Bending "old" lister fuel delivery tube

[Stan]

I'd like to bend the fuel delivery tube on Penelope to give more clearance from the flywheel.  It's the one from the fuel tank to the filter.  On the radiator models, it goes straight down about 4" then curves out and around to the filter which is situated between the exhaust and intake manifolds.

It seems very stiff to me and I don't want to screw it up by bending it wrong.

What's the best method of doing that.  (it's steel btw.)
Stan

[contaucreek]

Your local princess Auto or the equivalent should sell a small radius bender that they use for brake lines, I have seen them before. Be aware that you may change the "length" of your line though and then you have grief !!

[Stan]

Yes and I would imagine over the last 50 years or so the line might have gotten a little more susceptible to breaking or is that only copper line.
Stan

[contaucreek]

A new line is only a click away. My W.A.G. would be that the line should bend O.K.  You are on a long-term project Stan so I wouldn't be afraid to play a bit. I have run into the situation where the brackets for an Indian tank from a single position the tank in the way of my #2 injector line on my twin so I have to make new brackets up to stand the tank off slightly more, beats bending the line around

[AdeV73]

I'd like to bend the fuel delivery tube on Penelope to give more clearance from the flywheel.  It's the one from the fuel tank to the filter.  On the radiator models, it goes straight down about 4" then curves out and around to the filter which is situated between the exhaust and intake manifolds.

It seems very stiff to me and I don't want to screw it up by bending it wrong.

What's the best method of doing that.  (it's steel btw.)

Hi Stan,

If I'm reading right, that's the low-pressure pipe; therefore, there's nothing special about it. You could replace it with copper, or even that copper/nickel mix (Kunifer pipe) that doesn't work-harden like copper does. So don't worry about breaking it...

Being steel, it doesn't work harden (although it will fatigue, if you try hard enough). If you keep the bend radius quite large, you should be able to bend it just using your hands; if you want it to snake around the place in nice 90 degree corners, however, you'd be best getting a pipe bending tool... Just get a strong one in this case, as steel's not so easy to move around as copper.

Good luck!

[Tom]

The "old fashioned" way to bend lines with out kinking was to fill them with sand. I recently had to bend some 1" od .150 wall copper tubing for work and we did it this way. It worked better than I expected. Note: be sure to remove ALL sand before using. 

[Stan]

Tnx everyone....I won't get a chance to play around with it for a couple of days (son laid up with knee operation somehow trumps "playing" with "that machine").  I'm not too worried about buggering it up because it is the low pressure line and can be replaced.  I already had to cut the line from the filter to the pump because the Indian pump won't accept the original banjo fitting.  But I did keep the discarded end of the line for eventual replacement when I get around to it I'll order an original pump from the UK.
Stan

[lendusaquid]

Two flat plates and a disk the same thickness as the line bolted together. Bend around the disk and the two plates will stop the line from collapsing.

[Stan]

Gotcha!
Stan

[listeroil]

Fill the pipe with solder bend to shape and then melt the solder back out of it.

[t19]

Wow, simple and cool... would have never thought of doing that, I figured they used sand... Im sure the Indians do LOL