Brake pipe flaring tool/kit

[daverclasper]

Hi. A bit of a a (sad?) hobby of mine is looking out for the very occasional bargain on E bay.

Any tips on buying one (suitable for Vitesse) second hand old school (heard modern ones at the cheap end are no good?).

Never used one, so don't know first thing.

Cheers, Dave

[PeaTear]

Avoid the useless effort sold by halfords

I bought one in the link below, really easy to use and the flares seem decent but I havent been able to test how the flares stand up to normal use as of yet

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/173720909901

[Pete Lewis]

 Dave    you need to have a Flare for these     Ha !

[Clive]

I have been using a kit like the one below for 30 years. Done full re-pipes on several cars as well as numerous singles. 

A bit of faff to use, but reliable enough. Of course, mine may be better having been made a long time ago... And I have only ever used the smallest die.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Brake-Pipe-Copper-Flaring-Kit-Mechanic-Plumbers-Tool-Set-10-pcs-Storage-Box/164121669112?_trkparms=aid%3D1110006%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D225656%26meid%3Db54b379562124c608a13f520b67d0f5c%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D5%26rkt%3D12%26mehot%3Dpf%26sd%3D113966965549%26itm%3D164121669112%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D0%26pg%3D2047675%26algv%3DSimplAMLv5PairwiseWeb&_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851

[Pete Lewis]

i have a set like Clives and a second one thats very easy and cheap  but very few pipe flares so cant say which is best 

its a infrequent use gadget   but handy to have 

Pete

[daverclasper]

14 minutes ago, Pete Lewis said:

Dave    you need to have a Flare for these     Ha !

Pete, the only flare for anything Iv'e ever had, was in my keks, when I was about 12

[iana]

Another vote for something like this.

Its very easy to use, very impressed. Recently purchased one as I needed to fabricate some new pipes 

 

[Colin Lindsay]

Those are good, I use one in confined spaces but if you can, get hold of one of the old vice-mounted tools. I bought one at the International a few years back for £40, mounts in a vice, brake pipe in one end, pull the lever and bingo perfect flares every time. Just so easy to use it makes pipe flaring a doddle. They come up on eBay all the time, so keep an eye out.

[NonMember]

I have a set like Clive's that I bought from Eastwood (shows how long ago!) and it's given very good service.

[mark powell]

I have an old Moprod Easyflare tool, much like Iana's choice.  Still going strong after 30 + years.

[poppyman]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BRAKE-PIPE-FLARING-TOOL-VICE-MOUNTED-PROFESSIONAL-BRITISH-MADE/261943923368?hash=item3cfd1312a8:g:C20AAOSw3ydVgtxn  I have one like this, except made by Churchill had it over 40yrs now and 3/16 1/4 and 5/16 pipes. It can be used under the car but needs two people and a stilson wrench.

Tony.

[yorkshire_spam]

16 hours ago, PeaTear said:

Avoid the useless effort sold by halfords

I bought one in the link below, really easy to use and the flares seem decent but I havent been able to test how the flares stand up to normal use as of yet

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/173720909901

I have one like that AND a huge "vintage" Skyes one. I use the new one far more than the Skyes one (in fact I can't remember when I last used it). I used to also have a "flaremaster", but sold it because I was so impressed with the new handle type one.

@daverclasper whatever you do avoid the nasty horse-shoe ones - utterly useless and very poor quality/consistency in the flares, even if you buy a branded one.

Nasty nasty nasty evil objects:

[Colin Lindsay]

1 hour ago, yorkshire_spam said:

@daverclasper whatever you do avoid the nasty horse-shoe ones - utterly useless and very poor quality/consistency in the flares, even if you buy a branded one.

Nasty nasty nasty evil objects:

I agree. Never got the hang of them, nor this kind either, which I endured for a few years with varying results:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sealey-Brake-Pipe-Flaring-Tool-Kit-AK5063/184177582791?epid=1840772885&hash=item2ae1d6e2c7:g:D8oAAOSwgFpeTXQl

The one that Ian mentions is the one I use for confined spaces, and find it quite simple to use and good value, but still love this one:

I pull the handle like playing a one-armed-bandit and get a win every time. Whichever you go for remember that you only need one or two flares in your entire lifetime, so any that come with a huge selection is just wasting money - however - you can buy them separately, so if you ever find that you need a particular one it's still available.

 

[daverclasper]

Thanks a lot for all the input.  It looks like the pic of Iana's has 3/16 stamped on it. Is that a standard size for our cars?.

Cheers, Dave

[Colin Lindsay]

1 hour ago, daverclasper said:

Thanks a lot for all the input.  It looks like the pic of Iana's has 3/16 stamped on it. Is that a standard size for our cars?.

Cheers, Dave

Yes, possibly the only size you'll ever need.