For a 3.5 RE lift on a JKU with 33s currently (may go with 35s in the future not sure)

Are new braided lines worth the money?

Thanks Tim

 

http://northridge4x4.com/proddetail....CROWN-JK_FRONT


And it coats the same for the rear break lines.

 

It says, that these give you one more inch over stock length, were the brackets give you like four inches over stock, for half the price!

 

They do offer different sizes for different lift heights, just posted up the generic size for references.

http://northridge4x4.com/proddetail....OWN-JEEP21FR04

He doesnt have to get these brake lines specifically, there are plenty of other companies out there that make different lines for different tastes all being cheaper or more costly like AutoZone, Napa, O'Reily and JEGS. Personally if i was lifting my JK over 3" i would install new lines and if he cant afford them now then get the brackets and buy the braided lines once the factory ones give out.

 

I had braided lines on my old YJ. The performance increase was barely noticeable...but I needed them as that thing had a ridiculously large frankenlift and an absurd amount of travel.
I just got finished installing the Rough Country 3.5" lift and actually wasn't going to install the brackets...I thought I'd just leave the brakes stock and take it easy for a week until I got around to installing new braided lines...
THEN I saw the ABS wires...
The brake lines themselves were safe but the ABS wires were precariously short even just sitting on flat pavement.
After I completed the lift I went back and installed the brackets in front and rear...just to get the ABS wires to an appropriate length. Now I don't think I'll bother with longer braided lines. They seem to work just fine as they are.

I don't like the idea of a 'brake line bracket' to be honest...but after installing them...they make sense. They don't need to support anything. There's no forces on them ever as long as you check they aren't being tugged on at full flex. It's just a bonus but of hard line Chrysler gave us to reroute. :-)

Moral - unless you're building a crazy flexy off road machine the brackets work fine if they meet the needs of your application. Just test them out first and see for yourself.

:-)
RJ

 

Disconnect the lines from the frame and you can gently bend them down. No need for brackets or lines. (the folks from TeraFlex posted about this not long ago. I didn't see any pics, but a quick pm should get you some info).

Or, you can run to your local hardware store and buy the parts for brackets. Shouldn't be more than $5-$8 or so for all four corners.

Or, buy some brackets.

Or, go for the longer lines.

 

It also depends on the year of your JK. I helped a friend put a BB on his 2012 and we couldn't figure out how to get the front lines dropped enough to install the bracket. It was way tighter than my '07. My lift came with the brake lines, so that's what I did.

 

i know everyone worries about the brake lines, my question is what about the abs lines, and on the rear the e-brake lines? anything special need to be done with them?

 

I just installed a 2.5 Teraflex lift and did not need any extended brake lines. The rear lines worked great with the relocation bracket however the front lines are more challenging. I had to make a couple of custom brackets from aluminum that clamp to the shock body and hold the brake line. The hard part was removing the bracket that held the brake line to the lower spring perch. I used a dremel tool to VERY CAREFULLy cut the bracket from the line. I then used zip ties to hold the line to the new bracket. The front lines are plenty long enough once you can relocate them up a bit.

 

I installed the brackets that came with my lift. A mile into the woods the bracket caught and ripped the brake line out. This was after the brackets bent because the lines weren't long enough even when straightened. I limped a mile out of the woods on blue and black trails and 8 miles downhill to town with no brakes. And did I mention it was raining like crazy.

IMO that brackets are for suckers. If they never cause an issue you have brake lines that have weak points from being straightened and are subject to premature failure. Worst case your miles form help with no brakes on a hill.

I have Crown extended lines form Northridge and will use them again on my next lifted vehicle.