Brake line bending and routing diagram needed

[TMc2548]

Hey all, I'm looking for a simple diagram on how the brake lines are bent and routed for my buggy. I have a dual circuit master and IRS rear end. I no longer have the original brake lines so I've lost a more accurate point of referrence. Memory is no good either as this project has been going on for a while. Thanks!

[fubar]

If you have to run new lines it might be a good time to put in a turning brake. They are kind of fun on the street.

[167luckycharm]

Your IRS setup originally had a pair of steel lines that were clamped to the trailing arms. They were threaded into the wheel cylinders at one end, anchored with a plastic clip into the trailing arm midway and a clip at the other end where it connects to the short flexible line. That clip holds the fitting to the frame horn bracket. On my IRS pan with the Siggy body, the passenger side frame horn has a bracket to hold a brass fitting. It couples a hard line to a flexible line. Problem was that the battery tray above that point gave little room for that fitting when bolted down. The tee fitting is on the driver side frame horn and does not pose a problem. My aftermarket long line from CIP was supposed to have another shorter one attached to it in order for a standard bug installation. It was not needed on my shortened pan. The other pieces would not work for my application due to the king&link framehead and frontend, plus a line-lock kit in the circuit, all hooked to a single Bus MC. This meant having to install double-flare and bubble flared ends on the new lines. The Peterson manual has a view of the brake lines, but it's easier to follow an actual circuit from a donor. I started from scratch and did my bends with the cheapie tool from Checker Auto. Started the project by bending by hand and had to start over when some of the CIP lines collapsed. The NAPA replacements were easier to form and didn't collapse. The bending tool made the job look consistent. Depending on any other device you add into the circuit, your plumbing will vary when compared to a stock set-up. Some factors; Line-Lock, Proportioning valve, turning brakes, single or dual circuit master cylinders and possibly a parking brake lock. The best thing to do is mount all the flex lines where they belong, bolt down the master cylinder, brass couplings, and whatever else you have between the hard lines and measure from there. Sears has the flaring tool to do the bubble flare. If possible, try to stick with the factory-made flares unless they look questionable (a few did on my kit) and start the measurements from that point. I worked from the MC outward but had to add various short pieces for the line-lock kit. It just sounds difficult...once you work from one basic point and branch outward, you'll find it easy to do. We're here if you need us... Aloha!

[fubar]

The bubble vs standard flair can be fixed with a brass adapter right at the wheel cylinder if you have a flair tool and want to make your own lines. After some debate I ended up using all bubble ended pre made legnths and used the braded sst flex line kit from my local VW shop. No leaks first try. All my lines ran inside the "tunnel" and my turning brake master is in there too , so it was a snug fit. In retrospect a line lock would have been a nice feature because the mechanical parking brake has been removed. My car originally had flex lines that ran from the back of the turning brake master to the hard line on the trailing arms. I shortened them up because a guy at the brake hose store told me that the flex lines can give you a mushy brake pedal if you use more than the minimum.

[TMc2548]

Thanks for your suggestions so far. However, I'm starting with the basic lines for now. I'm not interested in adding anything fancy like a turning brake or park lock. I have all the tubing I need but lack a clear understanding of how each line is bent. I remember a picture posted from before that was of the front of a pan and it had each brake line highlighted. I cannot find the pic anymore or even remember who posted it. I've installed the two front hard lines and they turned out terrific. Mostly what I need now is how the center line is bent as it goes through the frame head and around the pedal assembly. I'm just stumped when it comes to the bends needed for the long tube. I've even tried bending a coat hanger to approximate the bends but some bends really look tight and complex. In addition to the center line I need to figure out how the line between the trailing arms is bent. Just those two. I've got the lines on the trailing arms just fine. I was able to clear those and clean them up just fine. They'll work as is.

[Tominator]

Tom I think you can bend them any way that will work for your application. When I bent the one that runs the length of the pan I bent a few coat hangers till I got a bend that worked well at both the front by the pedal assembly and then at the rear. Then I copied the coat hanger bends to the brake line at the front and attached it to the master cylinder and then bent the rear to match the coat hanger that workd for the rear. Then in order to get the line through the rear bulk head you have to pull the brake line up into a large arch about where the shifter is. Below are a few shots of the bends I ended up with. Hope this helps.