M20M 115 cu ft oxygen system missing high pressure line

[Roger M]

I just purchased this plane and found the high pressure oxygen line (item 2 on the parts page image attached) missing.

I also attached an image of the tee fitting where the line connects.

Can you tell me where to get this line

Or alternatively, thickness and length of this line and who might be able to manufacture it for me.

[Cruiser]

you probably already checked with the seller 

 

[LANCECASPER]

28 minutes ago, Roger M said:

I just purchased this plane and found the high pressure oxygen line (item 2 on the parts page image attached) missing.

I also attached an image of the tee fitting where the line connects.

Can you tell me where to get this line

Or alternatively, thickness and length of this line and who might be able to manufacture it for me.

If they advertised it as built-in factory oxygen I would politely ask them to cover the expense. They may have had a pesky leak that someone who didn't have a clue was trying to track down. Is the bottle current (within 15 years old and hydro tested within 3 year)? Does the Cabin gauge read zero?

Aerox or Mountain High Oxygen should be able to get you what you need. I would have someone that really knows the factory oxygen system set it up for you and get it right.

[N201MKTurbo]

I would just make it. The tubing and ends are available from Spruce. The ends are soldered or brazed. I would look in 43.13 for guidance on that. It will probably cost $10 for the parts. Buy some extras to practice with.

[larryb]

The fittings are made by Swagelok and are available from directly on their website.

[Fly Boomer]

3 hours ago, larryb said:

The fittings are made by Swagelok and are available from directly on their website.

I'm not the OP, but I appreciate the tip.  Poking around https://www.swagelok.com they appear to be a vital business.  These days, I see quite a few websites that were built by amateurs or way out of date.

[N201MKTurbo]

3 hours ago, Fly Boomer said:

I'm not the OP, but I appreciate the tip.  Poking around https://www.swagelok.com they appear to be a vital business.  These days, I see quite a few websites that were built by amateurs or way out of date.

I think Intel buys most of what Swagelok makes. I was wandering around an Intel fab last Sunday looking for another elevator because the one I normally use was down. It is a Swagelok salesman’s dream customer!

[Fly Boomer]

40 minutes ago, N201MKTurbo said:

I think Intel buys most of what Swagelok makes. I was wandering around an Intel fab last Sunday looking for another elevator because the one I normally use was down. It is a Swagelok salesman’s dream customer!

Hadn't thought about it before, but I guess there would be quite a bit of plumbing in one of their fabs.  After learning that Swagelok parts were used in my oxygen system, I got curious if I could cross-reference any of the parts.  I picked (at random) "A400-2-2   ELBOW (SWAGELOK)".  Swagelok list SS-400-2-2 (stainless steel) but not A-400-2-2 (aluminum).  Probably the only market for aluminum is aviation, which is not doing very well, so they may have cut some or all of their aluminum fittings.

 

[N201MKTurbo]

12 minutes ago, Fly Boomer said:

Hadn't thought about it before, but I guess there would be quite a bit of plumbing in one of their fabs.  After learning that Swagelok parts were used in my oxygen system, I got curious if I could cross-reference any of the parts.  I picked (at random) "A400-2-2   ELBOW (SWAGELOK)".  Swagelok list SS-400-2-2 (stainless steel) but not A-400-2-2 (aluminum).  Probably the only market for aluminum is aviation, which is not doing very well, so they may have cut some or all of their aluminum fittings.

 

All I’ve ever seen from Swagelok is stainless steel brass and plastic. I’ve never seen aluminum. The fittings above are brass. I originally thought they were AN800 fittings but on a closer look they do look like Swagelok. If you look closely at the B nuts of the existing fittings they should have the part series marked.

[philiplane]

most local Swagelok distributors do custom fabrication too. Or they can order it from the factory.

Mountain High Aero will do custom lines as well.

the high pressure oxygen plumbing from the fill port and pressure gauge is always copper, but sometimes stainless. Never aluminum.

