JamesR Posted February 2, 2020 Share Posted February 2, 2020 I ordered a new fuel line for my Thunderbird. Because the longitudinal length of the tubing from the tank up to the front wheel is eight or nine feet, they radiused the longest straight portion back 180 degrees so the fuel line would fit into a 50 or 60 inch box for shipping. Would you use a tube bender to straighten the temporary shipping radius out? If so, is there something to know when doing that? Or is there a better method? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 2, 2020 Share Posted February 2, 2020 Pretty hard to do. If I had to I would fill the tube with very fine tightly packed sand and then straighten it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesR Posted February 2, 2020 Author Share Posted February 2, 2020 I guess that I could feed some dense cord of a slightly smaller diameter down from the straight end side until it gets past the radius that needs to be straightened. That should keep it from kinking too bad in the radius, but I'm thinking there has to be a better way. The radius is fairly wide - about 6", so about a 12" diameter - and I guess I could bend it by hand in small increments, but that would look crappy. I was thinking someone else out there has probably received a fuel line this way, and must have some trick for straightening it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesR Posted February 2, 2020 Author Share Posted February 2, 2020 (edited) OK, I just found this video on youtube. They make it look pretty easy. I was worried that it would kink the tube or something, but apparently not. You just need a long flat surface. I guess I'll use the kitchen table...when the wife isn't home. Tech Stop: How To Straighten A Shipping Bend - YouTube Edited February 2, 2020 by JamesR (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JACK M Posted February 2, 2020 Share Posted February 2, 2020 10 hours ago, JamesR said: Tech Stop: How To Straighten A Shipping Bend - YouTube That guy makes it look pretty easy. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gossp Posted February 2, 2020 Share Posted February 2, 2020 That’s how we do coiled copper line sets for air conditioning. Step on one end and roll it out on the ground. The fuel line would be much harder to mess up. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mercer09 Posted February 2, 2020 Share Posted February 2, 2020 two 2x4s with a slight gap in the middle. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_padavano Posted February 2, 2020 Share Posted February 2, 2020 Since I make up a lot of brake and fuel lines for my cars, I broke down and bought a tube straightener. I was amazed at how well it works to straighten coiled or bent tubing. Yeah, this one is pricey. There are less expensive versions on the market. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary_Ash Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 (edited) When it's just a piece of tube that is supposed to be totally straight, lay it on a concrete floor, place a short piece of 2x8 over it at a 45 degree angle, and roll it with a foot. If the tube has other bends, like a complex brake line, it's more difficult, but maybe it could still be done on the corner of a table or a step. Edited February 3, 2020 by Gary_Ash (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesR Posted February 3, 2020 Author Share Posted February 3, 2020 Wow, thanks Gary. Great to know. And thanks to everyone else, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 (edited) 20 hours ago, joe_padavano said: Since I make up a lot of brake and fuel lines for my cars, I broke down and bought a tube straightener. I was amazed at how well it works to straighten coiled or bent tubing. Yeah, this one is pricey. There are less expensive versions on the market. My tubing straightener is one of the best tool buys I've ever made. Works great! Expensive but worth every penny and you'll never regret having it around. About $150 from Summit Racing (https://www.summitracing.com/parts/kti-72346/overview/) Edited February 3, 2020 by Matt Harwood (see edit history) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_padavano Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 7 hours ago, Gary_Ash said: When it's just a piece of tube that is supposed to be totally straight, lay it on a concrete floor, place a short piece of 2x8 over it at a 45 degree angle, and roll it with a foot. If the tube has other bends, like a complex brake line, it's more difficult, but maybe it could still be done on the corner of a table or a step. Unfortunately, the OP's situation is that he has a pre-bent line that is bent in the middle for shipping. Not going to be able to roll that around on the floor. I've used my straightener for exactly this purpose and it worked great. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbk Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 If you have a roll of soft copper tubing , you can straighten it by tying one end down and wrap some of the tubing on the other end around a piece of pipe (1 inch or larger) and use the pipe as a lever and stretch the tubing by pulling on it. The copper tubing will harden but be perfectly straight Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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