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For those bulders and flyers out there who are
about to take on the task of making hoses, here is a bit of information that
could help.
From the Aircraft Spruce catalog:
Hose part #303-4, Aeroquip 303 hose
Hose fittings part #491-4, Aeroquip 491 hose
fittings
The outside of the end of the hose has to be
trimmed up a little to make it thread into the hose socket easier and not pinch
down the interior of the hose. I used a dye grinder (Makita 25,000 RPM) to
carefully trim off some of the fabric weave and clean up the wire
braiding a bit. The hose threads into the socket with left hand
threads.
I tightened (very tightly) an AN fitting into the
hose nut, lubricated the inside of the hose and the nipple threads with
LPS2, and after starting the nipple into the hose/hose socket by
hand, turned it all the way in with a wrench. After bottoming out, back
off a quarter turn to give the hose nut a little play.
The finished hose must be cleaned out
carefully. I found that the nipple would pick up a little of the interior
of the hose and push it ahead as it is threaded in. I used a wire coat
hangar to push out the debris, then poured hydraulic fluid through the hose over
and over, plus blew compressed air through. Sighting through the hose
against a white background checked for a clean, unobstructed hose.
The very thin rubber protective covering on my old
(1989 kit) hoses has become dry and brittle and began to crack and break off
(see picture). I don't view this with great alarm, rather as an ongoing
maintenance task. I have replaced some hoses, and covered other hoses
with a product called "Rescue Tape" to await warmer weather and better working
conditions. My previous postings concerning the rescue tape ignited quite
a flurry of comments.
George Shattuck
LNC2, 1500 hours
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