brazing a hydraulic line

escavader · Oct 31, 2005

DONT DO WHAT I DID
I broke one of the nipples right off the hydro pump/tank on my old fisher plow.Igot a new end ,and arc welded it on.[i didnt have torches] It oozed just a little all last winter,until the last storm,when one of them little peices of slag fell out,during the last storm.NEEDLESS TO SAY I THE ENGIN COMPATRMENT OF THAT OLD FORD AINT GONNA RUST NO TIME SOON /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
ALAN

Soundguy · Nov 1, 2005

( You might want to read up on silver soldering, aka silver brazing ... it's pretty strong ... nothing like soft-solder )

Ditto.. Many double barrel shotguns are silver soldered between the barrels.

( , around these parts, lead in solder, for potable water, has been outlawed for a long time .. )

Also ditto..Around here, No lead in plumbing solder for over a decade.. probably twice that.

I have used propane torch and silver bearing solder to sweat pipes.. not as easy as old leak solder.. but it works. Mapp torch does it fine too.

Soundguy

RichNJKubota · Nov 1, 2005

I've used regular brazing and silver solder for repairing old rusted steel hydraulic lines. Done it for many many years and it always works.

Rich

Farwell · Nov 1, 2005

I worked for the Southern Pacific Rail Road when I was a kid and we used a product called Gold Floss to fasten hydraulic fittings together. It was similar to brazing but much stronger. The fittings were used on hydraulic motors that would drive very large fans at the rear of the locomotives.
I would think that real Silver Solder should work. The fittings do have to be very clean and accessible to get the best results.
Farwell

coloradotrout · Nov 7, 2005

Just to clarify.. I don't have a fitting to seal, just the connection from the probably 1/4" line to the connector that then bolts (w/ o-ring) to the hydraulic pump. Somewhere at the pt where the line is attached to the connector I have a 2-3 drop per minute leak. I was just hoping to heat up the whole area and lay some solder/braze around it and see what happens.

Soundguy · Nov 7, 2005

If you do it assembled.. I'll bet you have a 99.9999999999999999999999999999999999999%
chance of cooking the oring.

Soundguy

coloradotrout · Nov 7, 2005

Ah.. so there's a chance it will be OK ;-)

I was planning to remove the connector from pump and pull o-ring. That 'end' is easy to get to. The other end is a bear.. I'm hoping I can pull it out from the motor/chassis and get enough heat on it to melt the solder w/o frying other stuff in the area.

slowzuki · Nov 7, 2005

So why is this fitting 250$? It sounds like a max 20$ fitting? Most hydraulic supply stores have hundreds of fittings, few would ever hit 250$ except like 2" fittings... Most will even crimp it on the hose for you for free.

Sounds like a plain o-ring boss (orb) fitting...

Bill_M · Nov 7, 2005

Colorado, yes you can silver solder the line to stop your leak. It is best to make a small patch out of some sheet metal or another piece of tubing close to the same thickness and actually solder that over the hole. This will give you much more surface area / strength than solder alone. The strength comes from the solder's "glueing ability". This was recommended by the hydraulic supply shop who we use at work and also the mechanics in our shop. ( We among other things, install hydraulic systems in trucks.)