AC Question swapped name to Old hay Truck

[Pa PITT]

... Ok this is not AC on my Bronco ..But it's a general Question that may help someone working on their Bronco.
I've bought this old Dodge truck, That like a lot of our BRONCOS it'd been setting for several years. SO after getting it home & New plugs & a service job new battery .. It cranked up & is Running remarkable well. SO I drove it & it feels really good in the steering. SO I got to thinking Since it has a Wrecker Bed ''WESTERN HAULER BED'' With a goose neck ball & I might could use it to pull my Bronco around.
SO I noticed the Blower for the AC is working like it should .
But no Cold AC .. So I jumpered the Ac pressure switch . Clutch on the Compressor popped on.
... So I got a can of Freon from my shelf . It was one of those new cans that has the valve & gauge in the hose.
The truck took what was left in the can .. Maybe 1/2 a can. & Pressure was on 30lb. That's a good pressure figure.
... So I went to Walmart & picked up 3 more cans of freon R134. Home & had a little trouble getting the 1st can to work .The 1st valve broke & SO I went back to O'Reilly's & got a metal tap with a gauge in it's line .
Home & I installed another can of 134.. Still no COLD AIR.
.. I took the jumper out clutch cut out . SO I put the jumper back in.
put in another can of R134 ...So 2 plus cans of freon .. But not a hint of Cold Air . Pressure is at about 35lbs.
I can't check the highside.
I used to have real gauges but they got so old I put them down & into the burn barrel not long back.
... SO Anyone want to say why I have no Cold Air. if the low side is that good of pressure.
..... It does have the Sight Glass in the top of the dryer .. It seems to be 98% free of bubbles .
It's has a Expansion Block. those cause lots of troubles.
...ANY THOUGHT of what to check next.
....Oh & the truck ran for like 30 minutes idling & It never got hot . It stayed at 195 on it's after market gauge, So I'll say the Condenser is not bad.

 

[Slowleak]

Might be a bad compressor. You won’t know until you see the high side pressure. If you have an Autozone close by you can borrow the manifold gauge set and vacuum pump.... I would make sure it is holding a vacuum before you waste more Freon. Then check the high side pressure.

 

[Pa PITT]

What's the High side should be .. About 350+r-

 

[Slowleak]

What's the High side should be .. About 350+r-

Should be around 250 or so on a 90 degree day. If it’s really high you may have a clogged expansion valve. If it’s low, it could be a leak or bad compressor... your low side seems about right.

 

[Remos69]

High side should be about 2x outside temp + 50 psi, you really need gauges to troubleshoot. Harbor freight has a set for $60

I use the guide here for a quick troubleshooting aid:

https://www.aa1car.com/library/ac98.htm

 

[blubuckaroo]

Is this the '88 truck in your "old SOB" post?
Has it been converted to 134a?
R-12 was used until '93.

 

[Boss Hugg]

I'd certainly get gauges to check the high side before I went any further. You may be pushing LOTS of pressure because of a bad expansion valve. And that switch you have jumped may be bad if you've got 30psi on it and no engagement. As far as pressures, if I recall correctly, my vehicles have worked best here in NETX at 50 and around 325 I think. I don't usually pay much attention to the high side because it's making cold air so I stop when it gets to 50 on the low side.

 

[Pa PITT]

OK THANK GUYS . yES TO SOMEONE It's the truck in my SOB post.
I'll get my tech buddy to bring his gauges.. It's been converted to R134.
wHAT DO YOU REMEMBER needed to be done to convert them. As I recall most folks just Put on the adaptor & INSERT R134.

 

[blubuckaroo]

Retrofit is usually only the replacement of the old black O-rings with the green ones.
In my experience, 134a responds much worse to overcharge than R-12 did.
With R-12, you could charge the system with a hand on the suction line. When it got cold, stop charging.
With 134a, it's much more sensitive to overcharge. Too much, and the head pressure will go through the roof. The old method doesn't work. That's why I usually weigh in the charge. If you don't have a scale, just read the can's contents. Usually two cans is about right.
The refrigerant capacity should be on a label in the engine bay.

 

[bronconut73]

New o-rings.

 

[gnpenning]

Isn't the oil different as well.

 

[CraigS]

yes, oil is different.

 

[Pa PITT]

...
Ok SO The truck tonight .. I got Jimmy to come out & check the AC .. NO HELP I'm sorry. His sniffer didn't work & It never went off. We put in one more can of Freon . But you could not hear it going any where .. SO he said it had a huge leak. THEN WHY ISN'T YOUR tool going off & screaming ...
So I called that off. &we moved on ..
SO He jumped under the truck & checked my tail lights. My Grand son Hunter was there & I had him tell Hunter what he was doing. SO HUNTER was able to rewire one tail lamp & Jimmy did the other. Both worked. So I believe it'll pass inspection now. . Well not yet. The head light are not adjusted correctly yet. Pass side has a broke plastic pivot point.
... Ac & my Hyd. Wench are all that doesn't work. & We have to put new bushing in the doors. Drivers door doesn't shut at all. Pass side sucks.
.........

