"Steve B." > wrote in message
...
> On 15 Apr 2006 18:20:11 -0700, "bruce" > wrote:
>
> >As this was mid-January in upstate NY, I removed the idler, bought a
> >belt for a non-AC car and removed the remains of the clutch assembly.
> >The clutch all but fell off. The
> >
> >So, now, I'm thinking quite a bit harder about all of this. I just
> >checked, and for sure, the compressor is siezed.
>
> The pulley is seized or the compressor is seized? I suspect that the
> bearing in the pulley has failed and it seized up. The compressor is
> actually driven by the clutch assembly on the front of the unit.
> Sounds to me like the clutch is missing from your unit now. This
> could be good news if only the pulley seized. You probably still need
> a new compressor but at least you won't have a system full of
> shrapnel.
>
> >I truly wish I could afford to buy a vacuum pump. I see electric
> >vacuum pumps on ebay for a little over $200. What about the vacuum
> >pumps that operate on compressed air? They're a lot cheaper, but how
> >do they work?
>
>
> Not very well. The principle is that the air rushing through the unit
> provided by the compressor will draw a vacuum on the system. My
> neighbor tried to use and while it worked somewhat it didn't draw a
> deep enough vacuum to boil the moisture out of the system.
>

They work fine if you have a good compressor. I have one and
I have a floor compressor that runs off 220v and it draws vacuum
down to the required level (22Hg I think it is, but I forget) and I
could clearly see boiling moisture in the clear tube that I had running
from the vacuum to the system. (I put in a few water droplets to see
what would happen) The key with these is to run 3/4 inch or larger
hose from the compressor tank to the vacuum.

I also recommend you add 2 things, a valve that is between the vacuum
port and the system and a vacuum guage. When the system is completely
evacuated, you will want to close the valve then shut off the vacuum then
leave it overnight, to see if there are any leaks. If the system is leaking
in
the morning you will have no vacuum in it.

Ted