pcarfan944

The clutch/bearing on my AC compressor is noisy and needs replacement. Is replacing that bearing as easy as removing the 12mm screw at the front of the unit, the following snap rings, then pulling it out?

Car is an 86 n/a

griffiths

After you remove the 'nut' and lock washer, you need to:

if you don't have the hub removal tool, carefully pry off the front hub (2 flat blade screw drivers) opposite each other between the hub and pulley face,

under the hub there are shims (small flat washers) that provide the 'air gap' between the hub face and the pulley face, don't lose them

remove the snap ring for the pulley, take off the pulley, don't damage the OD of the compressor nose where the ID of the bearing rides on

carefully support the pulley in a press and push out the bearing, this will require supporting the thin wall cylinder where the bearing sits in, the cylinder is recessed (its not on the same plane as the back side OD of the pulley) hence it you don't support it you will distort the face of the pulley and then your off to a lathe to fly cut the face

most pulley bearings last the life of the compressor, meaning if the bearing is shot probably the pistons, bores and wobble plate are worn, other things that reduce the life of the bearing are overheating (high head pressures, lack of enough refrigerant oil flow in the system) which reduces the viscosity of the bearing grease

pcarfan944

Thanks for the reply. So finding a good used compressor sounds like the better step forward?

griffiths

If the compressor condition is unknown (you don't know how many miles, you don't know if its been rebuilt or replaced) and you have a questionable bearing,
then YES, I'd think about what time and dollars I would spend trying to repair it.
You could disassemble and inspect the bores, pistons and wobble plate and then determine it from there.