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Radiator fittings - transmission circuit

Nope. 3/8” SAE flare (seen it referred to as 5/8” OD flare as well). 45° shoulder, common in plumbing.

Threads are 5/8-18. There’s a fine thread variant of this same fitting that I’d assume is 5/8-24.
 
Idea #1 isn't happening because you can't flare hardened aluminum.
Idea #2 would depend on what your thinking of doing. Most hydraulic hose does not have the same OD as SS line, were you thinking about trying to crimp it?
 
Idea #1 isn't happening because you can't flare hardened aluminum.
Idea #2 would depend on what your thinking of doing. Most hydraulic hose does not have the same OD as SS line, were you thinking about trying to crimp it?
Interesting... I'm familiar with hardening steel/iron, but I've never heard of hardened aluminum beyond work-hardening, which would make sense at the bend and the flare. But, if I'm cutting the flare off, I'd assume the stock left behind would still be workable? I'm reading more about precipitation hardening now and will likely reach out to Russell/Edelbrock, Red Horse, etc to find out if they use any such process on their hose ends. Good call, though - I wouldn't have ever thought of that.

Regarding #2, the guy at Hydraulics Warehouse had the same concern but said the fitting was for applications up to 10,000 psi (if I'm not mistaken - I'd had a few beers by that point), which means the hose wall would likely be as thick as (or thicker than) SS hose. I'll definitely be having it crimped, which should hold up to the low pressures of the transmission circuit. Unfortunately I won't know if this will work for a few days but I'll keep you guys posted.


*EDIT*: Back to point #1... Depending on the alloy they used, I could honestly anneal the aluminum before cutting and flaring it. Looks like I can do some DIY hardening (more just heat-treating) afterwards without too much difficulty, although I'm sure it'll muck up the anodization. Looks like the melting point of brass is greater than that of aluminum, so it's viable.
 
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Nope. 3/8” SAE flare (seen it referred to as 5/8” OD flare as well). 45° shoulder, common in plumbing.

Threads are 5/8-18. There’s a fine thread variant of this same fitting that I’d assume is 5/8-24.
Plumbing fittings usually use NPT (plumbing thread) with the size referencing the pipe diameter (in this case its a 3/8 hose) so 3/8 NPT would be right. Except NPT is usually tapered and the male fitting is not, so its not an NPT thread.

But if it works it opens up some other possibilities, probably find something in a plumbing catalog, or may be able to use a fancy flaring tool
 
Plumbing fittings usually use NPT (plumbing thread) with the size referencing the pipe diameter (in this case its a 3/8 hose) so 3/8 NPT would be right. Except NPT is usually tapered and the male fitting is not, so its not an NPT thread.

But if it works it opens up some other possibilities, probably find something in a plumbing catalog, or may be able to use a fancy flaring tool
Yep, spot on. This is non-tapered (thus not NPT/MIP), and is the same SAE style used for natural gas fittings (possibly even inert gas too) and flared copper tube (like in refrigeration).

I did some reading on flaring T6/6061 tubing and apparently it works just fine so long as you lubricate the flare and tool. I’ve got a really nice Hilmor orbital flaring tool from my ductless minisplit install that should do the trick.
 
I'm a sales rep for an Eaton Weatherhead distributor. If you find a hose shop local to you that does Eaton' s everflex line they should have whay you need on the shelf. I stock a 90 degree -6 SAE flare fitting pn: 06E-466 that goes on a nice stainless braided Teflon hose.

I converted my AW4 clip fittings to steel hydraulic JIC fittings and made my own stainless braided Teflon lined tranny fluid hoses.
 
I'm a sales rep for an Eaton Weatherhead distributor. If you find a hose shop local to you that does Eaton' s everflex line they should have whay you need on the shelf. I stock a 90 degree -6 SAE flare fitting pn: 06E-466 that goes on a nice stainless braided Teflon hose.

I converted my AW4 clip fittings to steel hydraulic JIC fittings and made my own stainless braided Teflon lined tranny fluid hoses.
Nice - oddly enough, that part looks damn near identical to the one I ordered, and the part number is eerily similar (06U-446 vs 06E-466). Looks like the closest shop that has one in-stock is in New Braunfels, so I might be making the drive sometime today.

Regarding your conversion: got any pics or details? I've got the 3/8" flare fitting on top, and the 3/8" spring-lock connector on the bottom... Neither of which are removable. I'd love to see how you did it so we can hopefully put together a one-stop thread for people trying to do this cleanly in the future.
 
I'm not sure why your making it so hard? Take your existing line, cut it and use a comp to AN fitting, DONE!
 
I'm not sure why your making it so hard? Take your existing line, cut it and use a comp to AN fitting, DONE!
Holy shit, I'm an idiot... I sure as hell love making things complicated, but for some asinine reason, I totally missed that. Just confirmed a local shop has it, so I'm gonna run pick one up in a little bit.

I'll still be curious to see how those crimp-on fittings discussed above work out. Seems like it could be a good component for a drop-in kit for the XJ.

Thanks for your patience, dude - it finally paid off hasta
 
used a compression fitting on the lower fitting over a year ago -- no issues yet

picture.php
 
I ended up buying a new upper line, cutting it, and installing a compression fitting... but then realized that in the end, two of these are all you need:

https://www.amazon.com/Russell-640850-Hard-Tube-Adapter/dp/B0014B9JQA


I've got one of the spring-lock adapters on the lower fitting (literally snaps right on), but could've used it at the end of the factory upper hard line as well... Its location just would've been less-than-ideal for my intended cooling setup.

Just out of curiosity, what radiator are you running? Your lower appears to be an inverted flare fitting, whereas mine is permanently attached (Mopar HD radiator over here).
 
That's what's been so puzzling, my "direct fit" radiator on my 2000 has a 5/8-16 "inverted flare" for the top fitting.
P1080458_zpsek7mvixy.jpg
 
Its location just would've been less-than-ideal for my intended cooling setup.

What is that? Be careful of "what should be" the inputs/outputs of the factory radiator cooler and the order of any of any aux coolers.
 
I guess I should've said my ideal hose/line routing rather than setup - keeping the long factory upper line and using another snap-lock fitting would land it over on the passenger side of the engine bay, a bit out of the way of where I'm thinking I'll be mounting the filter and where the auxiliary cooler lines will be.

With regard to that fitting you posted above, what exactly is it? Not familiar with the little horseshoe piece.

That being said, common wisdom seems to dictate that the aux cooler should be plumbed after the radiator... But part of me thinks it should be the opposite, since the radiator acts as a heat exchanger to some extent to help bring the fluid up to temperature more quickly. Is there any scientific reason behind plumbing the aux cooler after the radiator rather than before it? Seems like the presence of an aux cooler regardless of plumbing will ultimately yield the same cooling benefits, but having the fluid pass through the radiator last would help get the transmission up to temperature more quickly on cold days.
 
With regard to that fitting you posted above, what exactly is it? Not familiar with the little horseshoe piece.

That being said, common wisdom seems to dictate that the aux cooler should be plumbed after the radiator... But part of me thinks it should be the opposite, since the radiator acts as a heat exchanger to some extent to help bring the fluid up to temperature more quickly. Is there any scientific reason behind plumbing the aux cooler after the radiator rather than before it? Seems like the presence of an aux cooler regardless of plumbing will ultimately yield the same cooling benefits, but having the fluid pass through the radiator last would help get the transmission up to temperature more quickly on cold days.

The "horseshoe" is the "nut" that holds it on the line/o-rings.
I put the aux cooler before the rad cooler, but that's all based on where you live.
 
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