seagiant

Hi,
My AC went dead the other day.

I try to do all I can in keeping up my old pickup.

Steering boxes,brakes,wheel bearings,window motors,radiators,ect.,ect!

I TRIED not to mess with AC work because of different reasons.....

However today I might have got pushed into it!

I had my AC Manifold/Hose Assembly replaced and had to call foul on my Mechanic when he handed me the bill!!!

So...Wondering if you guys could point me in the right direction on a decent but reasonable priced, R134 Manifold, Vacumn Pump, and anything else I might need to start doing my own AC work???

Eric Fullerton

EBay?

seagiant

Hi,
Wow!.....I mean...WOW!!!

Glenn54

I'm not an AC expert but from what I've determined Yellow Jacket makes a good set of gauges. One guy recommended the one in the link below.
Says he has had it for 9 years and it still works good. Others have recommended Harbor Freight. I'm not sold on their stuff though. Another guy suggested a 5 CFM, 2 stage but did not suggest a brand. Most of these suggestions were from Garage Journal, General Tool section. I've been looking for the same stuff.

Glenn54

I have also heard Robinair is a good brand of AC equipment. See attached 2 stage, 5 CFM vacuum pump.

seagiant

Hi,
I actually have a old Yellow Jacket manifold!

The hoses are ratty (missing one!)...

I might just get a new set of hoses for it!

Look at Refco Vacum Pumps???

I've watched a few vids on U-Tube and both guys were using the $80 single stage 2.5 CFM Pump from HF ???

pma1123

A friend of mine bought the $100 EBay gauge/vac pump setup and has fixed several cars with it. Sure, it is not the finest stuff available, but for a shade tree wrench it should be just fine to get your truck working again and now actually own the tools to do the job.

seagiant

Hi,
Thanks!

I'm looking at some better quality used pumps, but.....

Good to know the HF stuff will work!

For what these shops want to charge to fix Auto AC....

It does not really take but one job to make your money back!!!

51ford fan

I've been using the HF Pump and Gauge Set and they work ok for my purpose. If I was working on A/C a lot I would invest in a better set though.

Fleet truck

I replaced most of my 95 4.9 AC system last summer. I had good success with the following products from Amazon:

TMS 3 CFM Single-state Rotary Vane Vacuum Pump - ~$57

FJC 6014 Vacuum Pump Adapter - ~$4

Mountain 8205 R-134a Brass Manifold Gauge Set With Couplers - ~$62

Mountain 8401 Top Style Metal Can Tap - ~ $8

In my experience these products were affordable and durable, and I plan to continue to use them on vehicles in the future. I bought R134a cans and PAG oil from Amazon as well, but you can likely pick these up as cheap or cheaper locally.

YouTube videos (most notably the "ChrisFix" ones) helped me feel more comfortable about working on the AC with less worry about terms like "black death", and "locked up". Good luck.