Yet another A/C thread- clutch seriously worn.

[TequilaWarrior]

So - at roadie's suggestion i took a close look at my a/c. It's been flaky for a while. I found thw coil would pull the clutch in, but the clutch would just slip. It spins nice and easy by hand though. I tried to measure the air gap but couldnt and upon closer inspection found a lip at the edge of the pulley. Apparently, the clutch has worn the pulley into the shape of a bowl.

I think I'm going to try reoving the clutch plate and grind the lip off with the pulley still attached to the compressor. Then, try and sand/grind the pulley surface to roughen it up a bit. Clean the clutch and reassemble, minus the shim.

Any thoughts?

 

[c good]

That's the best thing you can do at this time to reduce the "air gap". If this doesn't solve the problem you will need a new clutch/coil assembly. The clutch/coil assemblies for this Sandor compressor are pretty much impossible to find. If you don't want to go with installing a new or used compressor and incurr the expenses of opening up the system I guess you could just get a new/used compressor and pull off the clutch/coil and give that a try. HTH c good

 

[TequilaWarrior]

Removed clutch disk and found pulley horribly grooved.
Used a dremel with a conical stone to remove the outer lip and clean up the surface.
Wirewheeled the clutch disk.
Flushed everything with brake cleaner.
Reassembled minus the shim and voila!
Works as designed.

Found that a pry bar between the socket and one of the posts on the clutch was the easiest way to hold it still.