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Thread: brake lines

  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2012
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    Default brake lines

    I was looking at my brake lines while I was using a shop's pit. Their definitely a bit rusty.

    I'm going to take a closer look in the near future and trace the whole set of lines and take some better pictures.

    https://photos.app.goo.gl/eydlMCr8QhZaZMRH3

    How bad do those look?, I've seen much worse. I'm going to spray them down with some oil (probably fluid film for now).

    How hard is it to run new brake lines to the rear of the vehicle? Do you need to drop the fuel tank / raise the cab or the bed?

    I don't really have the tools or space to accomplish that, once I've crawled under and traced the lines fully and I've gotten a handle on how rusty they are I'll have to make a call.

    The rear lines should have been bled / flushed a couple years back. The front lines were bled flushed this past spring.

    Thanks!
    GMC Sierra 2500hd 2004.5 now with ARP studs

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2000
    Location
    South Central Pennsylvania, USA
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    2,697

    Default

    I just went through and replaced the fuel and brake lines on my ’93. In comparison, yours look brand new!

    When I was removing the lines, they were brittle - just snapped rather than bending. Amazingly, they were (mostly) still working. Just some fuel seepage in places.
    '94 GMC 6.5TD K1500 4L80E 2-Door Yukon SLE 221K
    '93 Chevrolet 6.5TD K2500HD NV4500 Std. Cab Longbed 187K
    '85 Toyota 22R RN60 4x4 Std. Cab Shortbed 178K (Currently retired for rebuild)
    Diesel Page Member #2423

  3. #3
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    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by gary_lucas View Post
    How bad do those look?, I've seen much worse. I'm going to spray them down with some oil (probably fluid film for now).
    I’m not sure I’d spray them with oil, that would just make it harder to see if they are leaking somewhere.

    Quote Originally Posted by gary_lucas View Post
    How hard is it to run new brake lines to the rear of the vehicle? Do you need to drop the fuel tank / raise the cab or the bed?

    I don't really have the tools or space to accomplish that, once I've crawled under and traced the lines fully and I've gotten a handle on how rusty they are I'll have to make a call.
    On my ’93 I ended up having to do it out in the driveway (another vehicle with no axles in the workshop). I dropped the tank from underneath the truck. Hindsight, it would have been a helluva lot easier to raise/remove the bed. Also, on the ’93 the fuel lines run up alongside the transmission and up over the bellhousing to the back of the engine. Raising the cab (or pulling the trans) would have made things a lot easier. Even with a floor jack, unbolting the cab/bed, jacking things up a bit, and slipping 4x4s under for support could give you some room to work without getting too crazy.

    Quote Originally Posted by gary_lucas View Post
    The rear lines should have been bled / flushed a couple years back. The front lines were bled flushed this past spring.
    Regular flushing keeps them from corroding from the inside out. But the salt and other crap they put on the roads around here rusted mine from the outside in.
    Last edited by trbankii; 12-21-2017 at 09:18.
    '94 GMC 6.5TD K1500 4L80E 2-Door Yukon SLE 221K
    '93 Chevrolet 6.5TD K2500HD NV4500 Std. Cab Longbed 187K
    '85 Toyota 22R RN60 4x4 Std. Cab Shortbed 178K (Currently retired for rebuild)
    Diesel Page Member #2423

  4. #4
    Join Date
    May 2012
    Location
    Langley
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    369

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by trbankii View Post
    I’m not sure I’d spray them with oil, that would just make it harder to see if they are leaking somewhere.



    On my ’93 I ended up having to do it out in the driveway (another vehicle with no axles in the workshop). I dropped the tank from underneath the truck. Hindsight, it would have been a helluva lot easier to raise/remove the bed. Also, on the ’93 the fuel lines run up alongside the transmission and up over the bellhousing to the back of the engine. Raising the cab (or pulling the trans) would have made things a lot easier. Even with a floor jack, unbolting the cab/bed, jacking things up a bit, and slipping 4x4s under for support could give you some room to work without getting too crazy.



    Regular flushing keeps them from corroding from the inside out. But the salt and other crap they put on the roads around here rusted mine from the outside in.
    Thanks for the info, I'm going to flush again in the spring / end of winter. May do sooner if the weather stays / gets nice.

    We do use salt here, I was hoping that a bit of oil would keep the lines clean enough for another couple of years. I guess if I flush, check the state of the fluid and then flush again in 6 months that'll tell me how they look on the inside.
    GMC Sierra 2500hd 2004.5 now with ARP studs

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