I used a 16" pc of 2x10 and a jack to hold the tank up. removed the straps and loosened the filler neck,pushed the tank towards the driveshaft, It left just enough room to get my hands up there to remove/replace the line.

 

i had the same thing happen the night i got back from ****in iraq. but i got qouted 300 bucks to replace the line, so i said f u. and i spilced it and put in a union and a new fitting and put it all back together just fine. total cost=3 bucks.

 

As in compression union? Illegal and dangerous.

 

$20 for a 25' roll of steel brake line and fittings and $30 for a double flaring tool and you will be on your way again. i would never splice a brake line. why take a chance. you will most likely blow another hole in a rusty line while you are attempting to bleed the brakes.

 

I got my replacement line from the dealer for less than $30.
Prebent, and new fittings on the ends.
The hardest part is putting it in the frame rail, I dropped my tank similar to how Zman did, but i've heard others just leaving it loose in the rail (by the tank) so they didn't have to drop the tank.
If you do go the new line route pull the drivers side plastic wheel well, it makes it easier to slide down the frame. Of course you'll need new clips to put the wheel well back on.

 

Is there a brake line diagram (as in parts diagram) online anywhere? I have a feeling I am going to be replacing brake lines on my '98 at some point and would rather scope it all out now, rather than when my hands smell like DOT4 brake fluid...

TIA

 

Parts manuals available for download in the faq section. Those should have the diagrams you are looking for.

Or, just get bulk line, hand bend it to your desires.

 

Quick question here and not to get too far off track, but what are compression fittings/unions and why are they illegal and dangerous?

 

Because they can separate. (pull apart,blow out,etc..) As a matter of fact a brake line needs to have a double flare on the end of the tube to be legal.

 

Compression fittings are brass/bronze fittings typically used on copper water lines in houses where the pressure does not exceed 100psi (more like 60 psi). In a hard braking situation, the pressure can go upwards of 1500 psi. You put a ferrule on the line then tighten down the nut onto the union which squeezes the ferrule against the copper line, creating a seal. Hardware store compression fittings are meant to seal against copper lines not steel lines which are harder than copper. The brass is not going to be as resistant to vibration as the steel unions would be. Furthermore the brass is weaker than steel, meaning if using the same amount of torque, the brass union is more prone to partially shearing the nut.

I had a brake line burst on me when I was out of state, and had the closest shop fixed it, not only did they overcharge me for parts and labor, they fixed the line by patching in a small length of steel tubing and used a compression fitiing to join it to the old line. Adding more insult the injury, they overtightened the nut to the point where the top half was partially sheared. The fix did get me home, but 3 weeks later the fitting broke, causing me to rapidly loose my rear brakes. I promptly replaced the steel line and used double flare fittings. I considered legal action against the shop but decided it wasn't worth it.

Bottom Line: Only use compression fittings in the household plumbing, they should NEVER go in brake lines.