 

[Pa PITT]

Hunter couldn't believe how good this old truck drives. .. It really feels like it only has 43K mile on it. But it's life on a farm has taken it's tole.

 

[Pa PITT]

... OK So I'll give another update on the new farm Haul truck... The trans was making some nasty clunk .. I talked to a local trans shop I know . He told me it was low on trans fluid . As I'd already checked it I wanted to disagree , But kept my mouth shut. & LISTENED for once. I'd forgot to put it in neutral . SO It checked to be low. OVER 2 QTS low.. I hated to admit that. But I knew it would act much better & It sure does.
So TodayTanner came to see us for a visit & for my birthday. We had a good time this weekend. SO We pulled the door panels off the truck today& Sprayed all the door window & locks down with a good coat of oil. Man do they roll much better ..
Then since it was on a farm all it's life . The Drivers door would not shut. I laughed at mY bUDDY .. So we pulled the hinge off & put bushing in it. Then we adjusted it with 2 ball pins .. Great as I drove it this evening & Shut completely .
We also adjusted the pass side & it's shuts some better.
... Then I PUT THE BUSHING IN THE wIPER ARM & wIPERS WORK .
.& Then I put in one new head light & I have Light Blinker & parks & stops I believe it's ready for inspection.
...................
Now IF I'll get off my ass & work on what I bought it for. The Hydraulic Wench. or Hay Spear.
But I don't know any thing about this winch motor. But I got friends that do.

 

[Skytrooper15]

If you want to convert a car or truck A/C and want it to work right there are several steps that are very critical.First step is to remove the compressor and drain all of the mineral oil out of it.Go to a hardware store and buy some denatured alcohol used for alcohol stoves and pour some of it in the compressor until it won't hold any more.Let it set for a few hours then drain out the residue of alcohol and mineral oil.Have a good air compressor and blow into the compressor until only air is coming out.Use a filter and drain the air compressor tank down to keep water from building up.Remove the metering device whether a strainer like in fords which will need to be replaced with one for 134-A.If it has an expansion valve remove it and check the inlet side of the valve for a strainer.Disconnect every line that has a flare nut or compression fitting and pour alcohol into every one of the lines and then blow them out with air pressure until they come out clean air.Pour alcohol into the condenser and evaporator and use air pressure to clean them out also.Remove the filter drier before you clean the line it is in.After remounting the compressor and you have just clean air coming out of all lines and the condenser and evaporator replace all of the o-rings with the new green ones made for R 134-A refrigerant also replace the accumulator drier.Put it all back together and buy a can of pag oil either pag 46 or pag 100 viscosity ask a good parts man to look up which one you need.Find out what is the correct amount of oil to add to the compressor and pour the 3 or 4 ounces into the suction port of the compressor before you install the suction line to it.Also replace the schrader valves in the test ports.When you have it all good and tight and pull a good vacuum on the system I would recommend running the vacuum pump 10 or 12 hours in case of any moisture from the compressed air cleaning.Have both the low and high pressure gauge installed and after removing the vacuum pump hook up a can of R 134-A refrigerant and charge into the high side until the pressure equalizes.It probably will take 3 or 4 12 ounce cans but go by the amount shown for the certain vehicle.It usually takes 28 to 34 ounces by my experience.Make sure you have poured the correct amount of oil into the suction port on the compressor because when you charge into the high side it will wash the oil down into the compressor.Start the engine,turn on the A/C and on a 90 degree day the pressure should run from 34 to 38 pounds on the low side and probably 260 to 300 pounds on the high side.You have to flush all of the mineral oil out of the entire system because 134-A is not compatible with it.134-A has to have Pag oil in order for the oil to travel with the refrigerant.Be aware for stopped up restrictor strainers on Fords and stopped up inlet strainers on expansion valve systems.Be very careful and charge the refrigerant very slow and watch the gauges especially the high side pressure.If you are not comfortable with charging the system after doing the clean up work get a A/C mechanic to do it for you because this can be a very dangerous operation.I have done about 60 conversions and the only problems I have had are stopped up restrictor strainers on Ford cars and trucks.Just remember when doing a conversion you lose 20% capacity because of the difference in R-12 and R 134-A.Again I stress if you don't think you can do this call in an expert.Good luck!