Thanks for taking the time to document the process. Great fabrication skills!
It really is a nice clean installation. Well done


Bobby

 

Joe, it does not interfere with anything. I still have the stock defroster ducts and hoses in place. Yes it is very "cool". Thanks!

 

How many electrical components are there(sensors)? Is the electrical stuff easy and strait forward?

I hate to be a pain, but could you inventory every part you needed to have a working AC? Or did you buy some kind of DIY kit?

 

I bought a Vintage Air wide belt compressor made for Flathead Fords, U-Bend hard lines and a Vintage Air condenser and receiver/dryer which came with a binary switch from Summit Racing.

The hoses and fittings I got from an eBay seller that makes an auction for you from your parts list. He sells kits but, you may or may not get exactly what you need.

#8 hoses and fittings from compressor discharge to condenser.

#6 from condenser to dryer and on to the evaporator.

#10 from the evap back to compressor.

I could show you exactly what I used but it may not apply to your truck.

The evaporator unit is a $69 cheapy from eBay. It is pre-wired to two switches. It has a fused power wire you connect to your ignition switch and a wire you run to the binary switch on the dryer and from there to the compressor clutch.

The binary switch will not allow the compressor to engage if no refrigerant or pressure too high. There is an option for a trinary switch that adds in the ability to turn on an electric fan when the clutch is engaged.

I built a basic A/C system. I use the stock Ford heater and defroster so none of that to deal with. No cables, linkage, water valves, computer connections or anything. Just cooling.

The hard part was making it fit. Looks easy when it's done but, it takes a LOT of time to work even simple things out sometimes.

There are easy to install kits out there that have heat, cool defrost, vent, etc. I'm too cheap to buy them and I wanted my truck to look as stock as possible.

Feel free to ask me anything you want on the forum or shoot me a PM.

 

I imagine your back and neck are still sore from the underdash work...

 

great thread, love the pictures and details.
Can you list the name of the ebay ID that has the parts?
Did the evaporator come with a TXV valve or does this use a orifice tube installed somewhere?
I have always wanted to try this but am gun shy about mixing and matching parts since I don't know enough to design my own system. I think I will have to try soon!

 

Excellent work. Well done. I was going to go with the cheap ebay evap unit but ended up paying the big bucks for a Vintage air ComPac Gen 2 68000-VUZ-A unit but it is not blowing very cold so still gota figure out what the problem is. It was still a lot of work to make it fit so kinda wishing I'd gone with the $69 ebay unit.

 

Ross, my back and neck are shot from injuries but not from working on the truck. It wasn't bad. I didn't even pull the seat out.

I let the gauges and switches hang down, the speaker grill was out as was the ash tray and I have no glove box liner yet.

Dave I'm no engineer but I have done a LOT of A/C work on heavy equipment including stock and aftermarket systems. Lots of R12 retrofit stuff. Most used the Sanden compressor and small evaporator units.

I was beginning to regret not buying a bigger condenser but the one I have is working. If I have issues when it's 110 degrees outside I may get a larger one.

I'll get the eBay unit info. I thought about buying another just as a spare. It does have an expansion valve.

 

Type this in your eBay search.
Universal Evaporator for Car or Truck - 4 port


The seller is grhautoparts-usa. Still $69 and free shipping. I have no idea how long it will last as it is cheap.

My plan was to go with a used vintage Ford under dash unit like in my daughter's Mustang if this plan through the speaker grill didn't work out. Hard not to try a $69 unit.

 

Great installation, I really like it.

I suspect that you won't have any engine overheating issues due to the A/C. I am curious if the lack of insulation will become an issue when it gets really hot later in the year.

 

Fred, so far so good but it's only been into the 90's. Yes the lack of insulation will be an issue as is no window tint. The sun still blazes through the glass and roasts you even though the air is cool.

All that will get done. I'm still on phase one of my build. Drive it, figure out what I want to do with it and get it done BEFORE body and paint. I can't imagine doing this after nice paint and interior.

I'm hoping to drive it through the summer using it as a truck, hauling landscape rock, trips to the dump, whatever. I'll pull the engine for overhaul in the fall and start on metal work. IF........my engine holds up. Its TIRED!

 

Does the same ebay seller sell the fittings and hose?
Would you have dimensions of the evap unit? I want to see if one will fit under the dash in my 47 caddy.

Also one big question with custom setups is how do you know when you have enough refrigerant installed? I have a manifold with gauges, is there a general rule for high and low side pressures? Also how much PAG oil to add?

 

The size of the unit Scott used is in the details of the auction, 14.5 wide x 11 deep x 6 high. If that is still too big the smallest unit I have found is this one at 10.5 x 8.5 x 4.5, but of course it is not the bargain that Scott found.

 

Dave, like Fred said the dimensions are in the description.

The seller for the hose and fittings is johnjoysyl in Bedford Texas. The store is MR FOMOCO MOTORCRAFT. Just type in A/C fittings and you will find their listings. You contact him through eBay messaging and submit your list of parts and he will get right back to you with a custom auction. Shipping is reasonable and fast. His stuff is made in U.S.A.

My compressor came with PAG oil already added and Vintage Air said not to add anymore oil in the system at all.

I don't have a scale or a capacity spec for my system so I just add refrigerant and monitor vent temps. Yes there are kind of typical system high and low side pressures but it is related to temp so I can't give you specifics.

A normally charged system is going to have higher pressures on a hotter day than a cooler one on the same charge. Maybe Google can give you more specific info.

I was surprised to get the cold temp I did with just one 12 oz can. I could probably get away with more but, my pressures will go up and I don't know how much cooler it will get.

Large condensers will drop pressure and cool better than one too small. Ambient temps, air flow, a lot of factors to affect pressure and temp. So I charge until it's nice and cool and stop. Adding more seems to just raise pressures and not cool any better. Hope this helps.

 

Off Topic: I will be restoring my '71 Camaro's AC and intend on keeping the system R12 style. Would you be of any help if I were to have questions when I start up the project?