My wife said to me a couple years ago, "if we had a faster airplane..." and then I quit listening and started shopping. I ended up with a Cessna 320, which has lead to a ton of education, which today is about hoses.

There is an AD concerning the hoses that calls for an inspection every 60 hours. If you replace the hoses with 701 hoses, that goes away and you don't have to worry about it. RAM sells a kit to replace all of the hoses on my new beater for around $2.6K/engine. Maybe that's worth it and it could be the path.

I've always changed the aeroquip 303 hoses on singles at 5 yrs forever based on an old Cessna service letter.

What is everyone's favorite flavor of hose?

Some folks say the teflon 666 hoses have no life limit.

https://www.kitplanes.com/maintenance-matters-39/

Some say all of the stainless braided hoses (synthetic rubber or teflon) should be replaced at 7-10 yrs no matter what.

I like being able to make my own, but I haven't tracked down info on how to make the 701 or 666 hoses. To be honest, it doesn't look like it's any different when using reusable fittings.

good talk.....

AEROPOD wrote:good talk.....

If you’re asking questions, the pool of people who still remain on this ghost ship and can answer is a very small handful, and they’re not finished looking at Facebook this morning. Sorry dude.

Zzz wrote:

AEROPOD wrote:good talk.....

If you’re asking questions, the pool of people who still remain on this ghost ship and can answer is a very small handful, and they’re not finished looking at Facebook this morning. Sorry dude.

Sad but true. FB has all but killed the forums, mine included. People want to join the forum but only to download the files available and then as the question on a different FB page. I don't get why they want to ask question on FB and not in an easily searchable forum where the info is more easily kept.

I don't have FB so I'll bite...

I pretty much only use 303 or stratoflex 111 hose. I replace them on condition. If they become stiff or damaged.

I prefer to make my own hoses so that I can make them exact length and I don't want to wait.

Haven't used 601 or newer 701.... Sounds like they'd be easy to make.

I've made brake lines out of 666. Easy enough to do at that size.

Finally, I prefer cotton outer lining over stainless. Ultimately, the hose will rub on something and one of the things will lose the battle, I'd rather replace, and reroute a hose than replace an engine mount, or engine component.

I try to keep my Facebook footprint to a minimum in order to "maximize" my BCP time.

I prefer the fabric lines over stainless steel as well. One for the reason already mentioned, wear on other components and secondly I've had fluid leak between the steel weave and the interior liner which is fabric anyway.

Tangogawd wrote:I don't have FB so I'll bite...

I pretty much only use 303 or stratoflex 111 hose. I replace them on condition. If they become stiff or damaged.

I prefer to make my own hoses so that I can make them exact length and I don't want to wait.

Haven't used 601 or newer 701.... Sounds like they'd be easy to make.

I've made brake lines out of 666. Easy enough to do at that size.

Finally, I prefer cotton outer lining over stainless. Ultimately, the hose will rub on something and one of the things will lose the battle, I'd rather replace, and reroute a hose than replace an engine mount, or engine component.

X2. I use pretty well all 303 in my shop. But the premade kits are pretty nice. When we do engine swaps on the air tractors we just go with the kits, price difference isn't much, and having some liability taken away and put on the hose manufacturer gives us a bit of extra piece of mind.

Mechanic here, I always recommend to my customers AE466 Hose and to have it premade. as mentioned before the 666 hose will wear into other components. Also, if and when the stainless starts to fray it isn't very pleasant when it pokes into your hand, ask me how I know. Not that I'm afraid of making my own hoses, but if is nice to have the hose manufacturer take some for the liability for the hose.

Here is a link that you may find helpful if you chose to go this route.

https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/ ... sembly.php

I also don't use facebook, but I mainly just lurk here because I don't have a ton to add to the conversation. I really enjoy the content though.

My three hose staples are 303/111 and Mil H 6000. I fabricate our hoses (many up to -16 on the 985/1340) using the appropriate mandrels and fittings. I recommend a pressure test with a bench mounted hand pump and gauge for final check and flush.

TR

Wow, way more votes for 303 than I expected. I thought I was the only luddite left fabbing my own hoses or using 303 at all.

In this particular application, I'm attracted to the 666 simply due to temp tolerance. There is a ton of heat under the cowl with turbos. Cessna actually calls for removing a bunch of the cooling ducts on the fuel lines and fuel control unit if you upgrade to 701 hoses. I always assumed those ducts were for vapor lock mitigation, but maybe not. The temp tolerance of 303 is listed as 250 F, 701 is good to 300, and 666 up to 450. I'm not familiar at all with 466, I'll have to look in to it.

