I'm about to get my rebuilt and stalled th350 back. I'm going to be using -6 AN braided line to run the fluid up to the radiator. Does anyone have any tips or suggestions for working with braided line to make using it easier or more efficient? Its my first time using it and I want it to work right the first time I go to start it up... i.e. NO LEAKS

Thanks for any help

 

Wrap tape around it tight before you cut it. A cut-off wheel in a rotary tool works best to cut through it, but a sharp hacksaw is fine too. Put a worm-type hose clamp on the end with about 1/16" sticking out and tighten it just a little to squeeze the braid in a little to get it started in the fitting if you're having problems with it.

 

I was messin around with it some and it was kinda hard to get into the fittings. So hopefully the clamp thing will work.

What type of tape do you suggest using? I take the tape off before putting it in the fitting right?

Thanks for the tips!

 

Duct tape works fine, and yes you have to peel the tape off before you put the hose end on. If there are any individual strands sticking out, you can clip them off with a pair of heavy sharp side cutters, but if the whole braid is flared out you're better off starting again. If you use the hose clamp, don't tighten it down too much or you'll "dent" the braid permanently. It takes a fair bit of torque to screw the fitting into the sleeve so you might want to be careful with the wrenches, if you slip it's easy to damage the aluminum.

 

go to a hydrolic shop and have the ends crimped on, cheaper than reusable ends and much easier. only down side is labor cost to make the hose.

 

Dont buy Earl hose ends. When I was buying all the things to do my carb line with fuel filter I ran'em out of the Aeroquip fittings and had to go elsewhere and all they carried was Earls.

Having both brands there going on the same line, the Aeroquip are far superior to insatall than the Earls which did'nt wanna go over the hose end no matter what I tried.

I ended up using electrical tape and a cut off wheel and it seemed to work alright. If it's not too late get those vise clamps and try to borrow the regular AN wrenches. It's very easy to scuff/scratch these fittings with regular steel wrenches.

 

The Earl's aren't as good as the Aeroquip, but they're a whole lot better than the Russell.

 

I agree. Ive used Earls and Aeroquip and the Earls were much more difficult to install.

 

I have aeroquip fittings, so it sounds like I'm ok there.

Other than scratching off some of the color, is there any harm in using regular wrenches as long as I'm careful?

Thanks for all the help guys... the tranny goes in tomorrow, I cant wait! Hopefully be runnin 8.4's with only about 3.5k in the whole project.

 

No problem using regular wrenches, you can try putting a slip of paper in the jaws of the wrench if you're worried about marring the anodized surface. Just be careful so that the wrenches don't slip or you can end up rounding off the nut on the fitting.