I have an old Victoria Arduino for which I have never been able to find any parts/part diagram support (see Help Getting Information About This Victoria Arduino?), so I'm hoping someone here can help me with what I HOPE is a fairly simple question ...

This morning a small crack appeared in the tube that runs from the pump to the boiler, spraying a mist of water. I've only had this machine for about a month and, when I first bought it, one of the other tubes (from the water tank to the pump) literally (not figurative) crumbled in my hand, so, I'm imagining that this is just a function of this machine being old and not in use much (dry rot or something ...). The tube that cracked is VERY firm (doesn't bend much) and, while difficult to measure, is about 15cm long (fairly short and I don't have much room to fit anything too much longer in the case itself). Here is a photo of the tube's normal placement:



My question is about the tube itself. It has two compression nuts on it that hold the tube in place. What I'm most confused about is that the tubes have "lips" that you can see in the next two photos (the top of the first photo reveals the "lip," while the bottom of the first photo shows how it looks when the nut is seated normally; the second photo is a close-up of the "lip").





So, my questions:

1) What kind of tube is this? Should this be teflon? Silicone? I'm assuming teflon, but, I'm not sure ...

2) What is that "lip"? Is that the natural seal formed by the compression nut (does it naturally deform that way?) or is this some weird proprietary tube that is going to be a nightmare to find (keep in mind that I only have enough room in there for a tube of comparable length -- about 15cm total --, and this one is shorter than many others that I've seen advertised)?

3) Finally, if all I need to do is buy some replacement teflon (silicone?) tubing and cut it to the right length, is the process just cutting the old tube, removing the compression nuts, feeding the new tube through those nuts, and screwing them in place? That straightforward?

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

Same type of tubing used in Rancilio Silvia (before 06 when they upgraded to S/S hose)
according to manufacturer name is Teflon
the lip will get formed as you tighten the nut on the nipple fitting

Thanks, Stefano! So, then:

1) Do you carry that type of Teflon tubing (I've already ordered a few other things from your shop and I've loved the service!)?

2) Should the size of the tubing be fairly standard or would there be differences between different manufacturers?

3) Finally, just to clarify, I just need to cut it to the correct length, fit the old nuts over it, and screw them into place?

I'm not Stefano but the tubing is a standard item, 6mm OD and 4mm ID, and yes, you just cut it to length, fit the nuts, push it on to the nipples (scotchbrite helps with grip) then tighten up the nuts.

Alan

Very clear -- thank you, Alan!

Cheers!