Mid-year brake line replacement

[Carl R.]

Just a quick question before I start removing things I should refrain from...

Is it possible to replace the long front-to-left block brake line on a 1967 car without removing/lifting the body structure? I have found the rear crossover line to have encountered someone in the past and shall require replacement; insofar as I have replaced every other brake line (unfortunately in a piecemeal fashion) on the car and shall need to bleed the rear section anyway, is this feasible? Or another case of my "trying-to-fix-what-isn't-broken"?

Thanks!

Carl

[Joe L.]

Re: Mid-year brake line replacement

Carl----

I do not believe that it is feasible to remove and replace the 63-67 front-to-rear brake line without removing the body from the chassis.

[Joe L.]

Re: Mid-year brake line replacement

Carl----

I do not believe that it is feasible to remove and replace the 63-67 front-to-rear brake line without removing the body from the chassis.

[Tony H.]

Re: Mid-year brake line replacement

I recently replace all my brake lines on my 1970. To do the job absolutely correctly, I would have had to (partially) lift the body to get some of the support straps off. However, I cheated and cut through a few of the metal support straps in such a way as to allow the strap to be bent open to remove the brake line and bent back to its original position over the new brake line once it was in place. If you look very closely, you can see the break in the those brake support straps, otherwise it fine. Take a close look at all of the line straps before you dive in on this job. By the way, I used a 1/4-inch wood chisle and hammer to cut through two of the straps.

[Tony H.]

Re: Mid-year brake line replacement

I recently replace all my brake lines on my 1970. To do the job absolutely correctly, I would have had to (partially) lift the body to get some of the support straps off. However, I cheated and cut through a few of the metal support straps in such a way as to allow the strap to be bent open to remove the brake line and bent back to its original position over the new brake line once it was in place. If you look very closely, you can see the break in the those brake support straps, otherwise it fine. Take a close look at all of the line straps before you dive in on this job. By the way, I used a 1/4-inch wood chisle and hammer to cut through two of the straps.

[Carl R.]

Re: Mid-year brake line replacement

Thanks yall!

Once again the corvette gods have prevented me from doing something dumb. Over the years I have worked on most parts of this car, but some still fall under the "Thaar be monsters" heading...

Carl

[Carl R.]

Re: Mid-year brake line replacement

Thanks yall!

Once again the corvette gods have prevented me from doing something dumb. Over the years I have worked on most parts of this car, but some still fall under the "Thaar be monsters" heading...

Carl

[Wayne M.]

Re: Front-to-rear brake line, 66/67 vs 63-65

Carl, don't give up yet. The long brake line positon changed after '65 from along the top of the frame rail to high inside on the frame rail (similar to the fuel line) for 2 reasons, (IMO). First, as you mention, the impossibility to replace without lifting the body, and second, to reduce the chance of tubing corrosion, as salt and dust accumulate on the top rail. Although I haven't done this job on a '66 or '67, I see no reason why you shouldn't be able to thread the new line through the middle frame cross-member (try starting from the rear if the front doesn't work). Best to work high on a hoist, be patient, and have a helper (& second opinion on how to rotate/swing).

I've been there on a '65 -- had to jack up the body on driver's side because of the tight corner at the rear frame kick-up, and as a bonus there are 2 line to kick-up clamps in there that are near impossible to get at otherwise.

I'd be interested to hear what others have encountered.

[Wayne M.]

Re: Front-to-rear brake line, 66/67 vs 63-65

Carl, don't give up yet. The long brake line positon changed after '65 from along the top of the frame rail to high inside on the frame rail (similar to the fuel line) for 2 reasons, (IMO). First, as you mention, the impossibility to replace without lifting the body, and second, to reduce the chance of tubing corrosion, as salt and dust accumulate on the top rail. Although I haven't done this job on a '66 or '67, I see no reason why you shouldn't be able to thread the new line through the middle frame cross-member (try starting from the rear if the front doesn't work). Best to work high on a hoist, be patient, and have a helper (& second opinion on how to rotate/swing).

I've been there on a '65 -- had to jack up the body on driver's side because of the tight corner at the rear frame kick-up, and as a bonus there are 2 line to kick-up clamps in there that are near impossible to get at otherwise.

I'd be interested to hear what others have encountered.

[Dave Koch]

Re: Mid-year brake line replacement

Carl, I replaced all the brake lines on my 66 last summer. There was no need to lift the body. It was a little tight, but I was able to get a wrench on the clips. The front to back line was a little tricky to install, but with a little finessing I was able to to snake it through the bends. I got a set of lines from ZIP.

Dave

[Dave Koch]

Re: Mid-year brake line replacement

Carl, I replaced all the brake lines on my 66 last summer. There was no need to lift the body. It was a little tight, but I was able to get a wrench on the clips. The front to back line was a little tricky to install, but with a little finessing I was able to to snake it through the bends. I got a set of lines from ZIP.

Dave

[Lawrence C.]

Re: Mid-year brake line replacement

Carl,

I replaced all the lines on my '66 coupe last winter, and it is doable without cutting anything or lifting the body. Since I was replacing all the lines, I cut the lines entering that rear junction block (about 1/2 inch from the block) and then removed the block from the car, where I could carefully remove the line remnants from the block. I then removed all the old lines. I fished the new front-to back line up over the cross member (from the front) and through some patient maneuvering and very slight bending of the line was able to cause the back end of the line to protrude about 1-2 inches to the rear of it's normal position when mounted to the junction block. This gave me just enough room to connect it to the junction block. Once it was tight, I slid the line forward, and was easily able to connect the other two new rear lines to the block (which come in from the sides) and then re-mount the block. This advice was given me by a local professional. It looks daunting but really did not take that long.

Larry

[Lawrence C.]

Re: Mid-year brake line replacement

Carl,

I replaced all the lines on my '66 coupe last winter, and it is doable without cutting anything or lifting the body. Since I was replacing all the lines, I cut the lines entering that rear junction block (about 1/2 inch from the block) and then removed the block from the car, where I could carefully remove the line remnants from the block. I then removed all the old lines. I fished the new front-to back line up over the cross member (from the front) and through some patient maneuvering and very slight bending of the line was able to cause the back end of the line to protrude about 1-2 inches to the rear of it's normal position when mounted to the junction block. This gave me just enough room to connect it to the junction block. Once it was tight, I slid the line forward, and was easily able to connect the other two new rear lines to the block (which come in from the sides) and then re-mount the block. This advice was given me by a local professional. It looks daunting but really did not take that long.

Larry