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Source: Trailer Body Builders post excerpt
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Bludot Manufacturing, a supplier of custom pre-packaged trailer brake systems, is offering copper nickel brake lines to trailer manufacturers, distributors and repair facilities as an alternative to stainless steel.
Popular since the 1970s in automotive applications in Europe, copper nickel brake lines provide the corrosion resistance of stainless steel without the stiffness for easier installs than stainless, the company said.
Bludot always offered hydraulic trailer brake lines in double-wall brazed, low-carbon steel tubing with a standard OD finish of Aluminum Galfan (AG); or stainless steel for high-end, corrosion protection, but now provides a new alternative with copper nickel.
“We debuted our copper nickel lines at this year’s NATM Show in Las Vegas to some pretty keen interest,” said Patrick Turley, new president and co-owner of Bludot. “Our OEM customers that reviewed it liked the affordability and the softer, custom-bending capabilities of our new copper nickel material. Plus there’s no compromise on corrosion resistance.”
Turley explained that Copper nickel brake lines are US Department of Transportation (DOT) approved for hydraulic use. Since it is more flexible than corrosion-resistant stainless steel it also saves time on brake line installations on the assembly line for OEMs.
“Copper nickel’s more flexible properties enable easier installations or replacements when dealing with routing complicated line paths in the OEM factory or the mechanic’s shop,” he said. “OEMs can further improve their production efficiencies with our custom, copper nickel lines pre-bent in-house at Bludot to each model specification.”
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Attributes of copper nickel from Bludot:
– Copper nickel has been popular in European cars since the 1970s
– Copper nickel brake lines are DOT approved for hydraulic use
– PSI ratings for copper nickel are only a little lower than stainless steel lines
– Copper nickel brake lines are more affordable than stainless steel brake lines
– Copper nickel has proven to be easier to work with than stainless steel brake lines
– Copper nickel brake lines are softer than stainless steel which allows for better flexibility in tough routing situations
– End-forming and flares are easy to create with copper nickel compared to stainless steel
– The hardness and stiffness of stainless steel is difficult to work with on the assembly line
– Copper nickel is able to bend and flare to create a tighter seal
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