Earl's fittings question

[peetiewonder]

hey guys i got a quick quesiton on earl's fittings is there a specific order you are supposed to put things on or a certain way to make sure that they dont leak? any help appreciated thanks.

[g6civcx]

Possibly. Earl's makes many different types of connectors. I have no idea which one you're talking about.

When in doubt, contact the manufacturer directly. See what they have to say to you.

[peetiewonder]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Earls-Aeroquip-240sx-Power-Steering-Hose-S13-S14_W0QQitemZ110404841931QQcmdZViewItemQQptZMotors _Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories?hash=item19b4a431cb&_trksid=p4506.c0.m245&_trkparms=65%3A12|39%3A1|72%3A1171|240%3A1318

[WildAsDaTaliban]

hey not trying to thread jack but i'm replacing my power steering hoses too. what is the advantage of this over oem replacement hoses? could i get replacement hoses at any auto store?

[garagelu]

if its NPT, just put some thread sealer on it. If its AN, don't put anything at all.

[g6civcx]

From the link: "To ensure there are no leaks thread sealer must be used between the fittings and Rack and Power Steering pump."

Contact Earl's directly and ask them how you're supposed to tighten the fittings.

[Def]

From the link: "To ensure there are no leaks thread sealer must be used between the fittings and Rack and Power Steering pump."

Contact Earl's directly and ask them how you're supposed to tighten the fittings.

Those guys are idiots.

You just need a crush washer or o-ring between the metric straight fittings and the pump and rack(they are probably included). The AN flared hose ends seal with no additional parts.

[zylvia213]

hey not trying to thread jack but i'm replacing my power steering hoses too. what is the advantage of this over oem replacement hoses? could i get replacement hoses at any auto store?

I got this from MA Motorsports for $140.00 shipped. I know I know its a lot of money but shit works like a charm and they buy all the materials hose, AN fittings and what not from EARL's. EARL'S is located here in lawndale cali and before i bought this hose i went to go ask him personally how much would he make the same exact hose replacing the OEM nissan one and he told me a quote of a minimum of $300..... I told him dude some guy on the 240 forums gets this stuff from you and he is selling them for $140 shipped, he said "dam thats a good deal... i would just buy it from him"... so i did and i dont regret it. The OEM ones are to dam expensive and they will eventually leak. Check out the link below.

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j288/bre240z/small2.jpg


240sx power steering line drift Mamsparts.com (http://www.mamsparts.com/product_info.php?products_id=37760)

[peetiewonder]

the one i picked up is from ebay, the same thing as the ma-motorsports ones. nothing against ma-motorsports, but i couldnt justify the extra 50 dollars for a sticker in the package.

[GSXRJJordan]

1st) I'm a huge fan of Tom (the guy who runs Earl's in Lawndale/Hawthorne), but he's a dick. I'm a bit of an engineer, a fabricator, racer, etc and he talks down to me every time I ask anything (mostly advice, in the nicest most respectful way ever). It's getting on my nerves after a couple of years ~ he knows me by name for Christ's sake, and is still a prick.

2nd) *This is for Def* the power steering OEM high-pressure fitting uses an O-ring at a much deeper point than a standard M12 O-ring fitting - this is why you need thread sealer.

3rd) The only thread sealer I trust is Permatex's "High Temperature" white tube/red label. It's the only one that's petroleum safe and can take the high pressure. Apply a little bead at the tip of the fitting right behind the O-ring and thread it in. Because it's an O-ring fitting, only go about a quarter of a turn after 'hand tight'... then...

4th) The flared (AN) hose attaches with no thread sealant, but you have to be careful not to overtorque it. I say tighten it until you rotate the lower (o-ring) fitting another quarter turn or so, and leave it. On the pump side, install similarly, and torque similarly - general rule of thumb is that if the line starts twisting, you're overtorqueing.

5th) Enjoy baller power steering line, and hopefully you won't have leaks from the rack or the pump.

[g6civcx]

I'm a big fan of Taka Motorsports (http://www.takamotorsports.com/)

I have to use custom power steering lines as well on my V8. Harp at Taka was very helpful and custom fabricated a line for me.

There is no talking down even when I ask remedial questions.

[Def]

2nd) *This is for Def* the power steering OEM high-pressure fitting uses an O-ring at a much deeper point than a standard M12 O-ring fitting - this is why you need thread sealer.


I know what the factory setup looks like, it still doesn't change the fact that the straight thread metric fitting seals at the bottom of the hex through pressure - end of story. Thread sealant on a straight thread is stupid, if it isn't sealed upstream it's only going to leak eventually and make a mess as your thread sealant turns to goo over time by sitting in ATF.

The thread sealant doesn't do JACK on a straight thread, the threads are not forming a sealing surface like in a tapered thread.


The factory setup has two sealing surfaces(for reliability), the o-ring and a crush washer, as typically a crush washer might need to be tightened up if it's subjected to severe vibration and heat cycling. No point in gooping up the metric straight threads with thread sealant for no reason(other than ignorance).

