Copper or brass

[Larry Fernandez]

What is the correct tubing to use in a fuel tank, coppper or brass?

Larry, Buttafucco Stunt Team

[Howard Rush]

The Jive Combat Team uses gold.

[Brett Buck]

What is the correct tubing to use in a fuel tank, coppper or brass?

Larry, Buttafucco Stunt Team

  Copper.

   Brett

[Wayne J. Buran]

Copper by all means>
Wayne

[Andrew Tinsley]

You can always use brass if you want, but try bending it and then you will see why most people use copper! I don't know if it is true in the US, but a lot of manufacturers still use brass this side of the pond. What on earth makes them do it, I don't know! Maybe cost?

Regards,

Andrew.

[EddyR]

Use copper. The reason is brass will corrode and split. Copper is more stable for our use. Most tanks were made with Brass tubing until about 20 years ago. Then people started to have a lot of problems with the Brass tubing splitting length wise. The Brass suplied to the hobby industry was being made from flat stock not extruded. That tubing would split. If you look close you can see the seem in the Brass tubing. When bike frames were still made from Cro/Mo steel tubing Reynolds came out with seamed tubing that was light but didn't work as well as standard light weight tubing. It would fail at the heated joints. If you could find non seamed Brass tubing it might be OK. There is one more factor is Brass and solder and a tin tank has a reaction to each other when fuel hits it and it starts a long destruction of itself. Old style Brass tubing in a Brass tank would not have this problem.
Ed

[jim ivey]

IMHO  it dorsn't matter. copper is easier to bend when you need to. other thsn thst. don't matter.  jim   bmotooemcs <---- figger that out. more than 50 over the last 60 years. jim

[Larry Fernandez]

The Jive Combat Team uses gold.


THE JIVE COMBAT TEAM IS GOLD !!!!!!!!!!!

Larry, Buttafucco Stunt Team

[Trostle]

Use the copper tubing for all of the reasons given above.  Brass tubing will deteriorate and will eventually split or develop a hole and will cause all sorts of problems.  Any recommendation to use brass tubing should be ignored.

Keith

[Tim Wescott]

Where do you get copper tubing?  I use brass because that's what the LHS has.  But if I ever get good enough that crashing will become less of an issue than corrosion, I wouldn't mind using the right stuff.

[Mark Scarborough]

Tim, I get mine from the local hardware store, they have a K and S metal rack with brass, copper and aluminum tubing,, ( even up to 36 inch lengths for those really long tanks) 

[Brian Massey]

I have several metal tanks I made 40+ years ago, using (drum roll please) brass tubing. There have been no failures to date. How long does the deterioation process normally take . . . have I just been lucky? And brass does does bend easily after annealling.

I guess I'll go checkout local hardware stores for copper, just to be safe.

Brian

[Bill Little]

I don't know how severe the brass problem is, but over the years I have heard of split tubing, etc., when using brass tube.  Never have heard a problem with copper.

BIG Bear
RNMM/AMM

[Douglas Ames]

Use copper. The reason is brass will corrode and split. Copper is more stable for our use. Most tanks were made with Brass tubing until about 20 years ago. Then people started to have a lot of problems with the Brass tubing splitting length wise. The Brass suplied to the hobby industry was being made from flat stock not extruded. That tubing would split. If you look close you can see the seem in the Brass tubing. When bike frames were still made from Cro/Mo steel tubing Reynolds came out with seamed tubing that was light but didn't work as well as standard light weight tubing. It would fail at the heated joints. If you could find non seamed Brass tubing it might be OK. There is one more factor is Brass and solder and a tin tank has a reaction to each other when fuel hits it and it starts a long destruction of itself. Old style Brass tubing in a Brass tank would not have this problem.
Ed

I've noticed the brass tubing on vintage Perfect tanks is alot thinner-walled than more modern replica tanks. ...better made too.

[Chris Wilson]

Putting it simply, methanol corrodes brass or more accurately 'destabilizes' it.

Hence why some engine manufacturers nickel or chrome plate their brass needle valve assemblies.

[Mark Scarborough]

The Jive Combat Team uses gold.

Howard, after this public revelation, you may not want to turn your back on yoru airplane,, it could just end up missing its fuel tank,,,,

just sayin,,,

[john e. holliday]

Here in KC area I am having hard time finding copper tubing in 1/8 for tanks.   Lots of brass tho.

[jim ivey]

hobby shop or hobby supply comes in1/16th and 3/32nd dia also

[Don Hutchinson AMA5402]

Go to the local car parts places and find one that has 1/8" tubing. One other possibility is the kits at auto parts stores for connecting oil pressure gauges to the engine. They contain a beautiful coil of bright shiny 1/8" copper tubing.