Not finding alot on the internet about this. What are best hard lines for ac, and what tool do you use to bend with? What are the best hidden routes? Under fender, or under engine. Best fittings???? Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Hide the AC under the work bench. Hide the condenser in the rafters. Put the air box and evaporator in the closet. What lines you talking about? I didnt see any AC lines.
Better off using normal flexible air conditioning hose,can you imaging how much condensation will be soaking everything? HRP
Most hard lines can be purchased in various lengths with fittings already installed. Do a google search on a/c tubing and you should come up with several sources. They can be bent with a regular hand tubing bender. Just plumbed a '57 Chevrolet at my day job, takes a little practice to get from point a to point b so try to find some scrap tubing to practice on. As far as hiding lines, if it's going to be a driver hidden lines are a pain in the ass to repair. Be neat but put them where you can get to them.
Hot rod don't have A/C you by a new Truck for A/C!!!!!!! Sorry it just bugs the shit out of me when People say I love my Hot Rod but I sure wish it had A/C.
I used a standard tubing bender. The common material for AC is aluminum. You might find some help with components here: http://www.acdelco.com/parts/air-conditioning/ I got most of my parts from a local auto AC business that sells parts AND repairs cars. They had everything I needed. I hid my lines in plane sight. Below is a photo of my hot rod with AC. I guess this isn't the best photo, but the lines are routed along the inner fender. The hoses from the compressor curve down directly to the hard lines. One is visible in the photo. The heater hoses run under the battery box to the engine and the condenser lines are behind the radiator support. I have just enough hose length on the compressor to allow me to park it in the battery box should I need to remove the exhaust manifold.
I just did a 61 Olds for a client, and I hid the lines in the wheel wells, and in front of the radiator, under a factory sheet metal cover. I used bulkheads where they came out of the wells, then put flexible hose from there to the compressor. In this case I used aluminum tubing, but I think stainless would have been better, it's tougher. But I also made shields out of exhaust tubing to protect them. You have to TIG the ends on stainless tubing to make them. The aluminum you can buy the tubing with ends already on them, but in most cases if you custom bend them, you need to change the lengths anyway, so I buy solder on ends. You need a special solder for alum, but you can usually buy it where you get the fittings. I used to use Doc's Blocks, but I don't' think they sell to the public any more. You'll have to buy 1/2 and 5/8" benders to work with the larger sizes of AC tubing.
This is in the 'Traditional Customs', not Hot Rod category if that makes any difference. I'm not an A/C guy either, having a nice ocean breeze to keep cool, but if I lived where some of you do I'd probably consider it.
Not sure what you working on, but mounting the compressor low, route flex line under the fender securely mounted to the wheelhouse is a common routing. Usually takes mocking it all up and removing the fender a couple times, maybe weld mounting tabs or nuts to the fenderwell. Firewall pass thru, look at vintage air's website they have multiple choices. Locate the firewall pass thru under the fender out of sight. If you want to run hard lines from the compressor, you need to support them well, and have some flex line in there to account for engine/ body movement.
The old add on A/C units I used to install at the dealership used copper tubing-easy to bend. This was back before everything came with factory A/C. Yea-I'm old.
Hide the freaking ugly ass service connections, and the stupid looking caps. Geez! whats' new chopolds?
Most of you...thanks for the great tech tips! To the rest of you... This isn't the "should I have air conditioning on my car forum!" Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Hey Dave...long time! Just don't hide them too good, in case I have to recharge your system for you! I just got the 61 back from upholstery, I might be able to get pics for you how I did the routing of the tubing.
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