Got another piece of the puzzle done this week! We now have AIR CONDITIONING!!!!!
I absolutely hate being hot so I’ve built different universal AC kits in the past and I have been planning on installing one in this build since the first 90* soggy day I drove it last july. I want to be able to hop in this thing any given nice day and enjoy driving it to work or on a weekend cruise and be comfortable. So heres the lowdown......
After much reading, comparing, measuring, and reviewing I decided on using the vintage air mark-4 underdash unit and keeping my stock recirculating heater that I already put the upgraded core/spal fan in. It works great and fits the “stock appearing” theme I’m goin for. Funny enough I found limited reviews on people that actually used one. Lots of “I heard’s” and 2nd,3rd, 4th hand accounts of their performance and fit. Then reading in summit I see a picture of the one guy that actually put one into a AD truck and it looked like it fit great! So I measured 20 times before ordering and I knew I would need to move my heater over more to pass side to clear the AC unit but I wasn’t at all bothered by that. The rest of the pieces I sourced from my normal ebay spots that Ive had success with previously. I already own the hose crimping tool so I was already prepared there. I bought a universal 17x19” condensor and the universal hose kit with reciver drier with a trinary switch then a SD7 style compressor and the fittings to adapt it to normal #8/10 hoses. I normally build my own bracket for the pump and run it on a separate belt on the inner belt on LS setups but I actually found a really nice bracket setup that moved the alternator into a better spot for me and ran the AC on the same 6rib belt and used a factory automatic tensioner. It was cheap enough where I knew it would save me enough time and aggravation lining up pulleys and swearing and anger so I just bought it.... 100% glad I did too because it was perfect. So thats all the parts, now onto the installation!
Mounted the underdash unit without drilling a single hole in the dash! Used the inner screw for the ignition switch on left side then used the existing hole on right side for the stock heater temp rod on the deluxe heater valve setups. Used the provided strap mounts and cut and bent until they worked. The unit is very close to flush to the dash and I positioned it so it does not at all effect the cowl ventðŸ‘. The fittings actually lined right up with the 2 factory holes in the firewall too! I did slightly enlarge one to pass the hose fitting through but it was minimal. The one holes I did drill was way up on the firewall to mount the strap to hang/support the rear center of the unit and a hole by the floor for the evaporator drain hose to the ground. My next task was mounting the condenser in front of the radiator. That was very easy with the included universal brackets. I ground the lip off the rad support where the brackets landed and then it was just 4 sheet metal screws and I put foam tape on the entire perimeter of the condenser and sealed it to the rad. This helps force air through everything rather than around it. Then I mounted the receiver drier just behind the grill to the front part of the inner fender. When laying out and planning all of this you need to account for where is the easiest/best/shortest way to run all the hoses. I decided to shoot the hoses through the front of the inner fender and have them pass back into the engine compartment right next to the compressor from the inner fender. I made it look as clean as possible. Next was compressor mounting. That accessory drive setup was a easy bolt on deal as expected. Only thing left now was to run hoses. So I ran all hoses in their spots and cut them and crimped the 8 fittings I needed to complete the loop and all was good (or so I thought). So I figured i was done there and moved onto wiring. Wiring the AC unit itself was simple. I put it on its own relay because they say between the compressor clutch and blower it can draw up to 20amps. The tricky part was wiring the electric fan so It was still controlled by the factory PCM but would also turn on via the trinary switch without effecting the PCM. I did this by just running a isolated relay so not to effect my original fan relay controlled by the PCM. Works great ðŸ‘. So now I hooked up my vac pump and sucked it down assuming I would be ready to charge it up with my manifold gauges and adapters and the 12oz refrigerant cans that I use to feed it. Well those gauges fell to zero in about 3 min. WTF!? Leaks! So after scratching my head going over every o-ring and hose I was at a loss. Vacuum leaks are hard/impossible to find on a AC setup so I opted to just jam 120psi shop air into it. Not optimal as far as moisture but it is very effective. Found 4 leaks at my crimps. Not sure why but the way the tool is designed it gives you a “finish line” to stop at so you dont over crimp a fitting. Well the larger lines wanted to be bottomed out so thats what I did and it fixed all 4 leaks. So i fired up the pump again and it was good. Vacuumed it for a hour and let it sit overnight since it was late. It held! Charged it with 28oz the next day and Im pleased to say it basically will make my hand numb. It hasnt been hot out yet but today was almost 70* ambient and in the sun the 5 window greenhouse effect cab was instantly cool. My one last thing to install now is the cable operated heater valve (that i will most likely actuate via factory choke knob) that will recirculate back to the engine and keep the heat out of the cab. I also have insulation and floor mat to install still. All in all its a success.
