300zx Master Cylinder in S14---bending lines.

[romeobrood]

Hey guys, I have been doing some research and it seems like the only way to install the 300zx MC is to bend the brake lines to fit. I was wondering if there any thing i can buy or is there any way out of bending it to make it work? i know it fits in the S13 with no bending, can i swap the S13 lines into the S14 to make it work? Any help would be great. Thanks

-Kim

[Dousan_PG]

WHY?
bending it takes 2 seconds

its so easy.

[The Chad]

buy a tube bender from Advance Auto or whomever. I used a manual one, but they have several styles for many gauges of tubing. Pick one and TAKE YOUR TIME!!!!! If you rush it and crimp a line, then you get to flange and tack in another piece of line...no fun. I took my time and had no problems. There is a write-up on this....search "The Definitive 300ZX Brake Swap" in Google. That write-up is a good visual for where to bend the lines, i did it to the "T" and it worked perfectly!! Good luck bud!! :)

[garagelu]

you dont need a tubing bender. Benders are only needed for sharp turns and stuff. Just use your hand and bend it. It is not a hard task at all.

[koukimatt]

Best help I can give you:

http://importnut.net/300zxbrakeswap.htm
Read and read again before you get started.


The hardline is soft enough you can bend it with your hands. Don't try to turn it too tight... diameter of your wrist or so.

Get a bubble flare tool to make fittings on the hardlines. If you don't, you'll have to cut up one of the connectors on your stock 240SX MC and steal one of the removable fittings out of it, which is tricky and kinda dangerous with a Dremel. Voice of experience... I'm pretty sure a bubble flair tool would be a lot less headache. (See pics on the guide I linked to.)

You can put the 240SX MC fluid reservoir on the 300ZX MC. That way you don't have to splice any wires. (Again, check the guide.)

[theronin]

seriously i wasted my money with a bender when i did my first brake swap. you simply do not need it. just use your hands and its cake.

[mt2forty]

ditto x 10...if you're really paranoid, just go reallllly slow and use really gentle bends. It's seriously a 2 minute job done easily by hand...

[Jung918]

just make sure you do not bent it too much in one location. Run along the tube making gradual bends.

[MAGILLA]

I am with them. no tools needed. just a slow and steady hand. I did mine with no tool in less than 3 min.s and it looks great and works better. just a side note make sure you bench bleed the bmc. trust me it saves time.

[The Chad]

Well fine then :), I used a bender to be safe, but i guess it's not necc. I did not use the flare tool though. I used a Dremmel and got out the fitting from the stock BMC and tapped it into the Z32 unit. Took all of 2 mins to cut it out. But that's just what i did. As you can see from the posts, there are a couple diff ways of doing this, So i suppose pick one and good luck!

[g6civcx]

Another option is braided lines to replace the hardlines. I know a lot of people don't like it and for your application I don't think it's necessary, but it's an acceptable alternative if you have no other option.

Before you flame me, there is no way I could use hardlines on my engine due to the motor being moved back 3" and having a distributor sticking out on the firewall. So in some situations it's justified.

[The Chad]

A fellow Virginian???And good info.

[sncs14]

When I first put the Z32 BMC in my car I hand bent all the lines and it worked fine. A month or so back I got some flaring tools, a tubing cutter, and a tube bending tool. Everything looks a lot better now that I've shortened the lines and rebent them, even though it took a while to get everything to my liking the second time around.

[ManoNegra]

Hand bended lines when I did one years ago, worked fine.

[MAGILLA]

Another option is braided lines to replace the hardlines. I know a lot of people don't like it and for your application I don't think it's necessary, but it's an acceptable alternative if you have no other option.

Before you flame me, there is no way I could use hardlines on my engine due to the motor being moved back 3" and having a distributor sticking out on the firewall. So in some situations it's justified.


