Bending small tube for brakes and fuel

i was attempting to bend some of the new fuel lines for my 2A last night....5/16" line, aluminum.

I have one of those cheapy benders with no moving parts.....looks like a small scale conduit bender.

the tubes kept flattening out. it didnt support the sides of the tube well enough for the 5/16" tube.....would probably work better on larger tube though.

I tried packing them with sand, which is an old trick some aircraft guys taught me, but that didnt work....



is there a hand held bender that works better?

i did a search online and found something like this:
KD Tools Tubing Bender - Model KDS2189 at Sears.com

this:
Imperial Triple-Head Tube Bender with Roto-Lok Indexing Handle - Model 47299 at Sears.com


and also this:

Tubing Bender - LIS44000


are those any better?

it wont be the last time i have to bend tube for brakes or fuel so i dont mind buying a good part this time. the cheapy bender i've had since high school.

 

We use one like the imperial one alot here at work for bending copper and steel lines and it works nice. I would just recommend getting some extra tubing to play with so you can get used to it a bit first then after that you should be golden

 

I've got the Lisle, the last one listed at work. It's "ok" but I suspect the others would be better. The Lisle is hard if not impossible to do compound curves with and can't do switch back bends close together. Basically good for bends in a straight line or far apart. Nickmil

 

I use the first one, mine turned out like this;

 

Slightly off-topic.

I always heard not to use aluminum line for brakes or fuel because of the fatigue factor. What is everyones experience with it?

 

it depends where and how its used.

the runs i was making were very short, with very little load on them....so i wasnt worried about using alum. in this instance.

for the longer runs like tank to pump, I will use steel or stainless without a doubt.

brakes, i would stick to steel....I dont have any data to support that aluminum would fatigue and split in this application, i just think that if my life is depending on my brakes, i dont want to risk it, so i'd use the best material possible.

 

Another vote for option #1. I've got one, and it does a pretty good job. You just need to practice with it a bit to get the hang of it.

It comes with a couple of different size dies, so you can go from brake to fuel lines in a few seconds.

 

Another one for option # 1.
I use one like that almost every day at work on air compressor repair.
I did wear one out after about 10 years, the pivet got loose but that was after 1000's of bends.
Make sure you get one that has a 5/16 slot. Alot have 3/16-1/4-3/8 only.

Andrew

 

I'll freeze this computer if I open the links, but I know plumpers use this spring looking thing to bend copper, good clean bends. It may be your ticket?

 

Those work great on tube with at least one end free of a fitting or flare. If you are trying to bend tube that already has both ends flared it's hard to impossible to get them over the fitting. Nickmil

 

I stand corrected.
Carry on fellas!

 

I like the #2 option. I have one like it and have had good success with it. Simple to use. Definitely practice with the new tool.........