Edited January 8, 2023 by philiplane

[N201MKTurbo]

Swagelok fittings are easy to make up. Just don’t over tighten them. 

[larryb]

After I purchased my Encore 5 years ago I spent a year chasing O2 leaks. I found several. 

 

The first leak was at the fill port. Previous mechanic had over-tightened the nut totally distorting the insides. Swagelok sells a go/no-go gauge so you can determine proper tightening. It's cheap. I recommend it. I found this leak with soap spray. 

 

Second was an old o-ring on the high pressure line connection to the regulator. This connection may be an issue for the OP. It wasn't the same as the standard Swagelok fittings for the rest of the system. There is an o-ring and a collar soldered to the copper line. 

 

Third was the regulator itself. It was leaking internally, even when the lever was fully closed. It had to be overhauled. 

 

C&L Aero, 530-223-0667,  did my regulator overhaul and was very knowledgeable. They should know about the makeup of the high pressure connection to the regulator.

[Aerodon]

That does not look like a Swagelok to me?  Attached is a picture of a Swagelok fitting used on a Piper O2 system.  IIRC, the procedure for Swagelok is to finger tighten until it is on, then turn a certain number of 'flats', then measure with Go/Nogo gauge.  I need to do some on my Piper, and will dig out the instructions again.

Swagelok are hard to find or buy in small quantities, but once you have a part number, can be found.

It looks more like the AN800 and AN805 fittings on aircraft spruce for primer systems.  My rear panel is open at the moment, I will go look tomorrow and take some pictures.

Aerodon

 

 

[Guest]

I’d loosen one of the other branches on the Tee, and see what it looks like.  I bet is nothing too complicated.

[Roger M]

Thank you all for helping me with this issue. 

 

[carusoam]

Use caution with the fittings…

Swagelok is a great brand…. But, if the system has a different brand… the small bits and pieces are not interchangeable…

They are called compression fittings, and the ferulle gets squished… do not re-use.

 

Its a real simple system if you are a chemical engineer… or a mechanic familiar with O2 systems…

Make sure you have a knowledgable person working on the system… the parts are pretty low cost when bought from the plumbing supply house…

The copper tube used is nothing special… it is pretty easy to accidentally poke a hole in… (seen done before)… tubes are hiding behind the wall covers that are held in place with sheet metal screws.  repairs are easily made by cutting out the offending tube piece and sew back together with a set of proper fittings…

The fact the parts are missing… is a hint that somebody wasn’t familiar with O2 systems…

Part numbers are probably in the Bravo’s parts catalog.

Swagelok is a big industrial supplier… for every chem lab in the world.

PP thoughts only, not a mechanic…

Best regards,

-a-

[N201MKTurbo]

We built a special high pressure gas tester. We needed to proof test and leak test it to 10000 PSI. Swagelok was nice enough to rent us their facilities for the testing. I spent a day in their clean room doing the testing. It is nice when a fitting won’t seal to just call the warehouse and have someone walk a new one to the pass through. They have a regional warehouse and clean fabrication facility here in Phoenix. They mostly service Intel, but now that we have the two largeest semiconductor plants in the world, they will keep very busy.

[N201MKTurbo]

BTW, If you didn't want to make up your tubing assembly, Swagelok can make it for you. They will test it too. You will go from about $30 worth of parts to a $300- $400 dollar assembly. You will need to make a sketch of the assembly with a parts list.

[Aerodon]

 I take back what I said earlier, these are indeed brass Swagelok fittings. I understand the Swagelok fittings on the T and O2 gauge.  The one on the Scott fitting is a little different.  The tube is soldered in, the nut has a small hole on one of the flats.  I'm wondering if there isn't some sort of overpressure protection or a filter built into that final assembly before it goes onto the O2 regulator.

Aerodon

 

[N201MKTurbo]

That end looks like AN800. The hole in the flat is to release line pressure before the nut at completely removed, so it doesn’t fly off and hurt you.

I think the fittings with the C logo are Parker. They are Swagelok knockoffs.