Now I have what appears to be a factory stock truck from outside and the interior (besides the era correct AC) BUT...... its actually powered by a 285hp fuel injected GM V8 with era correct electric overdrive and AC. I will include below the parts list / price of the stuff I used. Mostly all universal stuff found online and the vintage air underdash unit straight from summit racing online. Enjoy...... I am !!
Vintage air underdash AC $305 Universal 17x19” condenser $65 Hose and drier kit $80 Compressor $150 Mount kit for my application $200 Trinary switch $18 Heater valve (to stop/recirc flow) $50 GRAND TOTAL of $868 Having frosty nuts on a 100* day =$ PRICELESS
I could have easily saved myself the $200 on the mount and made it for free and kept the cost in the $650 range but I was sick of fabbing and wanted a break.
Another pic of the hi/low hoses goin into firewall. I had bulkhead fittings but decided not to use them because I placed the underdash unit so close to firewall that the normal straight #10 fitting is almost touching the firewall so its got to be short.
Nice. My 49 AC/Heater unit is from Old Air Products (https://www.oldairproducts.com/). The pic shows my heater valve outside the firewall. Just changed it a few months ago as it started leaking.
Last edited by olezippi; 05/03/202011:54 AM.
"If you can't fix it with duct tape it's an electrical problem" 1949 5 Window 3100 In the Gallery Forum Veteran of the USAF My Website
Barnfind49, NICE. Great writeup and images. Thanks!
RonR
Your welcome. Its not as bad as some people think and the convenience of AC is so worth it.
Originally Posted by olezippi
Nice. My 49 AC/Heater unit is from Old Air Products (https://www.oldairproducts.com/). The pic shows my heater valve outside the firewall. Just changed it a few months ago as it started leaking.
I have the same heater valve from them. Just showed up yesterday.
I have 2 under dash units that I saved for my 59'. One is a dealer installed option for a 64" Chevelle, the other is an aftermarket and that I pulled from a Toyota HiLux. I like the period look of the under dash units, I will need to see how the shifter clearance works out. It looks great in your truck.
~ Craig 1958 Viking 4400 "The Book of Thor" Read the story in the DITY 1960 Chevrolet C10 "A Family Heirloom" Follow the story in the DITY Gallery '59 Apache 31, 327 V8 (0.030 over), Muncie M20 4 Speed, GM 10 Bolt Rear... long term project (30 years and counting)
Come Bleed or Blister, something has got to give!!! | Living life in the SLOW lane
I have 2 under dash units that I saved for my 59'. One is a dealer installed option for a 64" Chevelle, the other is an aftermarket and that I pulled from a Toyota HiLux. I like the period look of the under dash units, I will need to see how the shifter clearance works out. It looks great in your truck.
Thank you! Yea im really happy with it. Super cold. Im still slowly covering up holes in the firewall and adding insulation. It is sooooo nice to be able to hop in it and actually cool off. Great daily now.
I see the A/C compressor. Where is your alternator? On the PS? You make all this sound so easy. I’m still trying to figure out how to wire my alternator to a dash light. Awesome fun to watch and learn.
There is no PS pump. Truck has all factory manual steering. Alternator is on the very bottom. Cant see much of it in that pic. Its staring you right in the face as soon as you get under the truck though. Here is a pic of the setup online...
Really sweet. Im not a big fan of the LS swap. But this looks like it has a purpose there. Good job. With the AC also.
