Crimping Hydraulic Hoses with a different brand crimper

[ADSNY]

I'm in the process of refurbishing a boom lift, part of which will require over 30 hydraulic hose replacements. All the hoses are the same size and style, with the only difference being at the fitting, and still with little variety. I'm looking at hydraulic a hose crimper to make the assemblies myself, but there is not a lot of information about crimping one brand's hose and fittings with a different brand's crimper. In particular, I'm looking to use Parker hose and Parker series 43 fittings. I have a lead on a Weatherhead T-400 crimper. Can Parker fittings be crimped with that Weatherhead crimper? I'd obviously be checking final crimp diameter with a micrometer to make sure they are in spec, but I'm not sure if the crimp "style" of the Weatherhead is different from, say, a Parker crimper.

 

[Groo]

looks like the same operation going on. If the intended OD are close, and you set it to the proper OD, I'd think it would be fine.

 

[TMGT]

I've done it, some fittings/crimper are more tolerant of different brands then others, I use to use a Gates crimper with i believe parker or weatherhead fitting.

 

[ch47dpilot]

Not going to discourage you from doing them yourself but I'd look at Discount Hydraulic Hose - Home and Surplus Center . Surplus center has great prices especially if you buy in bulk and need hoses under 25ft. Shipping makes the hose expensive if you get just 1 or 2. Discount Hydraulic Hose charges $10/hose to crimp ends. But if you need custom lengths and ends their prices beat anything I can buy locally, even with shipping. Unless you plan to make a lot of hoses the price of the crimper may make one of these two places actually a better choice.

 

[ADSNY]

Thanks for the responses. I spoke with a local hose assembler, and he said that, specifically, the Weatherhead crimper uses the rubber on the outside of the hose for it's main gripping power (notice the bulb on the crimped fitting). Parker 43s and some other manufacturer's (Gates, in particular) fittings are "bite-to-wire" style and will not work with a Weatherhead crimper.

I checked Surplus Center, and all their stock hoses are either NPT or JIC ends. I'd quickly lose any possible savings by the need of adapters (95% of fittings on my lift are ORFS/Seal-Lok). I checked Discount Hydraulic Hose (DHH), but I found a local shop that is cheaper for everything, except the hose itself. I'm looking to buy a spool of hose and having them made locally. I'll just be charged for the fittings (comparably priced to DHH.com) and a $5 crimp fee. I'll keep an eye out for a used crimper, because you can't beat the convenience of that as long as I keep a few fittings on hand.

 

[Discount Hydraulic Hose]

Hi there ADSNY,

You are correct about the way Weatherhead U Series fittings, vs Bite-to-Wire fittings attach and work with different crimpers. When looking for a new or used crimper, adjustability is key. Many machines like a T400 and most Parker machines are known as a "dead-stop" crimper where they just crimp to a set diameter based on the die and plate combo. With any adjustable crimper, you are able to dial in the exact spec you need, making for fast work without any guessing or fussing with different combinations of plates and dies to make it work right. What's interesting (at least what we here from customers) is many shops will not crimp different brand hose/fittings or stuff you bring in off the street for liability reasons, so your local shop is great to offer that.

We would appreciate the opportunity to quote out your project and see if we are able to be more competitive with assemblies. If your interested, please drop us a message on here, or give our office a call.

Whichever way you go with it, we wish you the best of luck in the project, and welcome to the forums!

On a side note - we will be launching a line of P43 and P71 series fittings in the next week or so, and if anyone wants more info on that, please give us a ring!

 

[Rmart30]

Do you already have the hose and fittings? Our hydraulic shops charge nothing additional for making the hoses. if i need a 6 ft #6 hose and 2 jic fittings the price is the same if the hand them to me apart or assembled.

 

[ADSNY]

I bought a spool of Parker hose off eBay and am waiting to receive it. My price after shipping is less than $1 a foot, and the cheapest identical product around here quoted $2.66. You're right, the price of the hose and fittings is the same whether they crimp it or I do myself. As it stands now, I'm going to have the Parker store near me crimp their Parker ends on my Parker hose unless I catch a great deal on a Parker or adjustable crimper.

 

[SilentJ]

No, no NO!

Never mix and match the crimper, the die, the hose and the fitting. ALL have to be from the same manufacturer

I know a bunch of dirty-rag self proclaimed 塗old my beer experts will argue with me but it痴 an absolute Law

Don稚 try to convince me with your anecdotes of how you did it in the past and 妬t was fine

Don稚. Period.

 

[cornisland99]

I'm in the process of refurbishing a boom lift, part of which will require over 30 hydraulic hose replacements. All the hoses are the same size and style, with the only difference being at the fitting, and still with little variety. I'm looking at hydraulic a hose crimper to make the assemblies myself, but there is not a lot of information about crimping one brand's hose and fittings with a different brand's crimper. In particular, I'm looking to use Parker hose and Parker series 43 fittings. I have a lead on a Weatherhead T-400 crimper. Can Parker fittings be crimped with that Weatherhead crimper? I'd obviously be checking final crimp diameter with a micrometer to make sure they are in spec, but I'm not sure if the crimp "style" of the Weatherhead is different from, say, a Parker crimper.

so I have seen all of this over the years. I was very confused about it as well. Now I know the safefy shitheads and the ones selling specific hoses will tell you I am going to get you killed but the next sentence is fact. I have a crimper and it is not one the static ones but I can crimp until I don't want to crimp anymore. The key is to find a drill bit that slips in the ID of the fitting where the fluid goes through and when you get it pretty close using sight just go slow. I have a manual pump on mine and I pump one full pump then see if my drill bit will still go in ID of fitting as soon as it doesn't then you are done. Easy as that not rocket science and I have never had failure and I use whatever fitting is available and as long as it is 1/4 3/8 1/2 hose and crimp on it doesn't make a happy **** the brand on it. Just my 2 cents now let the nay sayers begin IDC!