So I have invested close to $100 on 3/16" nicopp (nickel copper alloy) brake lines for my 92 hilux restomod project. I need 10mm x 1.0 inverted flare tube nuts for the line. Having spent the extra dime to avoid rust in the future, I'd rather not use cheap steel tube nuts that will end up rusting. I was planning on using brass, but I'd be willing to use Stainless or any other material that will resist New England rust. Problem is I cannot find them anywhere in store or online for the life of me.

So the question is where can I buy brass 3/16" 10mm x 1.0 inverted flare tube nuts?

Thanks in advance.
-Jeff

 

Google?
- http://www.google.com/search?q=brass...flare+tube+nut

First match seems to show that part:
- http://www.sherco-auto.com/brass.htm

 

Not to be a jerk but I actually already checked this website, and also looked through the other 9 links on the first page of your google search, and none of them have brass metric 3/16" tube nuts, only unions. All of them only have the tube nuts in steel. I'm begining to think the brass tube nuts dont exist.

Anyone else have any ideas?

 

So I just read that brass tube nuts are a bad idea. Could be why I'm having trouble finding them.

"Some brake line kits have brass tube nuts. Although this seems like a good idea at first,
in practice the brass nuts cause problems. The mechanic often tries to tighten the tube
nut if the line is weeping. Brass tube nuts have a tendency to do two things: the hex
flats round off the nut and the nut can mushroom at the end in contact with the flare.
The mushrooming causes great difficult in removing the line from the brake part. In
more serious cases the mushroom develops a split and causes nut failure. Plated steel
tube nuts are used in the AustinHealeywood brake line kits to avoid the problems with
brass nuts."

Taken from this website:
http://www.austinhealeywood.com/brakestory.html

Hopefully this thread will help the next guy who want brass tube nuts. I suppose I'll start looking for some good plated steel tube nuts now. If anyone has anything to add to this I would love to hear it.

-Jeff

 

could you just instal steel ones and just coat them with undercoating?

 

Not only the problems you stated there is also the ones of corrosion from the different metals also leading to rounded off soft nuts and much frustration

 

Have you actually contacted any of those suppliers (e-mail or phone)? They may have something in a corrosion resistant metric tube nut, perhaps not listed on the web site. Could be it is a special order item or very expensive. But some of those places seem to be marine supply places, so that must be the most corrosion prone application, so if they know what works the best, that would be the best place to talk to.

 

I would think brass wouldnt exist because it has the tendency to self-tighten...
Ever tighten a brass fitting pretty snug, only to have to use a 3 foot cheater bar to get it back off a month later? I sure have, and i could only imagine it being hell with your brake fittings.

Stick with steel, and coat them with grease or something so they don't rust.