[Outwest34au]

"was real difficult to expand over the pipe ferrul...."

I have been using super duper extra heavy duty hose suitable for mining type environments with push-lok fittings (ie, JIC, barbed, no clamps). It is very thick wall hose and the best way I have found to fit them is to use a smear of Molykote O-ring grease. I have tested this up to 150psi with no clamps and had no issues.
Some brands of push-lok fittings recommend using no clamps as it can cause damage to the hose, will be interesting to see what they say about that at rego, I will be armed with manufacturers recommendations at the time.