removing stuck flare or tubing nuts

grumpyvette

Administrator
Staff member
IF youve ever rounded off a flare nut,
fittingseal3.jpg


on a master cylinder, brake caliper,transmission or radiator and you want to prevent it from happening again, theres a simple procedure for getting them loose that works about 90% of the time

IN THE FUTURE WHEN DEALING WITH FLARE NUTS, IF THEY ARE NOT EASILY TURNED, STOP AND FOLLOW THIS PROCEDURE

(1) spray with (this stuff penetrates very quickly and tends to free up stuck threads )
freeall.gif

http://www.freealloil.com/

(2) heat briefly with propane torch, being careful not to damage anything, (this expands the metal)placing a bit of water droplets about an inch or two out on the metal tubing and watching for it to evaporate gives you a guide on heat levels, and a stop heating point.
propanetorch.gif



(3) spray with

freeall.gif

(this stuff penetrates very quickly on the hot threads and tends to free up stuck threads and cool the nut and surrounding area contracting and breaking loose the metal surface contacts )

http://www.freealloil.com/

(4) wait 5 minutes MINIMUM and RE-SPRAY with
http://www.freealloil.com/

(5)spray for a minimum of 5-6 seconds with
http://www.loctitefreezeandrelease.com/
freeze.jpg

http://www.amazon.com/Loctite-Freeze-Re ... B001VXU474
this RAPIDLY contracts the flare nut and it tends to turn easily now that its got lubricant on the threads and its cooled/frozen enough to contract to a smaller diameter, breaking the thread contact grip surface.

and immediately


(6) USE THE CORRECT WRENCH, a tubing or flare nut wrench has far more grip and contact area than a standard open end wrench so its less likely to round off the hex edges


http://www.csnstores.com/asp/show_detai ... ku=IHI1184


flarenut.jpg


before RE-INSTALLING COAT THE THREADS WITH ANTI-SEIZE PASTE, as it tends to prevent future problems
antiseize2.jpg



BTW should you need to replace a rounded off flare nut,
youll need a flare tool (they come in 37 and 45 degree styles so look carefully)
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/OTC-6503/
flaretoolkit.jpg



a tubing cutter
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/SUM-900500/
tubingcutter.jpg




and a new flare nut, of the correct type and size

flarenuts2.jpg


http://www.summitracing.com/parts/SUM-220215/?rtype=10


read this thread
viewtopic.php?f=55&t=1030&p=1973&hilit=+flare#p1973
 
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