[GSXRJJordan]

I know what the factory setup looks like, it still doesn't change the fact that the straight thread metric fitting seals at the bottom of the hex through pressure - end of story. Thread sealant on a straight thread is stupid, if it isn't sealed upstream it's only going to leak eventually and make a mess as your thread sealant turns to goo over time by sitting in ATF.

The thread sealant doesn't do JACK on a straight thread, the threads are not forming a sealing surface like in a tapered thread.

The factory setup has two sealing surfaces(for reliability), the o-ring and a crush washer, as typically a crush washer might need to be tightened up if it's subjected to severe vibration and heat cycling. No point in gooping up the metric straight threads with thread sealant for no reason(other than ignorance).

Burn. It's true that thread sealant isn't designed to seal straight threads, but when I saw how much different the metric O-ring fitting was from the OEM one, I wanted to do anything I could. I don't remember if I found a crush washer the right size to put in there or not.

Regardless, no leaks, no thread sealant pushed out, if I'm just lucky, I'll take it.

[peetiewonder]

i put thread sealer on the one at the pump and it stopped the leakage. now time to put it on the fitting at the rack and i should be in business. the thing that sucked was that i was at the track today and kept losing my PS, but hopefully the thread sealer will remedy the rack fitting like it has the pump one.

[Matej]

There is a nice-looking Russell line on Ebay right now.
S13 240SX SR20DET DOHC High Press Power Steering line:eBay Motors (item 320417665720 end time Sep-07-09 10:17:53 PDT) (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/S13-240SX-SR20DET-DOHC-High-Press-Power-Steering-line_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQh ashZitem4a9a6192b8QQitemZ320417665720QQptZMotorsQ5 fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories)

There used to be a seller selling similar-looking braided lines, but I never see them on there anymore. Hopefully they will pop up again someday.

I do not really like the Aeroquip/MA Motorsports line because it is blue, haha.

[GSXRJJordan]

There is a nice-looking Russell line on Ebay right now.
S13 240SX SR20DET DOHC High Press Power Steering line:eBay Motors (item 320417665720 end time Sep-07-09 10:17:53 PDT) (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/S13-240SX-SR20DET-DOHC-High-Press-Power-Steering-line_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQh ashZitem4a9a6192b8QQitemZ320417665720QQptZMotorsQ5 fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories)

There used to be a seller selling similar-looking braided lines, but I never see them on there anymore. Hopefully they will pop up again someday.

I do not really like the Aeroquip/MA Motorsports line because it is blue, haha.

Hung @ Baker Precision sells something exactly like that (SS line with fittings, then the fittings to go into the PS pump and rack) for $80, plus people local to Socal can pick it up.

[Mirage]

I've found that the russells metric O-ring fittings work the best for our steering rack, and the regular metric fitting for the pump. The O-ring is further in, alot closer to stock, and the hex flats are a larger size so you have more surface area on a crush washer/stat-o-seal/dowty seal.

Any hose/hydraulic shop can build you a PS line cheaper than there being sold online, your just paying for convenience, not knocking any of these companies, but sometimes it helps to have local support. It could be dirt cheap if you used industrial high pressure hose with brass/steel fittings. Mine is aeroquip ps hose, aeroquip steel hose ends, and russells metric adapters. I checked to see what my local shop had in stock, ordered what they didn't have from summit, and they assembled my 3 lines (running a cooler setup) for free. This guy has always assembled my lines and a couple of my friends lines for free, even if we take him all the parts just because we use him a lot.

If you don't like the blue you can just use silver heat sleave to cover it.

To the OP, you install the metric adapters first, then the hose ends, don't over tighten either.

[peetiewonder]

i did install the adapters first. the adapters is where my leaks were coming from so i redid the pump adapter and put thread sealer on it, that stopped my leak, im going to put thread sealer on the rack adapter and hopefully that will make everything copacetic

[Def]

If you don't cover that blue braided hydraulic hose with a hose "fire sleeve," make sure you keep it from rubbing on anything in the engine bay. That braid is not abrasion resistant, and if it wears through the hose doesn't have near the pressure capacity it is rated for.

[peetiewonder]

what kind of fire sleeve should i use to cover it? something like a thermal wrap? or one of those foam covers like what is on the OEM stuff?

[GSXRJJordan]

what kind of fire sleeve should i use to cover it? something like a thermal wrap? or one of those foam covers like what is on the OEM stuff?

Earl's sells "Flame Guard", it's kind of an aerospace industry standard. Fiberglass cloth inside, with an abrasion-resistant outer, perfect for keeping hot stuff out (or in) and giving your SS braided line a vibration/abrasion barrier.
AN PLUMBING.COM Earls performance products, Hose ends Hose,Adapters, fittings (http://www.anplumbing.com/shop/index.php?shop=Accessories&dept=Flame!_Guard)
http://www.anplumbing.com/shop/images/730006.jpg