A lot of purist are not into the LS.... but the stock engine on its best day cant hop on the highway and accelerate up to 65mph in like 3 sec to merge. I know the stock engines are solid for the most part but they cant do anything better than the modern v8 in a real driver application. I have had more than a few people ride in it and say that its not what they expected. It almost feels electric its so smooth with power. I literally built it to seem stock though. If i told you drive it and you thought it was stock you would get in and turn the key and stomp the starter and it would fire up, you would grab the column shift and drop it in gear and drive away like you would any other AD Truck only difference being instead of 85hp you have like 285hp and it’s seamless. It really is a mind trick.
Wish I had me a daily driver like yours. Any of you guys work with Photoshop? Let see what Barnfind49 truck would look like with a splash of color.
I dont need photoshop. This is exactly how it would look with the correct original color with black wheels. Its supposed to have the orlando light blue 16” split wheels with same color belt line stripe but i like black wheels personally.
Mabey someday later in life it can look like that but im more partial to how it looks now. Way less drama and just as much if not more attention and compliments while out in it.
I got all of my parts to start on the interior so I tore it all apart and started on the rusty roof and ended up finishing up with the rusty floor. When i say “rusty” I mesn just some surface rust and pitting. No major issues besides the one silver dollar sized hole i patched in pass corner by the kick panel/floor seam. I started by cleaning off all the scale with a large plastic pad on a drill and then did a lot of hand sanding with soft blocks in all the little corners. I then coated the entire roof and floor with Master Series silver rust primer. Im not sure if anyones ever used this stuff but IMHO it dosent get any better than this stuff. After that was set up I was on to cleaning and painting up the dash and column. I got as far as I could before I ran out of paint and I then started some re-assembling just because I was excited to see progress. I still need to do the doors and put the new weatherstripping on them. Once the rest of the cab is all in one color it will be fitted with a fresh interior from jim carter. New floor insulation and rubber mat, maroon seat cover, door panels, 2 arm rests, gray headliner and visors and some various other tidbits that I cleaned and painted. Still have to fix up the steering wheel but I did get the horn button done and I pretty proud how it came out. Almost every piece in this truck is original with just some elbow grease put into cleaning. All original gauges, trim rings, dash trim, speaker grill, and glovebox. Even headlight switch is original. Im not doin a concourse resto but just want it to be nice inside and its ok if its got some wear to match the outside.
Not too bad. Made mounts and moved some stuff around and had to get creative with linkages and what not to mimic how it worked stock. As for 12v I just ran a new battery cable and put a 12v battery in it and a gauge reducer for the fuel gauge. Everything else is all 12 volts. I did build my own light harness and basically everything else too so I never “converted” to 12v.
Nice work dude. Looks great. I'm thinking we may see that stock blue color on the body not to far down the road. You do such good work it would look fantastic.
"If you can't fix it with duct tape it's an electrical problem" 1949 5 Window 3100 In the Gallery Forum Veteran of the USAF My Website
Great to see the "No Fear" mentality with your projects. Results are definitely inspiring . One note, a few years ago I lined my cab with peel'n'stick. Then layered on 3/4" dense cell foam. Very happy with the results. HOWEVER, a couple days ago I replace the stop light switch and wished I'd made a small allowance for the two screws (clutch heads) holding the switch in. It wasn't a big deal, just one I could have handled better, as in used a little foresight when installing the insulation.
Yup I try to think ahead for later because when I build something there is a really good chance that I am the one that will be repairing it later down the road. My insulation mat I bought is just the run of the mill one that lays under the rubber mat. Not gluing it down. I can see how that stop light switch could be a pain in the rear though. I actually moved my original stop light switch over when I had to move the brake pedal assembly over to fit the engine in. Still the oem switch that I peeled apart and cleaned and re installed with the factory screws just about 3” over to the left nowðŸ‘.
Got the steering wheel all glued up and painted with some nice fat coats so hopefully it wears well. Used JB weld to fill in the 20+ cracks and the sharp flaking pieces on the spoke joints. Lots of sanding but im happy with the end result and best of all it was free.
