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DATE

PROCESS

HOURS

CATEGORY

03-29-04

Made brake lines, installed & filled with fluid

3.0

fuselage

DETAIL:

Made the brake lines today and installed them.  I used AN-4 Earl's Speed-Flex hose.  Speed-flex is the suggested type because it has a Teflon liner that is impervious to most fluids. The liner is .040" thick and is surrounded by a stainless steel braid. All the hose ends are Earl's Speed-Seal AN-4 ends.  The O.D. is 5/16". 

A small line about 8" long goes from the master cylinder to a 90° bulkhead fitting that goes through the floorboard. From there a line runs down the front gear leg to the Grove 5.00x5 wheels/dual piston calipers.

After the lines were run I filled up the master cylinders with the appropriate Mil-H-5056 hydraulic fluid that I got from my local FBO.  $4 for a quart and I used about 1/6th of the quart. Guess I should of got a pint.

Bleeding the system was easy.  I removed the calipers from the axles and held them up higher than the master cylinders and pumped them with one hand while I operated the bleeder valve on the caliper with the other hand.  In no time I had fully functional brakes.  I had my girlfriend, Lori, pull me in the fuse down the street while I checked them. 

I consider this a great success. It's one of those things you do when your plane is getting close to flying.  You know your close when you start working on all the systems like brake lines, electrical, firewall forward.