trans cooler line size

Thanks guys. I was under the car last night trying to find the best route away from the headers. I think I'm going to wind up running the lines up near the steering column, across the shock tower and out next to the battery. Nothing else looked promising.

Anyone else have a better place?

I have never worked with any braided steel lines before. Is it difficult to work with? Can I make my own lines, or should I buy lines made to length?

It's not cheap, so I don't want to find out the hard way this time.