RV-9A: Fuselage Plumbing - 2/3/2010
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 Started on the Brake Lines
I thought the fuel vent lines were tough, but the brake lines win the boobie prize for being the biggest pain in the arss. I started out by going in through the middle section under the fuel switch, but then realized that I wouldn't have room to do the flare on the end of the tube that goes out to the brakes. Back it out, back it out... cuss, cuss, cuss, Ah! I feel better know. I knew then that I had to go ahead and put on the fittings and do the flare ahead of time on the brake end of the tubing and run the tubing from the outside brake fitting, through the gear mount, under the fuel selector valve and out to the front fitting on the firewalll.
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 Here's the other end of the left brake line
This was a piece of cake compared to the other end. You'll notice that I'm making gentle curves instead of the abrupt curves like the ones in the drawings. In my opinion, trying to make sharp turns only gets you in trouble. The more abrupt the turn, the flatter the tubing becomes, and maybe even a kink. The really weird part about this particular run is that I didn't use any kind of tool to make the bends. I found that making gentle small bends all along the tubing with my hands made the trip a lot easier, not having to wrestle with the tube bender spring and the tubing too. I'm not recommending that anyone do this, but it worked for me. Oh yeah! Notice the Facet Pump? It came in today.
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 My version of the foam sandwich
The drawings suggest that you make a "foam sandwich" to hold the three tubing lines apart from each other. I decided to put some self-adhesive 1/4 inch super sounding on the bottom fuselage skin and under the center console cover, not only for soundproofing, but to gently hold the tubing in place and prevent vibration. I am putting 3/8 inch Polyethylene tubing around the 1/4 inch brakes and nothing on the 3/8 inch fuel line. I found the 3/8 inch Polyethylene Tubing at Lowes Lumber and Aircraft Supply. This will keep the lines from touching each other while being held by the foam soundproofing.
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