I just finished replacing the entire AC system on my 88 E150
All was well at first but shortly after finishing the r12 charge, the clutch began to click very loudly when engaging or disengaging. You can clearly hear it inside the cab.
The air gap was set to .028 which is within spec according to the manual.
i checked the air gap today and it was about .030

Am thinking,, could the snap ring have come loose that holds the pulley on allowing the pulley to be pulled forward when it engages? Once engaged the tension from the belt pulls the pulley back in in alignment? It sounds like two pieces of metal smacking together, even when it disengages. Kinda of like if you had the pulley in one hand and the clutch in the other and smack them together.
I did have a little trouble getting the snap ring to seat in the groove on the bottom side of the snap ring. i know it locked in the groove very good where the gap in the ring is and on both sides. The thicker bottom of the ring, I was not absolutely positive it was in all the way. i lightly tried tapping on it and it wouldn't go in any farther. There was no visible gap, I just couldn't tell if that thicker part was in all the way.

I used the proper removal and install tool when setting the air gap. The install tool threaded onto the compressor shaft and pressed the clutch plate on as you tightened the outer nut, so I didn't use a hammer...

I have two different new clutch plates. I used the one on the right as the one on the left fit a little tight on the shaft.
The compressor is a FS6 xbolt and all the parts are motorcraft.




Any ideas what to check?

Thanks
Anna

 

Just guessing here.... I wonder if the clutch plate didn't get completely seated to the pump and is now slapping back and forth between the shims and nut?

If it was the pulley bearing retaining clip from my experience, it tends to drag badly against the clutch plate after disengaging.

 

At first it sounded great. Right around the time i finished charging the system, it developed a very quick slight swish sound you might call it just as the clutch released. Now it doesn't make that sound..
I guess I need to get down in there and check it out. i believe I can unbolt the compressor and tilt it up to work on the clutch.

One more thing, the system holds 10lbs of r12 + or-.25, that's exactly what i put in it. But when removing the high side gauge hose, I lost a bit till I got in position to push down on the hose as I loosened the hose nut. That is probably a hard question to answer as you weren't there to see it. I guess 2 or 3 seconds with the engine off and the pressures equalized in the system..

I haven't checked the actual temps out the vents but it does blow cold and cools the van down fairly well for only having a front unit and 92F temps outside. I cant add a little back in as that would require piercing a new 13oz can. I used a side piercing tool because when I tried to use the top piercing adapter, gas started to leak from around the side of the can where the cap is sealed on.

What is your thoughts on the other clutch plate? Both are the same diameter but the one on there now appears to be made of a aluminum like material while the other is steel.

Thanks
Anna

 

Glad you got it working!

Whenever I can, I try to remove LO side hose with compressor running, and HI side hose with compressor off for a few minutes. Always trying to minimize pressure differential from system to outside when connecting/disconnecting hoses from service ports.

HI side R-12 and R-22 are the worst. On a residence R-22, have to spin real fast, and wear gloves!

When my F-150 was delivered, it had a real "Snap!" to the clutch. After a couple months, I realized it had quieted down, wasn't noticing anymore.

 

Thanks TwigsV10.. Well I didn't unbolt the compressor but I took the clutch off and the snap ring was still tight on the pulley. I also tried to wiggle the clutch coil connector thinking that if the clutch coil snap ring had come off, that i would be able to feel some play at the connector, but all seemed tight.
The one thing that is not tight is the clutch itself and its keyway... Well the clutch fits snug onto the compressor shaft but i didn't need a puller to get it off. After removing the nut that holds the clutch on the shaft, I used a small carb adjusting screwdriver and was able to pry the clutch off the shaft enough to get my hands on the clutch edges and rock it back and forth till it came off the shaft. Should it fit much tighter then that? The other clutch plate in the pic does..

When I say rock it back and forth, that is because there is a little play in the keyway. Just a little. It is a pain getting that key and shim washer back on with the compressor still mounted.. i remembered what my dad would do sometimes,, put just a little grease on it to keep the keyway in place and that worked great.. I didn't glob it on, just a thin coating on the back half.

It only needed one medium shim washer when I originally put it together. When i put it together this time, I replaced that shim with the next thinner one. When i tightened the clutch to the shaft checked the air gap.. it was .025 halfway around and .022 on the other half... I spun the pulley and there was no contact with the clutch plate.. Not at first..
i went for a test drive and during the test drive i started hearing it rubbing slightly when the clutch disengaged. I was 3 or 4 miles from the house and i just left the AC on as turning it off would disengage the clutch. I dont think it got too hot and I will be taking care of that first thing in the morning....

I did notice before I changed the shim washer today, that there was about .003 difference.

Thanks Torky2!! i think the hardest part was getting the evaporator case in and out. The engineer must had a hangover because he designed the box about 3/8 too tall and wide to remove it once the welded in battery box was in place...
All in all everything went pretty well as I still remembered most of the advice you guys had given me a few months back..
i did forget the darn orifice tube though, twice! After I originally snapped the connectors together, It his me, darn... Then I couldn't find the right size release tool so i went and got one... Then along the way I remembered i needed to put some oil in the evaporator, so i got busy and did that. When finished with the oil, i turned around and snapped the lines back together without the orifice tube in place! But i got it! i worked all day and had installed the new dryer and wanted to get the vacuum pump on it before it sat too long... I let it pull a vacuum all night...

i also solved the "what kind of compressor oil" problem i was having. I found a dealer who had the YN-2 oil i needed after re reading the tag on the compressor that sepcified YN-2

Perhaps the clutch will quieten down,,, i just want to make sure it is slipping or something else is wrong.. i did not buy the parts as a set... I bought then individually and they are all motorcraft...Best i could tell they all go together..

Again thanks for all the help!

 

You likely saved yourself a headache farther down the road in the future digging in and figuring out a little noise. If the clutch hub assembly was loose in any way eventually it was going to be a problem.

The clutch hub I think you are now using, the one that's on the left in your picture, in my opinion is slightly quieter but if it's dragging when disengaged I would consider re-shimming. Dragging creates heat and the rubber bushings don't do well with excess heat.... Or to put it differently, if it doesn't quit dragging the clutch after a couple of days of use (break-in period for the clutch) add a shim.

 

Thanks for the help... I had not swapped out the clutch plate till today.. I went ahead and just unbolted the compressor from the mounting bracket so I could access it with greater ease, swapped it for the one on the left, in the pic. It is much quieter, I believe, I haven't heard it cycle. I am going to start another thread on that.

Again thanks guys for all the help

Anna