SS brake line snag

[BillyRok]

I'm putting on my new SS lines (delinking the XJ brakes) and noticed that the new banjo fittings measure .400 thick vs only .320 thick for the originals so now the banjo bolts are too short. The measurement from the shoulder of the banjo bolt to the center of the hole through the side of the bolt is .200 but the crush washer takes up .038 of the .200 so the hole in the bolt doesn't line up quite right with the groove on the inside of the banjo fitting. It's even worse with the double banjo bolt at the union where the front lines go to the front calipers, the lower hole is farther off than the top hole because the 2 banjo fittings compound the problem.

I bought 90401-10159 and -10038 bolts (replaced the -10034 and -10044) but need something longer. Anyone got any experience with these thicker fittings and can advise as to the proper length bolts and where to find them?

Hope this all makes sense, and thank you for any help you can give me.

[bikerphil]

I would see if the company that sold you the lines carries the banjo bolts you need, they are usually identified as a single line type or a double line type, and the bolt size which should be 10MM.

[MindWebs]

I hate it when that happens..

Sorry For your troubles, but i'm glad to see i'm not the only one to see this issue.

I have ordered several different double banjo bolts from several different manufactures and found them ALL to have 2-3 threads left to screw in.

which is not enough, for a high pressure brake system.

You may not like to hear this..... but you will have to make you own bolt.

it's not "hard" just takes a bit of time and a drill press at minimum.
if you have access to a lathe it's a little better.

go to your local hardware store and find a bolt the correct MM size and long
what you need is the "shank" or untreaded part of the bolt to be long enough for your new bolt.

You'll be buying a course thread bolt, now cut the treaded end off to the desired lenth, then cut the metric fine thread of your brake bolt this die is available at most hardware stores/auto parts stores.

now drill the core of the bolt to a similar size as the original banjo bolt.
Use a "center punch" to give you drill a place to hold on the end of the bolt.
Exact size is Not critical, just get it close.

assemble the brake lines and crush washers and measure where you need to
drill your cross holes, then drill the cross holes accordingly.
Again exact size is Not critical, just get it close.

file the cross holes to remove burs, clean out and off the bolt to remove any metal particles (spray off/out with carb cleaner).

assemble, tighten, test for leaks, Happy riding!!

Watch it, till you get used to them, they will allow you to lock up the front tire, (i love this upgrade)

[BillyRok]

The lines and fittings are Russells purchased through J&P Cycles, I'll take bikerphil's advice and call them back to see what their solution is.

I took a picture of my double banjo fittings/bolt so you can see the issue, same thing happening with the single bolt/fitting though not as pronounced, but the cross hole in the bolt is not in the center of the banjo fitting:

[IMG][/IMG]

MindWebs, thanks for the idea about fabbing bolts...regular grade bolt or a hardened grade? And did you make just the double bolt or all the singles as well?

I know many of you have upgraded to SS lines and many more are considering it. For those who've done it I'm wondering how thick/wide the fittings on your new lines are compared to the old OEM fittings. Please chime in as maybe we should be avoiding certain suppliers or have I made a novice mistake here?

Thanks all for the help.

[jjz28]

I'm sure not everyone on here that has went to ss lines had to make there own bolts. There should be bolts to fit this correctly.

[crazy steve]

The Goodridge fittings are thinner.....

[Rasputin]

If you go to any brake line supplier in your area, you should be able to match a double banjo bolt easily. The Galfer lines I bought presented that same problem. I went to a local distributor that sells to auto parts stores and they had one. A little searching your local area may produce a 2 buck fix as mine did.