Anyone ever run into a Frankenstein job on brake lines?? lol , could use some suggestions.
My son blew out a brake line on his 2003 ford f150.
Not a big deal to replace.. ( I’m nowhere near the mechanic that some you guys are on here,, but a brake line is pretty much cut and dry)

I found the leak which i
Was up , in the brake line that sits right next to the gas tank.. I decided to save some money and just cut out the bad part… and join them back together with compression fitting.
I had to take the brake line out anyway because the leak was inaccessible..
I go to the front, up by the driver side door.. and start to unloose that end,,, after soaking it in wd40… welp,, it was seized up and I wound up twisting the old brake line in half… , so much for saving money,, I finally got that end free and then I go back to the other end…it’s rounded off,, so I had to use some vice grips ,I can’t break it loose… I soaked it and soaked it with wd40,,I finally went up under there with small propane torch,, got it hot enough to loosen it…

Finnally the old brake line is out,,, go to the auto parts store and get a couple sections of brake line and compression fittings…
Get home and I discovered that there’s 2 different size fittings on either end..the one up under the driver side door is bigger than 1/2 inch and the one in the back is 3/8. ( is this a normal ford thing)??
I went ahead and started to screw in the rear end of the brake line and I couldn’t get it to bite,, I tried and tried to get it started…
I took it back to the auto parts store to make sure it was 3/8 ,, using the thread checker,, and it fit perfectly..
I happened to have the small end in my pocket, and I put it in the thread checker and discovered that the threads were screwd up. Whomever initially put in the brake line,, cross threaded it . Hence , one of the reasons I couldn’t break it loose easily.
I’m assuming the brake line hose fittings are probably messed up now because I can’t get it to bite.
I’m probably going to have to get a whole new brake line hose( any suggestions??) I don’t know if they sell brake line adapters either… I don’t want to go to the auto parts store looking like an idiot.

What I thought would be an hour or so, has turned into a pain in my neck.

Would greatly appreciate any advice.

compression fittings on brake line is a BIG , no thank you

here is the extent of cheap on brake lines I am willing to go

a 25 foot coil of bulk brake line and a fairing tool and some flair nuts

tool https://www.amazon.com/Lisle-33260-Flaring-Tool/dp/B082P2483D/ref=ast_sto_dp_puis?ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.9fe8cbfa-bf43-43d1-a707-3f4e65a4b666&th=1

brake line with some nuts https://www.amazon.com/4-75-Copper-Nickel-Brake-Fittings/dp/B01801G45A/ref=ast_sto_dp_puis?th=1

you also need a small tubing cutter

I use some gas line rubber hose that I cut into 2 inch pieces and slide several over the tubing before fairing the ends , then heavy duty zip ties to strap it up and out of the way so that it doesn't rub anything

I also have some of the bending tools to bend shapes I need

with this stuff you can make a decent repair that won't burst when you need it most.

that is my advice , yes you are into it for around 130 dollars with the tools and tubing but you can keep making lines as needed for a long time with just more tubing

Sometimes getting the whole replacement pre formed brake lines even if they cost more than a straight piece fitted in to 'patch' the entire line is better. Less places to leak or have to be worked together.

Having a good set of ' flare nut ' wrenches are a must when working on brake lines.

Putting in a patch is a really quick way to find the next weakest point.

Very true. You removed the leaking/rusted/rotted part , but the remaining part is not too far behind and will fail rapidly.

And stop using WD-40 to break rust loose.

Get some PB Blaster.

Thanks guys

Read what Cragar said again and call the dealer.

PS. If done all at once it is a lot less cussing at fittings, now and later.

Put a new brake hose on, they ain't A lot of money and you'll have a better job.

I usually cut the old line close the fitting with dikes and then use a 6pt socket to remove the old fitting which I reuse on the new line if its ok. Some are metric and probably why you have a cross threaded one.

I thought all plumbing was SAE or NPT.
Learn something all the time thanks.

ditto
WD-40 isn't even good oil and it isn't penetrating oil

I like Seafoam Deep Creep cost vs works and low smell , convenience and hit everything you might need to take apart before you order parts , penetrating oil does it's best work in 3-5 days , like night and day difference before and after you let it have that kind of time

Kroil is expensive and I don't like the smell doesn't seem to work noticeably different

CRC, pb Blaster , Liquid wrench , if give it time to work get what ever is easy to buy and priced good per ounce

I get the Deep Creep for 8.48 a can most of the time 10 ounces


Fluid Film is not a penetrating oil , it is a anti corrosion coating given months yes it does work a little like a penetrating oil , I put a gallon of it on my truck each September now it makes things come apart easily and not rust I get the inside of all the panels I can get and all over the underside of the truck avoiding only the exhaust , it get a little over spray but I try to avoid it

you go to work on an annually fluid filmed truck and it is like working on a place that doesn't get rust vehicle , no torches needed , no fighting every single fastener

the time makes a difference , what sold me on the 3-5 days was some brake caliper brake bolts , I broke a T55 trying to get them out , sprayed them down with penitrating oil I think I used Kroil that time and ordered a new T55 and replacement bolts
I had been bending the 1/2 inch 2 foot breaker bar hanging on it
new T55 and same braker bar I thought I had slipped off it came undone so easy went from deflection in the bar to thinking I had slipped off it got that much easier in the 5 days with 2 applications of penetrating oil

if I have a bunch to do and I am feeling cheap , I have a refillable WD-40 bottle I fill with 50/50 paint thinner and ATF supper cheap and if given time works fine , the Acetone and ATF works faster as it is thinner but this is a little less volatile and cheaper.


Fluid film has a place in re-assembly , hit the inside of your rims before you put them on , they come off easy
hit the inside of the steering knuckle before you put the ne sealed hub bearing on
hit the things you want to be able to take apart again on assembly
faster and cleaner than anti seize for your lower temp needs

Cross threads are better than no threads.

Back when I lived in Illinois, I used to do entire brake line and fuel line replacements on an almost weekly basis because of the salt on the roads.

First off....don't use compression fittings. They're garbage. They work fine for fuel lines, but brake line pressure is just too high. Get a double flaring tool and/or a bubble flaring tool, depending on what you've got on the vehicle. Alot of vehicles have both. A lot of times the line nuts that come on sections of brake hose aren't what you need for the vehicle ( such as the large fitting you mentioned), so you'll need to cut off on end of the new line, take off the wrong fitting and put the right one on, and then reflare it.

You can reuse old line nuts, especially if they're hard to find replacements for, just drill out the rusted-in line from the fitting. Use a 3/16" bit, then clean up the threads with a wire wheel on a bench grinder. Sometimes of the threads are just slightly damaged, just the action of the wire wheel is enough to get them straightened out.

Just replace the brake hose if the threads are damaged, they're cheap.

Next time if the line nut breaks free but is rusted to the line, a little bit of time and penetrating oil will free it up. Just spray it down and start working it back and forth. You'll find that it'll start spinning back and forth more and more on the line until it's completely free. But if you just can't get it to spin freely, no big deal. Just drill it out as mentioned above.

Really useful info,, thanks!!

Great post and Fluid film is great too.....jk