH-03 nets that tool for ~$35.

Imperial makes top end stuff, most of the benders and flare tools in this thread are made by them. If it's important to you to have a specific name on your tools, buy from a boutique vendor, if not the same tool can often be had for less, by shopping the manufactures brand name.

Stride Tool Inc. - Company History

 

[Will Van]

Dan-


This bender:

H E R E <---- this is a link


Sold by A.E.D. is the best bender for brake tubing and has the smallest radius available. I use it over all other benders in the drawer....


It was discussed in THIS THERAD along with a couple other really great brake line tools...


Like this:









Eastwood <---- this is a link



It is really all that, and a sack of fries bud.

The link is broken for the tube bender. Does A.E.D.still make tuning benders? How about in 3/8” OD?

 

[ntsqd]

This looks to be a slightly updated version of the same tool: Fragola Performance Systems Lever Tubing Benders 900501

That is Imperial Eastman's 3/16" tube bender which bends at a 7/16" CLR: 364-FHA Lever Type Tube Benders - Imperial Tools
Can also buy their benders for 3/8" tube, recommended. They also make them for metric tube sizes

Where To Buy - Imperial Tools

Where To Buy USA Distributors Map (Please Note: Not Compatible with Internet Explorer)

imperial-tools.com

For the tightest bend radius I made a tool that looks something like a coupler nut, but with only one side blind threaded. Snug the tube nut into it and use the tip of you thumb for the bending anvil and the tool for added leverage on the tube.