REFLECTOR: fuel system, flaring aluminum tubing

Mon Feb 4 00:18:21 CST 2008

Hi Grigore-

That "rolo" tube flare tool is the correct one- it does not bend the tubes,
it has 2 rotating dies in there that you match up left and right to grip
whatever size tube you are flaring, then there is the clamping nut that you
tighten to grip the tube and then you tighten the large handle which drives
the flaring cone down into the tube end- the cone isn't really a cone, but a
complex shape that both forms and burnishes the tube face- you just need to
be practiced at how much tube you leave exposed in the clamp- it depends on
the diameter- but you will get the hang of it after a few tries, then just
remember to stop turning the tool when resistance is first felt, otherwise
you will over form and crush the tube end.  As far as the cutter type- I
recommend the third one on your list- it has rollers opposite of the cutting
wheel that help protect the tubing while it is being cut- never use the
second type- it will not cut properly at all- it is a soft tubing cutter,
like for automotive fuel line or garden hose or maybe plastic hose of some
sort. Make sure you lube up both the flare tool (oil on the tightening
screws and lithium grease on the forming head) and oil on the cutting wheel
and rollers of the cutter- you will be making perfect tubes before you know
it!  For bending, I have a tool from harbor freight- it bends 3 different
sizes of tubing- probably spruce has one for twice the price-  it has a flip
over handle that holds the tube, and it sort of wipes the tubing against a
round die which has 3 groves in it for the 3 tube sizes that it bends- works
fine and you can bend anything up to 180 degrees on there...you can not bend
the tubes by hand except for a huge radius bend to clear something- it will
just kink if you try to bend by hand- the bender from harbor freight tools
was less than $10.

Alex

  _____  

From: reflector-bounces at tvbf.org [mailto:reflector-bounces at tvbf.org] On
Behalf Of Grigore Rosu
Sent: Sunday, February 03, 2008 2:09 PM
To: Velocity Aircraft Owners and Builders list
Subject: Re: REFLECTOR: fuel system, flaring aluminum tubing

Alex,

Is this what you meant by the "roto flare tool":

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/flaringtools2.php

They call it "rolo flare tool".  It appears that this tool can also bend the
tubes, which is an additional benefit if it works well.  I have never worked
with tubes before and I just tried to bend the fuel lines by hand; the
result looks horible.  Is this tool making good bends, too?

Regarding tube cutters, which of the following would you recommend:

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/tube_cutters3.php

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/tube_cutters1.php

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/tube_cutters4.php

... or did you have something else in mind for a "decent cutter"?

Thank you,

Grigore

On Feb 3, 2008 11:15 AM, Alex Balic <velocity_pilot at verizon.net> wrote:

I won't flame you Sid- but I would recommend the roto flare tool- you will
pay a premium for it, but it is better at flaring the aluminum, because it
does not just stretch the metal like a punch die- it does it effectively in
steps because of the shape and action of the forming end, and provides a
very good finish to the inside of the flare- use some lube- I prefer lithium
based grease, and it will look great every time - the roto tool also has a
built in gauge to set the length of the tube before flare which is handy-
although it is not all that accurate, it still helps setting up, and the
resulting flare is of the proper angle, which really is important- you can
use the male end of the AN fitting to "make" it the correct angle during
assembly, but you are just asking for a bad seal and/or a crack. Just suck
it up and get the flare tool- you will think it is expensive, and it is, but
you will use it a lot and can probably sell it on E-bay for most of what you
paid for it when you are done. And get a decent tubing cutter too, some of
the cheap ones scratch the aluminum as they work, not a good thing when
making fuel lines.  You will need to do some practice and get a feel for the
flaring tool- you do not want to over flare or under flare, you will pick it
op pretty fast-

-----Original Message-----
From: reflector-bounces at tvbf.org [mailto:reflector-bounces at tvbf.org] On
Behalf Of Sid Knox
Sent: Sunday, February 03, 2008 9:50 AM
To: Velocity Aircraft Owners and Builders list

Subject: Re: REFLECTOR: fuel system, flaring aluminum tubing

----- Original Message -----
From: <gattenby at tulsaconnect.com>
To: "Velocity Aircraft Owners and Builders list" <reflector at tvbf.org>
> I haven't ran any of the aluminum line yet.
> I assume that I'll need to flare the end of the tubing /
> use a special nut.
>
> Anyone care to educate me as to the process and what tools
> that I'll need?

> Noel

With my flame suit securely zipped, I offer the following:

http://www.frybrid.com/forum/vbpicgallery.php?do=view
<http://www.frybrid.com/forum/vbpicgallery.php?do=view&g=91> &g=91

As the guy points out, for aluminum (or copper) there is no point in
worrying about whether the tool
is for 37 deg or 45 deg... when I tighten the flare nut, the flared tubing
end conformes.  I will add however that
I prefer to tighten a new flared end onto a steel (AN) fitting ( a drop of
oil here please) that acts as a mandrel
and smoothes the flare edges before installing it on the aluminum fitting.
The steel fittings are about $2 at a auto
parts house that fabs hydraulic hoses (like Napa).  The flaring tool is
about $15 at Harbor Freight or an auto parts store.

Sid Knox
Oklahoma

Velocity  173 RG  N199RS
Starduster  N666SK
KR2         N24TC
W7QJQ

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