Envelope distort more than 100%?

Maybe create an Art Brush, like this:
3812_pipe2.ai.zip

Vince

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Looks like, probably, when you expanded the gradient their was a mask object that surrounded the expanded elements - this is the typical behavior.
I just selected the the mask with the Group Selection tool and deleted it before dragging the gradient into the Brushes palette.
You should probably be able to try this in your original artwork.

Also note that I used Effect / Stylize / Round Corners on the angular shapes, to make the pipe/brush bend properly.

Vince

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You'll just need to duplicate the pipe on top of itself - Copy/Front - Hold Ctrl or Cmd + C, release C then click F. Or, Edit / Copy, Paste in Front.
Basically, you're creating a patch for the intersection.
Then just use the Scissor tool (C) to cut on both sides of the intersection, then delete the unnecessary parts. Or, you could mask the intersection.

Vince

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