Got the steering wheel all glued up and painted with some nice fat coats so hopefully it wears well. Used JB weld to fill in the 20+ cracks and the sharp flaking pieces on the spoke joints. Lots of sanding but im happy with the end result and best of all it was free.
Barnfind49,
Man, that looks pretty good there if I do say do myself. Nice work.
Last edited by olezippi; 07/09/20205:08 PM.
"If you can't fix it with duct tape it's an electrical problem" 1949 5 Window 3100 In the Gallery Forum Veteran of the USAF My Website
Spent the better part of Sunday recovering the seat. Got it all done. I did have to patch up the lower driver side of the seat frame where it was broken and rotted. All good now! I will also say Jim Carters Spanish grain maroon seat cover material is very very close to the stock cover. I found a lot of edges of the original seat cover and complete horse hair and springs on the seat bottom. The grain and color is super close to the JC stuff. I was pretty impressed.
Very very impressive build how did you bolt up the overdrive transmission? Did you have to change the bell house? I have a 3 on the tree with overdrive bolts duo to a 235 engine and you give much inspiration to cut down cost by using parts you already have. Thanks for great documentation Robert
Nice work. One would never know there was a monster under the hood. Do you ever bang your knee on the AC?
Nope. Looks closer than it is. Im 6’1” and its not even close. I put 2 passengers in the truck frequently with no issues too.
Originally Posted by latroca52
Very very impressive build how did you bolt up the overdrive transmission? Did you have to change the bell house? I have a 3 on the tree with overdrive bolts duo to a 235 engine and you give much inspiration to cut down cost by using parts you already have. Thanks for great documentation Robert
The 319 trans is the same pattern as every other GM trans 3/4 speed. Just bolts on. Had to make a crossmember with a mount and build a driveshaft and thats about it. The overdrive is awesome. Once you have one you will have one forever.
Where did you find the the overdrive cable? I have the one that came with the transmission with plane handle And one from a mustang with overdrive stamped on the handle but the cable is to short Also what wire harness is on the truck stock LS harness or did you get a stand alone harness? Thanks Robert
Where did you find the the overdrive cable? I have the one that came with the transmission with plane handle And one from a mustang with overdrive stamped on the handle but the cable is to short Also what wire harness is on the truck stock LS harness or did you get a stand alone harness? Thanks Robert
Overdrive lockout cable is available new on ebay. Stock silverado harness that I modified.
What fly wheel did you use for the stock transmission? Where you able to keep the transmission in the stock position?
I used the nfw1050 flywheel from a parts store that basically will work with old BBC style clutches. When i built my truck i used the entire stock torque tube so yes the front to back location of the mating surface from trans to bellhousing is generally in stock position.
Not too bad. Made mounts and moved some stuff around and had to get creative with linkages and what not to mimic how it worked stock. As for 12v I just ran a new battery cable and put a 12v battery in it and a gauge reducer for the fuel gauge. Everything else is all 12 volts. I did build my own light harness and basically everything else too so I never “converted” to 12v.
What brackets did you make and what linkages did you have to move around?
What brackets did you make and what linkages did you have to move around?
I used some universal weld in motor mounts and as far as linkages I just had to re-bend all the stock column shift rods to sort of go around the cylinder head then back towards the trans. My truck also has the pivot point in the 2/3 shift rod that normally is connected to the pivot on the original bell housing. So I chopped off that pivot from the bellhousing and welded it to a bracket I made so it actually bolts on with left 2 bellhousing bolts. Also converted stock gas pedal to cable, and had to move over the brake pedal to fit engine in. It all looks stock from the inside and works as stock. I actually just copied the clutch pedal idea (if you can imagine looking at it from engine side of firewall). I moved the pedal over in the floor then I just bent like a 45deg or less angle on the part that goes to the pivot just like how the clutch one is stock. It actually looks like I never touched it. Then I just welded the actual original pedal pad offset on the rod through floor so the pedal spacing is still correct. It was a nice sneaky mod that I had to do because the brake linkage ran right into the manifold when pushed down.
