DIY Steel Braided Oil Lines

[rockin4runner]

Hello, The other day I laid my bike down and it cracked the lower oil line [sad]. After doing some research there are a few people that have replaced there OEM lines with still braided lines. The closes thing I could find to a write up on this mod was part numbers so I thought I would add my 2 cents to this site and do a write up. On a scale of difficulty from 1-5 (5 being most difficult) I would rate this mod at a 2; total time 1 hour; total parts cost $103.

I ordered all the parts from Jegs and they also have black fittings and black hose if you want to go that route.
4x Flare Reducer, -6AN to -8AN, 555-100212
3x 90° Max Flow Swivel Hose End, -8AN, 555-100022
1x 45° Max Flow Swivel Hose End, -8AN, 555-100012
1x Pro-Flo 200 Series Stainless Steel Braided Hose, -08AN, 555-100920

Remove the OEM lines.

Remove OEM oil line fittings.
Notice - oil line fittings are not torqued down super tight.

Remove OEM o-ring from removed fittings

Place OEM o-ring only -6 to -8 reducer fitting.

Wrap fitting with teflon tape to be safe for leaks.

Install reducer fittings.
Notice - Stator cover has been unbolted from engine. this is not necessary.
- DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN FITTINGS.

Cut two peaces of hose at 2.75" and 6".
Notice - I am using a cut off wheel, I think this is the best tool the cut the braided line.
- Wrap hose with electrical tap before cutting. This will help the hose from fraying (do not remove electrical tape)

Assemble hoses by pushing the red hose nut onto the hose, spray some WD-40 onto the blue fitting threads and into the hose, thread blue fitting onto red hose nut. Once assembled be sure to spray the inside of the hose with brake cleaner.
Note : The 6" hose uses one 45degree fitting on one end and a 90degree fitting on the other. The 2.75" used 2 90 degree fittings

Install hoses onto cooler and engine.

 

[neilrl79]

Looks good! [up]

 

[thrstrmech]

nicely done, look great[up]

 

[mrlogix]

nice job

 

[rockin4runner]

Thanks guys. At first I kinda didn't like it because I thought it was too blingie but after watching my friend ride my cr I think it looks cool because it catches your eye and makes you curious what it is. Kinda like hearing the exhaust of your bike as someone rides it, the bike sounds so much better hearing it pass by rather than riding the bike.

If anyone wants to do this mod I have extra steel braided hose I'll sell them for cheap.

 

[Cosworth]

Sending pm been wanting to do this for awhile

 

[buellerchris]

Looks awesome you hot rodder you.

 

[burgandy25]

Potential stupid question:
So this will not starve the oil cooler in any way? It doesn't look like it since the reducer is in the engine/cooler and going into larger hoses. Correct? So the hoses actually are large that the oil ports both in the engine and oil cooler.
I've wanted to do this also but I just want to make sure no oil starvation or future overheating can be caused by this.

 

[Cosworth]

From what Ive seen most people drill the -6 side full flow of the -8 on the reducer fitting.
Look about halfway down this article
http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/290431/553281.html

 

[konarider94]

Never use teflon tape on o-rings. O-ring gland dimensions are very precise. They need to be compressed a certain amount and there needs to be excess room in the gland for when they deform. I design o-ring glands on a daily basis. It may work but that is not a recommended practice, and may even result in a premature failure.

Teflon tape should be reserved for tapered threads. I know you were just trying to be extra safe, but in this instance it may have a negative affect. Other than that it looks like a great little mod.

If you would like a reference on o-ring design see parker catalog ORD5700A
https://www.parker.com/literature/ORD 5700 Parker_O-Ring_Handbook.pdf

 

[Mike VV]

What kona said.

Where you put the Teflon tape does NO good. That stuff should be reserved at most for pipe threads, IF that.
I've NEVER used that stuff and have removed if from others oil and fuel pumps countless times.

It should be reserved for back most portion of the drawer of your tool box, and only there as a place holder for other stuff.
It's NEVER used in the military around AN fittings, it shouldn't be used around cars or bikes either.

IF...you feel the need for extra sealer, a "little" Teflon "paste" is a much better product, but again, only on pipe threads.

Mike

 

[rockin4runner]

I didn't drill out the adapter fitting to the same size ID -8 because it wouldn't leave very much material on the -6 side of the adapter. I've put 500 miles on the bike and rode continues for over 100 miles and didn't have any problems. I really don't think the oil flow rate through the cooler is fast enough for the adapter to cause any major restrictions.

I used teflon tape on the -6 thread of the adapter fitting because the oil cooler is not meant for a AN fitting (the threads on the cooler are metric) but the threads are close enough to match up with the thread pitch of a -6 AN. If I had some type of metric fitting with a groove meant to seat the O-ring perfectly I wouldn't use Teflon tape and that's why I didn't use teflon tape in between the adapter and elbow.

I've built countless number of automated machines and I used teflon tape on most pneumatic fittings with out a problem. Would I have a problem if I didn't used teflon tape? I don't know but I haven't had a problem yet so why change it. I know of to apply teflon tape correctly and that can be why I haven't ran into an problems (yes, you sure can apply teflon tape wrong). I think teflon paste sucks. Stuff makes a mess and it never seems to dry.

At the end of the day I don't have any oil leaks, bike hasn't grenaded yet, and I think it look cool. Do you need to use teflon tape, probably not but you can risk the chance of having oil leaks.

 

[gseale]

This is a pretty old thread but it caught my attention as I'd like to do the same. The Red/Blue is totally catchy and I loved it until i saw black and black - which would go well with the 2010 SCG Kick Ash. Has any body had any experience with the black nylon/steel braided materials?


https://www.ebay.com/i/352117003173?chn=ps

Greg

 

[Mesozoic]

Just an FYI, AN fittings are very old school technology and the factory Jiffy-Tite fittings are superior in several ways. Don't get me wrong, I've got loads of AN fittings on my V8 Fords, but a real upgrade for the Buell would be to use higher quality PTFE lined stainless braid (or even the black textile braid) with new Jiffy-Tite fittings.

 

[gseale]

Just an FYI, AN fittings are very old school technology and the factory Jiffy-Tite fittings are superior in several ways. Don't get me wrong, I've got loads of AN fittings on my V8 Fords, but a real upgrade for the Buell would be to use higher quality PTFE lined stainless braid (or even the black textile braid) with new Jiffy-Tite fittings.

Thanks man!!