Braided Brake lines 'budget ?'

[swaffs]

Korn's post about brake cleaning, and my need to top up brake fluid, has possibly inspired me to attack mine.

I have seen these braided hoses on ebay:

https://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Stainless-Braided-Brake-Lines-GOODRIDGE-The-Best_W0QQitemZ7992135644QQcategoryZ9946QQcmdZViewItem


Here's the downside:

https://www.wezmoto.com/assets/images/zinc_end.jpg
This kit comes with ZINC PLATED FITTINGS instead of stainless steel.

Any used or have any thoughts on this?

I don't want to spend £70+ on hoses but also would like to replace the current rubber ones if I'm going to be doing the rest of the work on my brakes anyway.

Swaffs
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[craigs23]

I've got the very same on my bike - apparently Zinc is fine, it's the alloy fastenings that are suspect.

Haven't had any problems in 8000miles yet, hope it stays that way.

[Danny]

I have Hel Braided Hoses on my bike, I think they came to around £40 with the discount. They actually make them to order for you.

Give Simon at HEL Performance a ring on 01392
811601. Tell him Stuart at TFR Racing told you to call, you should get a 25% discount.

[Kickstart]

Hi

Nothing wrong with zinc plated fittings. Work well, just will look a bit tatty in a few years but will still be safe.

However, do you really need new hoses? I am not keen on the reduced feel you get with braided steel hoses, and half the time the spongyness people blame on the hoses is down to the brakes needing bleeding and the calipers needing a strip down and rebuild.

All the best

Keith
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[swaffs]

[map]

[Kickstart]

[stinkwheel]

From what I recall of the service manual on my kawasaki, you are supposed to replace rubber brake lines every 4 years.

Oh yeah, £70 seems a trifle pricey to me, you tried busters online shop? I was £10 for a single braided steel line.
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I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[G]

Go for twin front lines and leave the back - also, though you shouldn't, you can probably reuse washers etc, if they don't come free.

[Kickstart]

[mr jamez]

Yeah I got mine from busters as well for a tenner, they come supplied with new copper washers.
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[swaffs]

[stinkwheel]

[Robby]

I'd just stick with the standard lines, braided lines are nothing that great in reality. I don't like the feel of them, you don't get such a reassuring squeeze.

Another case of, if they were really that great, I'm sure they'd be fitted as standard kit on at least some bikes.

As for changing them at 5 years, I doubt it would need doing. One of my old cars had rubber brake lines that were at least 10 years old, and possibly 20 (original). They still worked.

[Black Knight]

I met Mr Wez Moto a few weeks back. He posts on another forum I use. I bought some of his products a few months prior to actually meeting him and can wholeheartedly recommend them.
I fitted those very same hoses to my FZR and they are the business.
He's a lovely helpful chap and will go out of his way to assist you. Bit crazy on two weels though, he was running his 300 miler R1 in by seeing how much he could get in first, 98mph IIRC!
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[stinkwheel]

[swaffs]

I've decided just to keep things as they are, after cleaning the calipers (well one at the moment as per Korns guide.) it feels better already, will do the other one tomorrow and also look at the lever bits.

Maybe will address the hoses next time.

Thanks for all your responses
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[Kickstart]

[Villers]

Yo,

I got a set from an Ebay seller called 'waddymc', he workls for Edge MX and makes HEL lines specifically for any bike. it cost me £49 delivered (buy it now) for front and back with fittings etc for a CBR600. These ones have the stainless fittings I think (the ones that dont corrode).

Good luck
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RS125 > CBR6 > SV650S > ZX636R > GSX1300RZ Hayabusa > 06 RSVR Mille > SV1000S > Street Triple 765 RS

[Big Pete]

get the compression style fittings and make the lines up to suit your bike, use two lines as mentioned earlier, its cheaper and easier to bleed. Fit a hydraulic switch rather than the nasty plastic one. Re-use the bolts that were in the original hoses. Use copper slip on all the threads (dont forget the bleed screws). Last but not least throw away the copper washers and use 1/8th BSP Doughty washers, they will seal with a 1/4 turn or so after being nipped up , so less risk of stripping caliper threads trying to get a decent seal, and they can be re-used. If you really want to use copper washers heat them to glowing red in a gas cooker or blow torch and let them cool down slowly so they are annealled before you use them.
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[craigs23]

[stinkwheel]

[Big Pete]

IIRC it depends on how pure the copper is, but for the sake of 30 seconds I let them air cool.
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[mchaggis]

How similar is copper tempering and annealing/ stress relieving to that for steel? It seems to be a bit tricky to find information on other metals for some reason. It could just be me being too lazy to dig up my materials lecture notes of course.
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[Big Pete]

compared to steel, copper is a piece of piss, heat it up (good red), cool it down, as long as its hot all the way through, job done.
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