Well the grand fix the brakes up properly in one hit project has well and truly hit the buffers. All the hexagons on the solid pipe connectors at the rear are severely rusted. Probably not gonna come undone, especially if the same gorilla who overtightened the front ones did the installation. Even if they do come off they certainly aren't going back.

For now flexi pipes and hard pipes are OK so I'll make do with just changing the callipers but something will need to be done in due course. (Which will be after I've got my lift installed for decent working room underneath in an indoor environment.) Looks like the long twin pipes from the booster for my year 2000 car can still be got OEM at about £230 (ouch) but supply of the short ones looks iffy.

Is there a reliable pattern supplier or is it a case of roll your own with Kunifer, flanging tool and a set of screwed unions? I have the tools and enough experience so no issue with DIY if need be. Ready made is easier tho'.

If DIY is the only way to go who does proper Kunifer at a decent price. Last lot I got from a factor was ordinary copper, and too thin at that. Remonstrating with the supplier basically got a shrug "All same stuff innit". Annoying but I didn't get it for brake lines anyway so no great issue. Obviously I want all the fittings in stock before I start so who is a good source for the male screw fittings and are they all same size and threads? Presumably stainless is the best material for the threaded couplings. The short pipes on mine were garage replaced shortly after I got it so only 4 years or so for the hexagons to corrode away. Not good.

About 20 years since I last did a hard pipe replacement DIY style so I'm way out of touch with the market.

Clive

Kunifer can be found here https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/263908695438 but the seller doesn't list unions. This guy has them but not in stainless https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Brake-Pipe-Nut-Fittings-Metric-Imperial-Unf-Copper-Pipe-Brass-Tubing-3-8-M10-M12/351413035486 but you can get stainless from here https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AUTOMEC-Brake-Pipe-Stainless-Steel-Union-Fittings-Male-10mm-x-1mm-Pitch-x-21-5mm/192503935314, bloody expensive though.

You're not kidding. Stainless is bloody expensive. £5.25 a pop from Automec, slightly better at £17.25 for four from BGC. By my count I'll need 8 so thats £48 or £35. If I had a set of M10x1 chasers for my coventry die head making them would be a no brainer as 11 mm stainless hex is under £15 a metre. But chaser sets are £60 - £70 so I'd need to go into production.

Don't trust the economy range gold tinted sheradised ones. Look to be what was on the garage made short pipes fitted 4 years ago whose hexagons have corroded beyond redemption.

Thanks for finding sources and for size details.

Clive

Pretty sure countless vehicles are running around just fine with the standard affair... I've done both of mine in kunifer and standard fittings and had no problems...

I wouldn't even entertain buying new shaped original hard lines, unless you're planning to take the body off to fit them without kinking them, whether they were £23 or £230.

OK. Late night panic over.

Spent some quality time underneath with a wire brush and vernier gauges. Turns out hexagons on the short garage made pipes are non standard sizes. Mostly 9 mm A/F but the worst one is 1/8 whitworth albeit rather battered where a metric open end has been used. The 9 mm ones have suffered from open ended spanners but re-making the short pipes with proper sizes will be easy so I'll probably cut the pipe and call it done.

Turned out that long pipes are in kunifer with 10 mm A/F tube nuts. Not perfect, fitted with an open end again, but proper brake pipe spanner fits well enough so should undo without having to destroy the pipe as I feared last night.

Time to invest in some more good brake pipe spanners.

Clive