V Belt to Serpintine Belt Conversion

[Peanut74]

I needed to add an A/C bracket so I could mount the compressor. One of the many PO's deleted all the factory brackets. Researched on this site and determined what donor vehicles to look for. My first attempt fell a bit short as my heads do not have any holes in them. So while the aluminum brackets fit I couldn't modify them to work. For attempt two I'm going to get the stamped brackets that way I'm thinking I can weld some tabs to anchor it to the intake manifold or the header bolts.

If anyone has been down this road that I am headed down please let me know of any pointers you can give me to have this go a bit smoother.

[chevy71super]

My truck has older (283) non drilled heads on it as well. I don't have experience with a serpentine system, mine uses the older v-belt system. With that said my brackets use the upper two water pump bolts and two header bolts on each side (alternator and AC pump).

[gmc684x4]

The stamped steel 88 89 serpentine sets tend to crack which is one of the reasons people use them less on swaps

That is the problem with early 60s heads no acc holes

To properly use the newer serpentine set will need a head change

Or source early 60s style small block brackets

On previous engines i used 69 to 77 truck heads as they came with donor engine
Last 20 years i used vortec heads on gen 1 small blocks

[Peanut74]

Thanks for the input gents. The only reason I am doing this is that I want this truck for my DD and I live down south. So A/C is a must if you want to be comfortable in the summer. I know it will take some effort but should be worth it in the end.

GMC684x4: You said the 88-89 brackets had a tendency to crack. Can you elaborate and let me know where? That way I can check them before taking the brackets off.

[gmc684x4]

I have a couple if taken off trucks i striped for parts have cracked bolt holes and that is the reason Chevy did a redesign for the 90 to 95 trucks
96 to 02 had anouther redesign
After 98 it is only the trucks and van models that used the gen 1 vortec engines

I would change my heads to use a serpentine setup or go look at what aftermarket has brackets for early 60 cars and trucks

Here is one of the other threads that talk about it

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=627951

[Peanut74]

Thanks GMC for the thread lots of good info. I want to keep the A/C on the right side to minimize the A/C line length and help keep the engine bay cleaned up. So I need to either change the heads or work out a way to reinforce the top portion of the plate. If I go that route I will need to figure out how to tie it into the intake manifold bolts and brace it that way.

I really don't want to change the heads as the motor runs great. Has a nice lobe to it and doesn't leak anywhere.

[gmc684x4]

Vortec heads will flow better then the camel hump heads you do need a vortec intake and needs a coolant bypass
The 90 to 95 keeps ac on the pass side the 96 up set switch sides

I am planing on using 96 up set on my 72 due to i have a new 140 amp alt that for that set

[tim_mc]

If you're looking for an AC bracket for the right side that doesn't require mounting to the head, check out Old Air Products 40-113R (right side, short water pump). Here's a pic of mine. I had to grind out some material to clear one of the header tubes. It mounts to the water pump and exhaust manifold bolts. The second pic shows the front bracket before I installed the water pump on my roller cam 350.

https://www.oldairproducts.com/produ...mpressor-mount

[Peanut74]

Thanks Tim mc that is definitely an option. Looks like you are running a normal style A/C compressor and not the OEM compressor which is nice. How hard is it to get to the front spark plug?

Still working on how I'm going get is all setup. Need to have a setup for a/c, ps, water pump and alternator.

[tim_mc]

The front #2 spark plug is easy to get to under the header tube. #4 and #8 are fairly easy to reach. #6 is the tricky one as it's behind the center header tubes. Here's a better pic showing the compressor from the RH side...plenty of clearance for the front plug. Just for reference, my 350 is mounted further back in the Straight-6/4x4 V8 position and uses a 4x4 fan shroud.

[Peanut74]

Nice work there Tim. I would have thought #2 plug would be a nightmare to get.

I'm at the point in my project that I have more time than money. So I started down the path of modifying the bracket. I cut off the air pump portion and reworked the bracket to give the a/c pump more support. For the other side I cut the bracket so I could layover the alternator more. Did anchor the top portion of the bracket to the intake in one spot. Also anchored the tensioner via bracket to the thermostat housing. Still working on more bracing and reinforcement on the ps and alt side.

[Peanut74]

Well I got project Snowball's serpentine belt installed. Had to create three brackets and add some ribs but its done. I went ahead and powder coated it since I had my oven out. Now I just need to order my A/C system to install the compressor and figure out the belt length. Thanks for the input guys.