Source for coolant hose elbow?

Seymour Snerd

Lifetime Supporter
This is a bit basic but hoping someone has a better idea: When I need a 45 or 90 degree coolant hose elbow I end up searching for some larger specific-application molded hose and cutting it down; and it looks like that's what SPF did for the many elbows in my car. Anyone know of a source for nice neat radiator-hose elbows sold as such?
 
I used a silicon type radiator hose that came in 45 and 90.
brand is SFS performance.
I used all 90's in the same size so I only need 1 spare.

Jim
 
Alan:
Try Columbia River tube bending, I don't know the exact web address but they have the silicone elbows, reasonably priced and in colors. They are located in Washington state.
Cheers
Phil
 
Columbia River Mandrel Bending was my source for all of the tubing bends used in the fabrication of my coolant lines for my build. Highly recommended..IMO
 

Seymour Snerd

Lifetime Supporter
This then leads me to another question: why does everybody like silicone? The only three things I know about silicone hoses are:

  1. It's expensive (relative to rubber)
  2. It doesn't glue itself to the pipe like rubber does (which I consider more of a blessing than a curse, but just barely)
  3. They're permeable to water so represent the potential for a slow and invisible "leak".
"Other than that, how was the play Mrs. Lincoln?"
 
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This is a bit basic but hoping someone has a better idea: When I need a 45 or 90 degree coolant hose elbow I end up searching for some larger specific-application molded hose and cutting it down; and it looks like that's what SPF did for the many elbows in my car. Anyone know of a source for nice neat radiator-hose elbows sold as such?

Alan,

I used Advance Auto hose #12168 on the lower pump connection - it might work for the upper hose!

John
 

Howard Jones

Supporter
Sicone hoses are one of those things that are not "necessary" but are used quite a lot. Coolent hose failure will really ruin you day at the track or out on a long road run. I HATE fixing over heated, hot water all over the place, engines and cars. Just a huge bummer.

The reason I use them is that it's a pain in the ass to sort through a huge pile of radiator hoses at the parts store trying to find the perfect hose to fit the car. And they do last forever, they don't dry out, crack, split, and can withstand quite a lot of presure. I've never seen a failure in a quality Samco silicon hose.

Some OEM radiator hoses might be just as good I guess but I reguard coolent piping/hoses and such to be a one time install and last forever system. I surely don't want to fish a split hose out of the bottom of the side pod a couple of years from now.

If Silicon hoses are installed with a proper clamp suited for them, the stainless kind with a full circumference band, and used with stainlees or aluminum tubing with proper nipples, they should last the life of the car.

So.... even though some money can be saved with a cut up OEM hose, I don't think this is the place to do so. I made my Collent system out of 1.5 inch stainless tubing. I did all the turns in steel and onlt used the silicon hose for the straight couplings.

The cost of stainless bends isn't much different that the silicon ones and you have a near bullit proof system when you are done welding it all up.

Here's another good source.

Pegasus - Silicone Coolant Hoses by Shape
 
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Seymour Snerd

Lifetime Supporter
The cost of stainless bends isn't much different that the silicon ones and you have a near bullit proof system when you are done welding it all up.

I was leaning that way anyway, so that does it. SS + TIG + Silicone couplers it is. Or maybe aluminum... (see below)

Now, how do I put a bead in those SS pipes? Anyone ever done it with the Harbor Fright tool: 18'' Sheet Metal Fabrication Kit.

It says it will do 18 ga steel....

I know I can lay down some weld filler but I really like properly formed beads.

Earls makes some cute diameter-spectific beading tools but they seem to be intended only for aluminum. Holley Performance Earl's EZ–Beader Products

And then there's http://www.tubebeadingtool.com/ which says "Works on aluminum, copper, brass, mild steel, and certain stainless steels" What do you suppose "certain" means here? 304 by any chance?
 
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Dimi Terleckyj

Lifetime Supporter
Hi Alan

One of the things to consider and keep in mind is that if you make all your bends out of stainless, steel or alloy you don't need to bead the tubing if you are only using straight pieces of rubber to couple the straight ends together.

Rubber hoses will only pull off tubing if there is a bend and the hose can flex and expand away from the tube.

Having all your tubing joins in line and only using the hose to couple over the join doesn't allow the hose to gain leverage and work it's way off and the added benefit is that you only need to carry a straight piece of hose to repair any joint that may fail.

When I see some of the complicated hoses that some people use when most of it can be eliminated with some welded bends and a couple of straight hose joins it make me shudder at all the potential built in failure points.

Dimi
 

Seymour Snerd

Lifetime Supporter
I'd think wall thickness would be more important than type of SS.

Shortly after I posted I called them (tubebeadingtool.com aka Graham Tools) and they said essentially the same thing, i.e. that with "normal" ss like 304 and 306 I'm OK up to about 0.065. So I ordered one!

(BTW, Brian there at Graham Tool was quite helpful and also used to do a lot of Pantera and ZF work, worked for Roy Butfoy and had lunch with Lloyd Butfoy today..... small world. And he knows his ZFs....).
 
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Seymour Snerd

Lifetime Supporter
....if you make all your bends out of stainless, steel or alloy you don't need to bead the tubing if you are only using straight pieces of rubber to couple the straight ends together.

Interesting point. I can certainly see that, for example, in the front of the GT-40 where you have a kind of "stacked" run like from the center tunnel pipe over to the radiator; how's the coupler going to come off by itself? It can't unless it figures out how to slide itself down the pipe.

However, take the case of my FE water neck that points essentiall to the right side of the car, but connects down at the center tunnel in front of the crank pulley. My SS pipe would go right some, down a foot, left some to get to the center and then forward a little before it connects to the center tube. So if, for example, it were assembled but not clamped a good yank to the right on the tube at the water neck would pull it out of the top coupling while at the bottom it would just be rotating (twisting) the lower coupler a little. Do I really want that joint without a bead?

Of course one solution to that is arrange some mechanical obstructiion so the metal pieces simply can't move in a direction that "opens" the joint.
 
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