I have used a professional brake line flaring tool from FedHill now for about 7-8 years and it has never failed to make a perfect flare that seals the first time you assemble the connection. I am now offering it for sale. I've heard the pain in prose from several here in many threads about the agony of making brake lines. This will forever remove the temptation of using old lines when new ones become so easy to make.

Recently Eastwood had a big Black Friday sale (didn't everyone?) and decided to replace it with their similar tool that comes with not only the 45 double flare dies, but an additional 37 deg tooling set that I find myself using more and more when I install AN piping components. My hand held RIGID 37 deg flare tool, while high quality, is not my favorite tool to use.  Thus my old trusty flare tool is now surplus.

It comes with dies for 3/16, 1/4, 5/16 and 3/8 line. I've only ever used the 3/16 dies for brake lines, as I use 37deg flares on the other sizes when doing fuel lines and such as they connect to AN fittings. I only ever used the Cunifer (Copper Nickle Alloy) line with is very soft and very easy on the tooling. All documentation is included. It makes bubble and single flares as well as the standard (for us) double flares. 

Here is what Fed Hill sells now. Mine has their earlier steel box case.

http://store.fedhillusa.com/index.aspx/ImageGallery/Index?productId=24

Note that this is a tool that MUST be used clamped in a bench vise. Makes it tough to use on a line under the car if you're repairing an existing line, you'll need a hand held tool for that. I recommend this one https://www.eastwood.com/eastwood-on-car-flaring-tool-for-3-16-tubing.html 

Retail is $360 USD on the fed hill tool, I'm looking for $200 + shipping.  You'll wonder how you ever did without it. 

PM me or send me an email z240@shaw.ca

Edited November 25, 20186 yr by zKars

In some ways the Fedhill tool looks beefier than the Eastwood tool, that's a good deal.

I love my tools and parts from FedHill....GLWS.

On 11/25/2018 at 6:50 PM, grannyknot said:

In some ways the Fedhill tool looks beefier than the Eastwood tool, that's a good deal.

That's a very good point. The overall fit and finish of the Eastwood tooling looks and feels great, BUT, I have not actually had a chance to make a flare with it yet! Perhaps I should before letting my precious FedHill tool escape my grasp.

I know I know, who in the their right mind buys a new tool without immediately taking it out of the box and trying it? I've been busy, ok?

So I've been busy okay? 

But yesterday I finally got the eastwood tool out and have to report I like it more than the FedHill tool. Makes the same high quality flares, but it has features which makes it easier to use too. 

The clamp release is faster and easier to use, and the unique feature that helps you "zero" the tube position at the beginning of the operation is so slick. There is a flat face on the turret that you use to push the tubing flush with the die block, rather than the Fedhill tool that makes you either visually line it up, or use some other flat 'thing' to manually set the start position. 

It even breaks down for storage more easily. Pretty slick system.

All this said, my Fedhill tool is pretty slick compared to most of the other tools out there. It's still available.

While I'm here, I have to mention the tool I use when I have to make on-the-car flares.  The picture of it below gives you the idea. It's well made, makes good flares.  Eastwood has one, I bought mine from Ebay. 

Now if someone would come up with a system that reminds me to put the nut on the tubing, THEN make the flare...

16 minutes ago, zKars said:

Now if someone would come up with a system that reminds me to put the nut on the tubing, THEN make the flare...

You are not alone...   

Last time I did that I sounded like Ralphie's Dad from A Christmas Story when he was working on the furnace.

Well, reminders have long been created. Calculate the time it will take you to work and set a reminder with sound when, according to preliminary calculations, you will need to put the nut on the tubing, lol.

Edited March 1, 20223 yr by Darcibat80.

Then you will need a reminder  to remind you to slip the heat-shrink over the wire before you solder the ends of the wires together....

Okay, thanks to you I understand the difference between Eastwood and Fedhill instruments. But you mentioned that Eastwood releases the clamp faster. What clamps do you use? Maybe you prefer a particular company? I've been using these https://www.sandfieldengineering.com/toggle-clamps/ for quite some time, but I see your desire for experimentation and I'm sure you had something to compare. The above option works for me, but I would also like to try another manufacturer's product to know what alternatives there are.

Edited March 6, 20223 yr by Barbarian56

On 2/27/2019 at 4:20 PM, zKars said:

Now if someone would come up with a system that reminds me to put the nut on the tubing, THEN make the flare...

Reminds me of the time a friend was making a mixingconsole cable.. with a cap.. he was halfway making a 24 channel mixingconsole wiring.. i came by to look how it was going.. after i saw his work... he was complaining about the difficult work (don't know if you ever solderd some shielded wire but it's a precision job!) And i told him to stop immediatly.. he asked WHY?.. i sayd if you see it you get angry... after i showed him the cap laying around he went nuts..

The other side of the cable was already ready so no options then to take all the wiring of and start over.. pfff...