York/Sanden On Board Air FAQ and Setup
YORK/SANDEN On Board Air FAQ
The main component of an on board air setup in an old (or new) A/C compressor. All these units are is an engine driven pump. Since they are designed to produce a fairly decent amount of pressure, one makes some minor modifications to run air. I will go over the types of compressors, what vehicles these compressors are found on, mounting, connectors, hoses, valves, switches, and tanks. I will admit that I have not yet attempted my own setup. I do have a compressor ready to be put in and and soon going to invest my own personal time and money into one, thus I want to make absolutely certain this writeup is correct.
The next order of business is identifying the different possible compressors and deciding which one is best for your application, and where to find it.
The more popular choice of compressor would be a “York” style. These are more popular because they have their own internal oil supply, thus not needing any extra lubrication normally received from the A/C fluid. They've been around for a really long time and can still be found at a lot of junkyards. Because they carry their own oil they do not get as hot as quickly and bearings last longer.
Pros:
One may be able to look at the tag on the front of the compressor and determine it's displacement. I have not had good luck with this method, and recommend not relying on this method. My York tag did not match up with any on-line source (even the York service manual I.D. Info). However, because some may match up, here is a picture of the tag and what the information means. The most reliable way of determining the displacement of a York is the end of the crankshaft.
The following is how one can remove the clutch the clutch:
Kilby offers pumps, serpentine clutches and a full install kits. Good looking kit though, but for a price.
*Max RPM for York compressor is 6,000RPM (compressor speed), 4,000RPM Continuous (compressor speed)
Mounting the York
The York compressor is rather flexible in terms of mounting position. The York can be mounted forwards or backwards on the engine* (clutch pointing towards the back of the vehicle, housing in front of the belt system), upright or on either side completely horizontal, or on any angle in between (so long as oil can reach bearings**). So despite it's size it can still be squeezed into certain cramped areas.
*INTAKE/EXHAUST ports will be flipped! Be sure you know which port is intake/exhaust!
**York recommends that when lying 90° (horizontal) that the suction port be on top as to keep as much oil as possible from being pumped into the system.
Since this is intended to be a universal vehicle post I'm not going to cover brackets. Each engine and vehicle is different and I shall leave it up to you to figure out where to position the pump and how to secure it. The more time and patience spent here, the nicer the swap will look and the better it will function. I'll make a note that serpentine belts have a little less tolerance for something not being lined up right, be sure you have it correct and very little deflection.
The Pulley
First: Supposedly a serpentine pulley was installed on early-mid 80's Mustangs. So far, to my knowlege, none have ever been found. If you stumble across one in a junkyard, you are a deity among puny mortals.
There are a couple ways to deal with the V-grooves. One is to weld on a serpentine pulley over the V-grooves, you could turn the v-grooves down a bit too for a smaller pulley. Another option is to take the pulley to a machine shop and have them turn it down into a serpentine pattern. Neither of the local Ferris machine shops agreed to take part in this (they claim it will be too thin, but it's been done before) However, the schools welding lab agreed to weld on a pulley for free, so I'm going to go that route with mine.
YORK/SANDEN On Board Air FAQ
The main component of an on board air setup in an old (or new) A/C compressor. All these units are is an engine driven pump. Since they are designed to produce a fairly decent amount of pressure, one makes some minor modifications to run air. I will go over the types of compressors, what vehicles these compressors are found on, mounting, connectors, hoses, valves, switches, and tanks. I will admit that I have not yet attempted my own setup. I do have a compressor ready to be put in and and soon going to invest my own personal time and money into one, thus I want to make absolutely certain this writeup is correct.
The next order of business is identifying the different possible compressors and deciding which one is best for your application, and where to find it.
The more popular choice of compressor would be a “York” style. These are more popular because they have their own internal oil supply, thus not needing any extra lubrication normally received from the A/C fluid. They've been around for a really long time and can still be found at a lot of junkyards. Because they carry their own oil they do not get as hot as quickly and bearings last longer.
Pros:
- Continuous operation (own oil)
- Common
- Proven reliability (most OBA setups use this compressor)
- HUGE! 6”wide – 8” deep (W/ clutch) – 10.5” tall (W/ SHORT connectors)
- Pulley modification needed for a serpentine pattern
- OR custom Idler pulley for serpentine-V belt converter
- OR 6/8 groove serpentine clutches, $130 new
One may be able to look at the tag on the front of the compressor and determine it's displacement. I have not had good luck with this method, and recommend not relying on this method. My York tag did not match up with any on-line source (even the York service manual I.D. Info). However, because some may match up, here is a picture of the tag and what the information means. The most reliable way of determining the displacement of a York is the end of the crankshaft.
The following is how one can remove the clutch the clutch:
- Engage the clutch mechanism by connecting it to a battery source.
- Secure the outer clutch wheel either by a strap wrench or vice (anything that can hold it still).
- Remove the center bolt and washer (1/2" socket).
- Run a 2" long, 5/8" coarse thread bolt in until it bottoms against the crankshaft and forces the clutch off.
- If the edge of the flat end is beveled, you've got the small displacement. 6.10 ci (100 cc) – model 206
- If it's a sharp corner, but with a thin groove for a retaining clip (there shouldn't be a clip), you've got the medium displacement. 8.69 ci (142 cc) – model 209
- If it's a sharp corner without any groove, you've got the large displacement. 10.3 ci (169 cc) – model 210
Kilby offers pumps, serpentine clutches and a full install kits. Good looking kit though, but for a price.
*Max RPM for York compressor is 6,000RPM (compressor speed), 4,000RPM Continuous (compressor speed)
Mounting the York
The York compressor is rather flexible in terms of mounting position. The York can be mounted forwards or backwards on the engine* (clutch pointing towards the back of the vehicle, housing in front of the belt system), upright or on either side completely horizontal, or on any angle in between (so long as oil can reach bearings**). So despite it's size it can still be squeezed into certain cramped areas.
*INTAKE/EXHAUST ports will be flipped! Be sure you know which port is intake/exhaust!
**York recommends that when lying 90° (horizontal) that the suction port be on top as to keep as much oil as possible from being pumped into the system.
Since this is intended to be a universal vehicle post I'm not going to cover brackets. Each engine and vehicle is different and I shall leave it up to you to figure out where to position the pump and how to secure it. The more time and patience spent here, the nicer the swap will look and the better it will function. I'll make a note that serpentine belts have a little less tolerance for something not being lined up right, be sure you have it correct and very little deflection.
The Pulley
First: Supposedly a serpentine pulley was installed on early-mid 80's Mustangs. So far, to my knowlege, none have ever been found. If you stumble across one in a junkyard, you are a deity among puny mortals.
There are a couple ways to deal with the V-grooves. One is to weld on a serpentine pulley over the V-grooves, you could turn the v-grooves down a bit too for a smaller pulley. Another option is to take the pulley to a machine shop and have them turn it down into a serpentine pattern. Neither of the local Ferris machine shops agreed to take part in this (they claim it will be too thin, but it's been done before) However, the schools welding lab agreed to weld on a pulley for free, so I'm going to go that route with mine.
