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Looking at getting a tool to help me fit brakes on my new build. Got the right bleed kit ordered and now looking at
Anyone used similar? It's really going to be rarely used (unless I destroy hoses whilst riding/transporting) so don't want to spend lots, but also don't want cheap and nasty that might trash new hoses.
If it’s a brake that needs the barb pressed into the hose then that tool makes easy work of it.
If it’s a SRAM brake the barb is threaded so it can be screwed in and this tool isn’t needed.
I have lifeline hydraulic hose cutters and the lifeline version of that press and I’d say they are essential for shortening hoses without bodging something.
I have the Jagwire Sport Needle Driver and the Jagwire Sport Hydraulic Hose Cutter.
https://jagwire.com/products/tools
I've used them for a few Shimano brake set ups and results are good. Around £30 for both tools.
Last few shimano hoses I’ve shortened with just a sharp Stanley knife, some pliers and a hammer. Might have been easier with one of those but I can’t say it was a struggle without.
I bought that very same tool. It works really well, both the hose cutter and the barb insertion thread. Being plastic it is suitable for the occasional use that I need. They do a metal version but that costs more.
Stanley Knife.
I like tools as much as the next man but it seems wasteful to buy something so specialized for one-off or very occasional use when a sharp knife does the job perfectly well.
Swiss Army knife blade sharpened a lot and tapped with a wooden mallet gives the cleanest, non-squashed, hose cut I have managed. Craft knife blades are too thin IMO.
Are you fitting SRAM or Shimano ?
I was hoping to be fitting Magura, but my bank deemed bikester to be fraudulent activity so I went with my 2nd choice of SRAM which I somehow found discounted.
Cheaper one here...
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09CGN4H2Z?psc=1&smid=A27SQZPYTP8SGX&ref_=chk_typ_imgToDp
Don't need a cutter, a sharp blade does just as good a job. But the barb inserting tools are ace, that's a job that can be a real pain sometimes.
We use these at work for cutting 5mm tubing, they also work very well on brake hoses (I tend to rotate the tool slightly whilst cutting as it needs less pressure)
Barbs, I just use the yellow blocks that come with some brakes in either a vice or molegrips, and tap the barb in with a small hammer.
I have the Jagwire needle driver and wish I'd bought it earlier, its not used often but it's so much nicer to use when shortening hoses than faffing about and risking flicking or dripping fluid, I have gone through a few cheap hose cutters with non replaceable blades, so one that has a blade you can swap out is ideal, cutting with a Stanley knife can give you a wonky slice and make you lose fluid so a small investment in decent tools makes the job a pleasure rather than a pita.
As others have indicated, you might be overthinking this a little, and it could be perhaps that you’re letting the nature of the job fool you into thinking you need specialist tools. Certainly if I was working in a shop fiddling with brakes on a regular basis then tools might make things easier, but if it’s a one time only deal you’ll really be fine with a stanly blade to cut hoses, and as for barbs I use the yellow blocks that come with Shimano brakes, clamp the hose inside them with some mole grips, and tap the barb in with a hammer.
Save your pennies for shiny things which make no difference that you can bolt to the bike, not that sit in the shed unloved.
…cutting with a Stanley knife can give you a wonky slice and make you lose fluid…
Hold the hose tight on a cutting board (or the bread board if the missus isn’t looking) to avoid wonky cuts, and surely after you’ve fitted hoses you’ll be giving your brakes a mini-bleed anyway?
I use mini cable cutters and a scribe to open the hole up after. Worked fine on two sets of brakes.
As with Spookys pic.
I would say ignore the yah whatever brigade and make sure you cut the hose at 100% 90deg.
https://epicbleedsolutions.com/products/hydraulic-brake-hose-cutter#