I am looking for pics from anyone that has run TS Flightline fuel lines from the valve to outside the fuselage. Specifically how it ran through those front brackets and what was used as a bushing? Thanks all.
Arnie
Arnie
Van's Air Force
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Fuel lines
- Thread starter AlphaCharlieBravo
- Start date
hoyden
Well Known Member
I installed the TS fuel lines in my RV-9 last month. I bought a 25mm chassis punch to enlarge the holes in the front brackets and the fuselage skins to accept AN931-6-16 rubber grommets. I placed the enlarged hole as best I could in the brackets to best fit where they intersect the existing holes. I slit the grommets on one side to fit them over the braided tubing.
Thank you for the response.... I am sending you a PM.
Arnie
Arnie
Attachments
Thank you Tom
I have the straight straight ends I just received from you. I knew I would have to enlarge the holes in the brackets but with the little bracket it will cut into the hole next to it. Just looking for pics as to how the line goes through the bracket. Looks like I could enlarge the hole incorporating the smaller hole on bottom. I'll think about it. Thanks for your response.
I have the straight straight ends I just received from you. I knew I would have to enlarge the holes in the brackets but with the little bracket it will cut into the hole next to it. Just looking for pics as to how the line goes through the bracket. Looks like I could enlarge the hole incorporating the smaller hole on bottom. I'll think about it. Thanks for your response.
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What did you end up doing? I’m at that point now…. Does centering a larger hole (step drill) work? Can't move the hole too much given the last part of the fuel line (near the valve) is rigid.
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SquawkVFR
Active Member
The grommets in the brackets in the cockpit are AN931-7-11. Don't route the hoses through the bottom hole if you have a tricycle - they will not clear the landing gear weldment, and you'll end up needing to use silicone tape and/or some kind of hose sleeving to protect the steel braid from sawing your gear in half. Generally - you don't want the braid to touch anything other than rubber grommets, because the vibration while flying will turn that braid into a power sander and grind through anything it touches.
You should also know that these hoses are much fatter than aluminum tubing, so if your tunnel is packed like mine with a bunch of tubing and wiring, it's gonna be a very tight squeeze in there. You should also know that these hoses really like to be straight. Even though they're flexible, once I had them routed through the grommets in the side of the fuselage, their tendency to want to straighten out caused the grommets to start getting pushed out. The hoses themselves are very nice, but they created more issues for my plane than they solved. I have since removed these lines and went with aluminum tubing with a couple extra union fittings to make it work.
P.S - disregard that busted snap bushing for the wiring bundle - that's since been replaced.
You should also know that these hoses are much fatter than aluminum tubing, so if your tunnel is packed like mine with a bunch of tubing and wiring, it's gonna be a very tight squeeze in there. You should also know that these hoses really like to be straight. Even though they're flexible, once I had them routed through the grommets in the side of the fuselage, their tendency to want to straighten out caused the grommets to start getting pushed out. The hoses themselves are very nice, but they created more issues for my plane than they solved. I have since removed these lines and went with aluminum tubing with a couple extra union fittings to make it work.
P.S - disregard that busted snap bushing for the wiring bundle - that's since been replaced.
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SquawkVFR
Active Member
Because this was a retrofit to the plane after I bought it, I contemplated the best way to enlarge the hole. I considered removing the brackets, but I would have had to pull all the wiring and tubing that ran through them - a monumental task. In the end, I decided to do it with a dremel end mill by hand, because using a step drill would have been impossible due to the landing gear weldment being in the way. I did the best I could, but that end mill really likes to bounce around in the hole. The holes turned out awful-looking and way out of round, but they were functional.
P.S - the silicone tape on the landing gear weldment was damaged by the steel braid while removing the TS flightlines hoses. The weldment itself is just fine and undamaged by the end mill.
Doing the outboard brackets isnt hard---just unscrew them from the spar, then hold them, I use a unibit to enlarge the hole. On the inboard ones, use some downward and forward pressure to effectively 'move' the hole as youre enlarging it. Again, not as hard as it looks.
Tom
SquawkVFR
Active Member
It's easy during the build for sure. Upgrading the lines on a flying plane - not so much. You can't "just uncrew them from the spar" because there is a bundle of wires and brake line tubing going through the holes that would need to be removed before you could remove the brackets. That's a massive project that would take at least 80 hours, because you'd have to de-pin a bunch of connectors, pull apart the instrument panel, open up all the covers and panels for the tunnel, unbundle the instrument panel wiring harness, etc. Then you'd have another monumental task of terminating all those wires back to their connectors, breakers, etc. You'd have to bend all new brake lines, flare the ends, re-fill and bleed the brake lines, etc. Way too much work on a flying plane.
You don't have to disconnect all those lines - you just need enough relative movement, with the bracket "unscrewed from the spar" to get access to the bracket with a drill and unibit. There is no requirement for the actual drilling to take place on your workbench.
Greg is correct---I was kinda referring to an initial install, but even a retrofit is fairly easy if you plan it.
SquawkVFR
Active Member
Mmmmm, I'm not sure. I have aluminum brake lines running through mine. Even if the wire bundle had slack in it, the brake lines don't, so it just wasn't a good option for me.
