Observations on SS lines

[dbeardslee]

So last week I got a Techna-Fit SS brake line kit for XS1100F. The lines were real nice and even included the rubber grommets for the retention straps. Unfortunately the upper front line they sent me was too short, and I had to wait for them to send me a longer line - which they did quickly, and at their expense.

That was last friday, and I wasn't about to let the bike sit all weekend waiting for a brake line, so I just put the old upper line back on until I got the new one. I rode it for about a week like that, and frankly I didn't notice much difference with the lower SS lines than with all rubber lines. Thursday the new line came in, and I installed it yesterday.

What a difference that one line made! I don't know if it's because the SS lines are smaller diameter, or because the old rubber lines expand, but braking is WAY more positive now. I would have never thought that a single rubber line would rob that much brake performance, but it did.

And I noticed something else too - these SS lines made the system WAY easier to bleed than the big rubber jobs. I should have done this a LONG time ago.

I got the idea to go with Techna-Fit from a thread I read on XS11.com, and I'm pretty glad I did. The kit came with everything needed for the installation, the banjos had the proper angles on them, and I liked that they included the rubber grommets for retention. They handled the short line issue quickly, and I'm a pretty happy guy.

And one more thing - years ago someone on this forum passed along a tip for renewing copper crush washers. The tip was to heat them to red hot and drop them immediately in a glass of water. It re-anneals the crush washers and allows you to reuse them. I haven't bought a crush washer since then, and it works like a charm. You just have to be careful to just heat them till they glow red 'cause if you heat them too long they'll get soft and deform. I heat them twice because I hold them in the flame with a pair of needle nose pliers, and I'm afraid the pliers will act like a heat sink. By doing them twice I insure they're annealed well all the way around.

So to whoever it was that posted the original annealing instructions - my eternal gratitude. That was a GREAT tip!

[jetmechmarty]

Annealing copper washers

It isn't necessary to quench them and may even be undesirable. Just let them cool. Copper washers are great for drain plugs, too. I hang them from a piece of stainless steel safety wire and get them to glow cherry red. Done.

[dbeardslee]

It isn't necessary to quench them and may even be undesirable. Just let them cool. Copper washers are great for drain plugs, too. I hang them from a piece of stainless steel safety wire and get them to glow cherry red. Done.

I've been quenching them for the last four or five years, and never had a problem. Get's 'em back in action quick too. I do have some safety wire out in the mancave - might try hanging them the next time. But the line kit came with new crush washers, and I re-annealed all the old ones, so it will be a while before I need to heat any again. I'm crush-washer-rich right now.

[jetmechmarty]

OK. I did some research. You're right.

The copper can also be air-cooled instead of by water, but it will not be as soft and malleable after it has been annealed.

[dbeardslee]

OK. I did some research. You're right.

Thanks for the clear-up. I guess I'll stick with my usual method. Besides, I like to hear 'em sizzle.

[jetmechmarty]

For the record, it's ferrous metal that you mustn't quench.

[dbeardslee]

For the record, it's ferrous metal that you mustn't quench.

I know if you take steel and quench it, it gets real brittle. Hard... but brittle. If you let it cool slowly it gets soft. Sure wish I knew how to temper steel - that skill would come in handy.

That's why it seemed weird to me when I first heard about this trick that you'd heat copper and then quench it to anneal it. But weird or not, it sure works.

I went through my brothers entire braking system a month or two ago and rebuilt everything. I annealed his crush washers and reused them all with nary a leak.

It's not so much the cost of new crush washers, but the ones we use seem to be an uncommon size, and the ones I usually find locally have a bigger OD. Being able to reuse what I've got saves a lot of time and hunting around for new ones.

[jetmechmarty]

That's right. You can't quench steel when you anneal it. I'm really not sure if it matters whether you quench the copper or not. My oil drain plug has a copper washer that I may have annealed over a dozen times.

As far as tempering steel goes, you got the first part down when you quenched it to make it hard. After that, how it's tempered depend upon how hot you get it. Blacksmithing might be an interesting hobby.