Quick question, on your set, what material is the bellows connector hose made of/what particular type of flex tubing?
I’ve grown more rotund since I took delivery of my set, and have since replaced the original flex tube with a piece of the clear PVC flex stuff most hardware stores sell. It works just fine, but is fairly inflexible, and I’m having a hard time getting the bag and bellows situated because its rigidity means that it will make a hard kink if I cut it a little long and will ‘push’ the bellows and bag away from each other, and if I cut it to just the right size, if I adjust or move around too much it will pull out from the connecting stocks.
I was thinking about trying some surgical latex tubing, nice and flexible and cheap. Thoughts? Any other ideas? I can’t find the same material as the original tube anywhere other than in massive bulk, and to be honest it wasn’t my favorite anyway.
I was thinking about trying some surgical latex tubing, nice and flexible and cheap.
Chances are it will collapse when bent.
To stop that, you would have to insert a soft coil spring inside the tubing.
Metal rubbing against the latex won’t last too long though.
Years ago, I posted some photos of spiral cut clear plastic tube inserts.
That does the same thing as the spring… only softer.
Car radiator hose is good. You can get a few feet of it for very little money. You will probably have to warm the ends in very hot water to soften the rubber before trying to get them over ferrules etc.
After trying several different materials, the best tubing I have found is plastic rubber like tubing for ponds. See the top of the page in the link below. You can also get it at some Homedepot stores in the US, located in the garden section. It does not kink and has superior flexibility and strength. It is far better than radiator and reinforced plastic tubing ← (nasty stuff IMO, too inflexible). I have replaced several sets with this and it is much more comfortable, ergonomic and looks nicer to boot.
You are right about plastic and rubber My hose has an inner clear flexible plastic with an embedded metal coil, covered with a rubber like exterior that appears to be plastic. The stuff that I got has been going for three years and does not even show wear or stress. I love the flexibility combined with the strength. The material I bought was made by Beckett.
