I am an Activaist-v6 and a 2.1Estateerr

[CitroJim]

That's a fair old project Alasdair!

[Stickyfinger]

Well she let me down today, I have had to abandon the Activa in the middle of Dorset in a tiny village with LHM spewing out like a jet wash from/past the main accumulator pipe union.
Jim assures me it is a micro-fine stress fracture just after the flair/bulb at the accumulator end.

Rescued by my fantastic friends up the hill.

I have a spare from the Green Goblin, so off with a trailer in the morning to drag the old dog back and change the pipe........booooooger

[CitroJim]

Alastair, I was so sorry I was unable to help very much last evening

And that my brain was working so poorly...

Still, pleased to see you got home OK.

Jim assures me it is a micro-fine stress fracture just after the flair/bulb at the accumulator end.

Seen this exact fail in the past - mainly on BXs - and honestly, the split can't be seen with the naked eye but it sure leaks well under pressure.. It'll be around the flare...

A brazing repair is possible and do keep the old pipe as they are NFP and like rocking horse poo..

All the best for getting home OK today...

[Stickyfinger]

How do Jim....

You were very much helpful....as always. You stopped me struggling with an unseen problem and allowed me to concentrate on rescue rather than attempting endlessly in a struggle to fix.

How can you braze a crack that you cannot see ?

[CitroJim]

No, my idea of being helpful is to have been able to get you and car home last evening... I was bloody frustrated I could not

How can you braze a crack that you cannot see ?

Two methods...

You may well see the split under a magnifying glass...

Clean it up very thoroughly, dip in solvent to ensure all LHM gone, heat to red-hot and run braze all around the area and with luck it'll penetrate the split and seal it.

Else that, chop off the split end and using a donor end from another hydraulic pipe (from any other hydraulic Citroen - they are all much the same) of the same diameter and same flare pattern and then braze the new end on by using a sleeve...

Don't forget to make arrangements for the union nut and make sure that if you use a donor end that the union nut threads are identical...

Self-fluxing brazing rods and a good propane torch with a small, intense flame will do the job but cleanliness is paramount...

[Stickyfinger]

Some times a trip to hospital is needed

I think I prefer the new end/sleeve/braze method as the heat/temper area could be done in an unstressed area.
Would a high temp solder be acceptable if used under a suitably long length of sleeve do you think ?

[CitroJim]

Would a high temp solder be acceptable if used under a suitably long length of sleeve do you think ?

I don't know Alasdair, never tried it and my gut feeling is that it would not be strong enough and therefore I'd not be tempted to risk it.

I take that view from the fact that when 15mm copper pipe is used in aircon systems normal plumbing soft-soldered joints are not used... such joints are welded...

Sliver solder might be OK...

The sleeve method is best, certainly, but the first method I suggested can be done quickly and easily without donor bits...

Yes, do it in a nice unstressed area.

Your scrap Xantia, if you still have it, will provide the pipe needed to do the repair...

[Stickyfinger]

Cheers mate......braze is just as available as James "up the hill" has a full gas welding set up.
The Green Goblin has supplied a good pipe "off the shelf"

high-temp/silver solder under a long sleeve would be very strong I would think, it is all about surface area with pressure I thought....are there corrosion problems with lead/silver and LHM do we know ?

[CitroJim]

Excellent, good to hear the GG has supplied a spare

are there corrosion problems with lead/silver and LHM do we know ?

Shouldn't be... LHM is mineral oil after all so should ebb OK on all metals; it's only some plastics and rubbers it has a good appetite for...

If in doubt pop a sample of what you want to use in a small bottle of LHM and look for reactions - say, over the course of a week...

[xantia_v6]

I think that the issue here is metal fatigue, that of the original pipe and that of any repair. The pipe flexes due to engine vibration, especially if a fixing clip has been left off, and that pipe also flexes with the pressure pulses from the pump (especially if it has run with a flat accumulator).

Soft solder joints are very prone to failure due to fatigue, silver solder and braized joints much less so, particularly if well sleeved, but try to avoid just shifting the flexing to the end of the sleeved section.

[Stickyfinger]

Pipe replaced, no leaks but "by golly" I lost a lot of LHM

I took the time to replace the totally collapsed (rusty wires etc) cold air supply pipe with a new smooth one.

[Stickyfinger]

Will everybody please remind me to draw the pipe run next time....it was like threading pasta back on to a fork after you had sucked the flavour off it !

[CitroJim]

Pleased all is now good Alasdair

Yes, I know! Threading that pipe is jolly good fun

Could you see the split in the duff one?

[elma]

next time....

True Citroen owners optimism there.

Pleased you got it sorted and it didn't affect your X rally, sounded like a nightmare.

[Stickyfinger]

I cannot Jim, I have yet to look with my 10x loops on but with normal eye sight...not a thing. The joint was tight and the metal "O ring" was there.
I found I had to take the ECU box, Battery try and bits etc out as well. I changed my cold ait intake pipe as well as the wires in it had rusted and it had deformed dreadfully and must of been causing a restriction.