That is the first valid argument I have heard for using full braided ss lines from bmc back. most people just want to do it for the cool factor not realizing that braided lines wear out at some point and must be changed.

sounds expensive. How much was it if you don't mind me asking?

[UNISA JECS]

Has anyone looked into actually getting custom stainless steel lines made with the appropriate fittings to accomplish the re-connect (extension) to the master instead of bending ?

[Dream240]

Has anyone looked into actually getting custom stainless steel lines made with the appropriate fittings to accomplish the re-connect (extension) to the master instead of bending ?


S13 brake lines work almost perfect. The only PITA is the front passenger brake line. Removing the old is easy, but manipulating the new line around the AC lines is a bitch. Also you will need to straighten out the end of the line going to the rears and trim about 3 inches off of it so it fits perfectly into the rear brake line connector on the firewall heading under the car. Also you will need to flare that end after cutting so it will work.

Really sounds like alot but it's freaking cake. I did this setup in my old 96' and it worked alot better than the re-bending method. Mainly due to the improved routing and the lines occupy less open space on the turbo side! Really just meant for easier engine bay work. And it looks cleaner.

Your choice.

[UNISA JECS]

S13 brake lines work almost perfect. The only PITA is the front passenger brake line. Removing the old is easy, but manipulating the new line around the AC lines is a bitch. Also you will need to straighten out the end of the line going to the rears and trim about 3 inches off of it so it fits perfectly into the rear brake line connector on the firewall heading under the car. Also you will need to flare that end after cutting so it will work.

Really sounds like alot but it's freaking cake. I did this setup in my old 96' and it worked alot better than the re-bending method. Mainly due to the improved routing and the lines occupy less open space on the turbo side! Really just meant for easier engine bay work. And it looks cleaner.

Your choice.

Im just suggesting this for others I have a S13.

[HyperTek]

i had to make some hardlines for my fc.. used a spray can as a surface and slowly bent lines.. works great

[Slidin240Wayz]

Has anyone looked into actually getting custom stainless steel lines made with the appropriate fittings to accomplish the re-connect (extension) to the master instead of bending ?

SPL does great things.

Z32 Rear conversion line.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y264/Cdoria/Drift%20S14/DSC00544.jpg

[The Chad]

^^Cheater, ha. looks good man.

[CoasTek240]

SPL Z32 Rear conversion line ftw!

[420sx]

easier and cheaper to bend

[g6civcx]

You can see my custom braided lines:

http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/7228/enginelp4.jpg

The previous owner spray painted the entire car. You can see indentations on the firewall where the old lines used to run. There was no way to keep the hardline and move the motor back that far.

One benefit was the ability to unbolt the master cylinder and move it around when working, like changing a booster. No need to bleed brakes when removing a master cylinder. It makes it much easier to service the car.

[The Chad]

Next step...V8 Swap :) Looks nice with everything tucked away and
re-routed!! +1 for inspiring me!

[Slidin240Wayz]

easier and cheaper to bend

I did, but the line was bent at 90 degrees and it was 1mm away from the manifold.

Now I have an inch of room.

[g6civcx]

That is the first valid argument I have heard for using full braided ss lines from bmc back. most people just want to do it for the cool factor not realizing that braided lines wear out at some point and must be changed.

sounds expensive. How much was it if you don't mind me asking?

The lines and fittings themselves aren't expensive. I would guess around $200 at most if you bought from a retail store.

The real work is in routing the lines. I have mine going into the passenger compartment and running along where the hatch/fuel release is, and out near where the driver seatbelt bolts onto the car.

I wanted to protect the rear line as much as possible, and make it easier to route to a hydro handbrake later on, but you don't have to route it inside the car.

[jskateborders]

Rental Tubing bender from autozone.... 13 dollars
After your done return it.... 13 dollars back

[g6civcx]

Rental Tubing bender from autozone.... 13 dollars
After your done return it.... 13 dollars back

That's the best way if you can get away with just bending it. There's no real advantage to braided lines unless it's absolutely necessary.