Tank

05snopro440 said:

It was the flattened bends I noticed, which will have an impact on strength. How much is anyone's guess. It will likely be fine, but nobody can predict for certain.

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Agreed. Im not sure why my bender flattened those like that. Must be the softer material. A steel lime it will bend 180s with no kinks.

I will keep an eye on them. Thanks!!!

lowbudget50 said:

Agreed. Im not sure why my bender flattened those like that. Must be the softer material. A steel lime it will bend 180s with no kinks.

I will keep an eye on them. Thanks!!!

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They do look great!
With copper air lines, the worst that can happen is that you can't get it up. [ddd Fuel lines are a different story, and not a pretty one in some cases. (Most if us already know this, but new kids come along every day. At least we hope they do.)

Skip said:

They do look great!
With copper air lines, the worst that can happen is that you can't get it up. [ddd Fuel lines are a different story, and not a pretty one in some cases. (Most if us already know this, but new kids come along every day. At least we hope they do.)

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Okay well I must be dumb, cuz I've been running copper fuel lines on my 50 Chevy for almost 10 years now and have never had an issue with them. Fill me in on what goes wrong with them!

Thanks I think they look pretty good

lowbudget50 said:

Okay well I must be dumb, cuz I've been running copper fuel lines on my 50 Chevy for almost 10 years now and have never had an issue with them. Fill me in on what goes wrong with them!

Thanks I think they look pretty good

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First off, they look great. No argument there. Secondly, you are NOT dumb. The issue is safety. And percentages. Being informed is your best bet. I worked at Freightliner corporate for 20 years, worked with engineering almost daily. Fuel systems were part of my responsibilities. As mentioned earlier, copper lines can work harden and crack. I bought a 71 Challenger that was a crispy critter because someone used copper tubing in a fuel cooler canister. The copper line cracked and burned the car pretty bad. Engine compartment and under dash were toast. Nobody was hurt from what I was told. None of the OEMs use copper for the same reason any more. The opportunities for a problem are higher than they want to risk.

That said, if the copper line is not hard connected, it will likely never be an issue.

Please keep an eye on your copper fuel lines. Especially if they have hard connections.

Good info Skip.

You have to bracket copper line so it can't flex or vibrate so it can't work harden and crack. Better to not take the chance and go with steel line.

Good to know sir. So off of my fuel pump on my truck I have a section of rubber line which then goes to the frame where the copper line starts and is secured along the frame then it goes up to the cab where my fuel cooling canister is. It then returns back out of that canister with a short piece of rubber line down onto the engine where it hits all three carbs. I actually do plan on getting the truck back out next summer since it's been awhile so I will be checking those

lowbudget50 said:

Good to know sir. So off of my fuel pump on my truck I have a section of rubber line which then goes to the frame where the copper line starts and is secured along the frame then it goes up to the cab where my fuel cooling canister is. It then returns back out of that canister with a short piece of rubber line down onto the engine where it hits all three carbs. I actually do plan on getting the truck back out next summer since it's been awhile so I will be checking those

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Vibration is the enemy. Rubber dissipates vibration. On clamps and connectors. My guess is that your 50 doesn't get as many miles on it as a new Freightliner truck. And its not a race car. Your set-up is likely safe enough to play the percentages.

Just a thought. Copper "plated" steel lines, where they show, would look just as cool. Who just did that with tail light brackets?

lowbudget50 said:

Good to know sir. So off of my fuel pump on my truck I have a section of rubber line which then goes to the frame where the copper line starts and is secured along the frame then it goes up to the cab where my fuel cooling canister is. It then returns back out of that canister with a short piece of rubber line down onto the engine where it hits all three carbs. I actually do plan on getting the truck back out next summer since it's been awhile so I will be checking those

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If I understand your description correctly, you have copper run from the frame to a cab mounted canister. If that line is a continuous piece, it could (potentially) harden... due to the frame and cab flexing independently. If that's the case, you should "break" the copper with a piece of rubber line.

Skip said:

Just a thought. Copper "plated" steel lines, where they show, would look just as cool. Who just did that with tail light brackets?

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gold03

http://ratrodsrule.com/forum/showthread.php?t=22600&page=118

.

Skip said:

They do look great!
With copper air lines, the worst that can happen is that you can't get it up. [ddd Fuel lines are a different story, and not a pretty one in some cases. (Most if us already know this, but new kids come along every day. At least we hope they do.)

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Unless it has no scrub line and fails when you're going down the road

You're right, fuel lines are generally a bigger concern. However fuel lines don't carry much pressure (unless fuel injected) compared to an air suspension system. Plus... air is compressible and makes for a more substantial boom.

lowbudget50 said:

Agreed. Im not sure why my bender flattened those like that. Must be the softer material. A steel lime it will bend 180s with no kinks.

I will keep an eye on them. Thanks!!!

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Yeah I've seen guys have the same issue, bending steel is fine but bending softer materials they flatten and kink. It's a result of the hardness of the material, as you guessed.

Sorry to hijack your thread to copper talk.

05snopro440 said:

Yeah I've seen guys have the same issue, bending steel is fine but bending softer materials they flatten and kink. It's a result of the hardness of the material, as you guessed.

Sorry to hijack your thread to copper talk.

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No hijack, its all good info!!

Just one more thing on that conversation, you can use sand or salt (or a variety of other materials) to help the copper or other soft tubing material keep its shape while you are bending it. Here's a tutorial.

https://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Bend-Copper-Pipe-and-Tubing-without-Crushin/

Ive seen that done with cheap pipe kinkers hahahahaha.

New drive line installed!! Took it for a cruise on the snowy roads. Drives way better with out a bent drive line!!!
Also got a new magnaflow muffler to sing through. Not super load, but just enough

[cl [cl [cl Looking rally good.

I dig it for sure. Would have to spin some circles with the snow on the ground. Im in georgia with no snow. Maybe thats for the best...

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Torchie

Well done LB.

I would cruz that any day of the week...

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