I guess I'd tend to agree with fellow Triumph sufferer and friend RMB III in
perhaps not considering copper for daily and/or other hard use, mostly
because that seems to be a common opinion. For limited use vehicles, though, I
have no problem whatsoever with using them. When I first acquired my
Mayflower c. 1986, what brake lines even remained on the car were so
bodged up that there was little hope of even getting good patterns from same
and
little hope of determining what fittings were original. (Priscilla, the
Mayflowe
, BTW, uses all Lockheed brakes: Spridget front wheel cylinders, TR2/3 rear
wheel cylinders, and SAAB 95 [wagon] rear brake shoes all 'round -- a
fascinatin
combination of relatively easy-to-get pieces!)
Coincidentally, at the time Thoroughbred and Classic Cars magazine ran an offer
from a company called AUTOMEC (?) for complete brake pipe sets in
copper, all pipes to size, proper fittings, etc. at what seemed a very
reasonable price. I received the package in due course, with a note of
apology saying that they did not have patterns for LHD Mayflowers, but we hope
all will fit, etc. etc. Fortunately, LHD and RHD brake systems are a virtual
mirror image, so there was no problem.
It was a pleasure to be able to easily bend and shape the pipes to what I
assumed were the original contours; installation was very easy and all
pieces were of excellent quality.
Regarding threads and fittings on brake pipes, hoses, etc., my experience with
many LBCs of varying vintage leads me to speculate that Girling made the switch
to SAE (or whatever you call Yankee-style thread sizes) much
sooner than did Lockheed. I never had any problems going to local parts
stores to get Bundyflex with correct double-flair fittings to replace
lines on my Triumphs, most of which have used Girling over the years. I'm not
so
sure when/if Lockheed make the switch.
I also recall, though, that some metric stuff began to find its way onto some
LBCs beginning in the early 1970s, but I can't back that recollection up at the
moment with any evidence.
Andy Mace, VTR Herald/Vitesse Consultant
amace%sedofis@vm1.nysed.gov
Driving my Subaru away from cold this morning at -25 degrees F. felt an
awful lot like driving the Mayflower on a mild summer day ;-)
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