The discussions of wearing other items with stainless braiding are something I hadn't considered, but I always put a bunch of effort in to securing them with adel clamps. Not that I'm immune to that problem, but I am hyper-aware of the risks.

The liability discussion is also interesting. I wonder how well that would hold up, or does it just make us feel better?

I did just fabricate a new turbo scavenge line for both engines. The hoses I replaced had a 2002 date code and were super stiff and make scary noises when I straightened them out to measure. I really like having the ability to make them in house. I have tons of fittings for 303 hose and usually have hose stock on hand. I wouldn't mind getting to that point with something more modern, but the fittings are $$$. I feel like I'm upgrading from VHS to DVD, and who knows when Blu-ray is going to show up.

I am a fan of "Firesleeve" firewall forward. It is pricey but worth it in my opinion. Having the correct tool (bander) and appropriately sized bands makes the task quick and easy. Be sure to seal the raw ends of the cut sleeve as well for complete protection.

TR

I suppose if I were in your shoes, I'd consider ordering a kit. With 2 engines worth of hoses, that would be a lot of time fabing.

I guess I prefer making them myself because often I'm installing an engine analyzer or such other sensors. And adding fuel transducers and firewall mounted pressure sensors start to become a custom job. If it were a factory setup being replaced, probably makes more sense to order a kit.

For me, the liability argument just adds another defendant to the list. You are still getting dragged into the lawsuit.

oh, and X2 on fire sleeve.

akavidflyer wrote:Sad but true. FB has all but killed the forums, mine included. People want to join the forum but only to download the files available and then as the question on a different FB page. I don't get why they want to ask question on FB and not in an easily searchable forum where the info is more easily kept.

I am astonished by that. I always refused to do the FB thing, but all the 180 discussion is there and it requires FB account to view. I finally broke down and tried signing up, but FB now requires a video of one's face to be taken and a photo ID. Screw that! So, I remain in the dark as to the skywagon community, but remain committed to hobby forums including BCP and Supercub.

Recommend adding relevant o-rings to your shopping list.
(ref https://www.flightsafetyaustralia.com/2025/01/ring-of-fire/)
Fly safely,
pat

On my 205 and 182 brake, oil, and fuel hoses, I used stainless braided teflon. I firesleeved all but the brakelines using the proper band clamps and I had all the hoses made up at a shop which makes equipment hoses. I believe they are all Parker hoses and fittings. I'm meticulous with my hose lengths and stand-offs, but reading some of the posts on this thread makes me want to double check that there isn"t any rubbing going on. This was per my IA's suggestion, and it's what he uses.

Am I the only one going this route? I'm pretty sure I read a service bulliten confirming it's legality on older part 91 airplanes.

On The Fly wrote:On my 205 and 182 brake, oil, and fuel hoses, I used stainless braided teflon. I firesleeved all but the brakelines using the proper band clamps and I had all the hoses made up at a shop which makes equipment hoses. I believe they are all Parker hoses and fittings. I'm meticulous with my hose lengths and stand-offs, but reading some of the posts on this thread makes me want to double check that there isn"t any rubbing going on. This was per my IA's suggestion, and it's what he uses.

Am I the only one going this route? I'm pretty sure I read a service bulletin confirming it's legality on older part 91 airplanes.

Hose for certified aircraft fuel, oil and hydraulic systems fall under two Technical Standard Orders (TSO), C53a for fuel and oil, and C75 for hydraulics. If you can prove your assemblies meet or exceed the TSO, you are part way there. Just because an article (hose in this case) has a TSO, does not mean you are cleared to use it as the aircraft manufacturer may stipulate otherwise. The TSO only certifies that the article meets the TSO requirement, it is not automatic approval for installation.

I would ensure your current assemblies are authorized on your aircraft. Just because they work well on an excavator does not mean they will be authorized on a certified aircraft. Ask your IA for the documentation proving the legality of using your current hose assemblies. And yes, anti-chafe and strain relief are very important on all hose assemblies regardless of exterior material.

TR

Firewall forward I've started only going with firesleeve. If you know the dimensions already, the AE466 integral firesleeve produced by someone else are often cheaper than making 303 or 111 hoses and firesleeving them when you add up the sum of the parts. That has been my approach for the last few years now. If you don't know the dimensions, I'd make a set of 303 up, and in 5-7 years when they're due for replacement, send them off and get them fabbed up as AE466.

Many sources, Aircraft Spruce has a hose builder tool, but you can also send them to companies like Herber Aircraft and Aviall.

AE466 for me.