Photos, Blogger and Picasa

If you've followed along here at all, you'll notice my irritated rant regarding posting photographs and other images on Blogger as of late. It's just broken.

I think I may have found a workaround that's somewhat useable, but only if you already store your photos on Flickr or were planning to upload some there already. Using Windows Live Writer (very nice tool, by the way) and a plugin called flickr4writer. This doesn't dovetail quite as neatly as Picasa's blogthis function, but it does allow the use of Live Writer with images in a more convenient format than using an entirely separate image hosting service. The optimal solution, of course, would be for Blogger to open an image upload API so everyone could use whatever application they prefer for their photos and drawings. Will they ever get the point? Everyone would much rather spend their time taking the pictures rather than uploading them one at a time.

The moth below was posted using this method as a test. It's a slightly more interesting test than posting an animated GIF that scrolls TEST.

A Bug

I'm not sure what else to say. It's a bug. I wish it were a furry winged angel of death, but no. It's a bug.

And Now I Can Hear My Failing Power Steering Pump

Yes, it's true. The noise the compressor bearing made completely masked nearly every other sound in the engine compartment by the time I'd gotten around to it. Without further complaining, here's the list of things you'll need to remove your compressor clutch and replace it with a less noisy or worn out version:

• Clutch Removal and installation tools (2, see previous post for pics)
• Clutch holding tools (can be rented free)
• A wrench large enough to fit the nut on the removal/installation tools (I made do with a pair of RoboGrip pliers)
• A wrench that fits the bolt head of the installation and removal tools
• A pipe that will fit over the clutch holding tool handle (you'll need this, no question)
• A pair of snap ring pliers (you can substitute something sharp for this, but be sure to wear eye protection, snap rings are very springy and can fly off into your face)
• You may also want to have a pipe that fits over the wrench (or RoboGrip handle)
• An assistant (can be done without if necessary, but very useful, especially if pretty)
• Large hammer
• New clutch assembly
• Large two jaw puller (But only if you plan on replacing the electromagnet that comes with a new clutch. I didn't and this can add some annoying complications because of the clearances involved here, eg. you'll probably need to move the battery cables + part of the a/c plumbing out of the way and there's no guarantee your puller will fit in there anyway. Just forget it, if you want working a/c you'll want to replace the whole compressor and a few other things.)
• Whatever you use to pull the serpentine belt off (breaker bar and socket, for example)
• I recommend a pair of heavy gloves
• A large screwdriver or prybar
• A socket just barely large enough to fit over the compressor shaft.

Some of the tools:

If this isn't suddenly self-explanatory, here's some instructions (pictures coming):

Loosen the lug nuts of the front passenger tire.

Jack up the front passenger side of the car and place a jackstand under the frame or at your favorite approved jacking point in that area.

Remove the tire.

Remove the plastic splash shield that sits in front of the compressor pulley.

Remove the serpentine belt.

This is a good time to put the clutch holding tool into the holes on the clutch and adjust it to fit. This is done by moving the little brass bits in their slots and tightening them up when it fits. In my case, they were to the very edge of their slots.

Screw the large nut of the clutch removal tool into the threaded hole on the face of the clutch, you'll want to make sure it's well in there but not necessarily all the way.

Have the assistant holding the clutch holding (oh, the irony) tool from above (through the engine compartment) with a pipe on the handle for leverage. Alternatively, you can just lay the pipe against something up there towards the front of the car and hold the tools itself in place with your other hand while performing the next step.

Tighten (turn clockwise) the small bolt on the removal tool (You did remember that it's the one with the pointy tip, right?). Sounds simple, I know. This thing is going to require so much force you'll think you're going to break something. Don't worry, though, you won't (probably). You can also just hold the wrench while your assistant uses the much greater leverage available to them to turn the pipe counterclockwise. In this scenario, YOU will be the ratchet, (take care that they listen well and don't break your fingers).

Watch as the clutch seperates oh so slowly from the pulley, while you curse and turn the seemingly frozen wrench.

At this point you'll need to remove this large snap ring.

Watch as some little round bits fall out. If they don't, pull them out.

One of the bits that may fall out is a small rectangular piece of steel (not shown), Don't lose this. If it hasn't fallen out, it's going to be either inside the slot of the clutch shaft or still on the compressor shaft. Odds are that your new assembly won't have one and you will need it. (This thing is called a woodruff key, something similar is used to keep your crankshaft pulley in place while the crank turns.)

A mix of prying banging and pulling got the pulley off without the need of a puller. Your results may vary. Again, having to use a puller may make this more of a PITA than you ever thought possible.

Watch the bearings fall everywhere and send the kids to pick them up. (They make great slingshot ammo).

If you're going to replace the electromagnet, you'll need to pull it off at this point with, well, a puller. Two, three jaw, it makes no difference. I recommend forgetting this part and mailing me the new one that came with your clutch assembly. This is so I can make a rail gun. When I use this rail gun to TakeOverTheWorld(tm), you will be remembered fondly.

Installation is the reverse of removal.

Just kidding.

To put the new bearing and pulley on here, you'll need to place the big socket over the inner bearing race (that's the inside metal circle of the inner ring there) and tap it onto the compressor shaft (if you don't know yet, that's the round thing sticking out of the compressor that you've been pulling crap off of this whole time). Try not to break anything like your electromagnet or the bearing you're carelessly tapping on there.

Replace the big snap ring (you saved it, right?). If it doesn't snap in place, you haven't pushed the pulley on far enough.

Now, put the woodruff key in the slot of the new clutch, sticking off of it halfway, and place the clutch on the compressor shaft, being careful to line up the slot and key with the slot on the shaft. Yes, they fit together.

Take your installer tool and screw it onto the stud that's sticking out of the compresor shaft tightly. Then snug the large bolt on it right up to the clutch.

Break out the holding tool and pipe again.

This time you'll be turning the large nut clockwise while your assistant holds the holding tool.

Be sure to leave a thin gap (<1mm?) between the clutch and pulley, if you go too far you can use the removal tool to back it off just a bit. If you tighten too much and leave it that way, your compressor will be running constantly and probably slipping the whole time, this is bad.

You're done. Pat yourself on the back and tell everyone about your new found mechanical aptitude.

The miserable failures I promised:

I thought the woodruff key was actually an odd nut that held the clutch on because the damn thing was so hard to remove with the tool. Hilarity ensued as I tried to make a tool to unscrew it and broke the makeshift tool several times.

I borrowed the holder. Then I bought the removal tools. Figuring I no longer needed the holder, I returned it. Hilarity did not ensue. I went back for it. Someone else had it.

Attempting to remove the pulley by shrinking it with an inner weld failed. So did cutting it. Don't bother trying to replace just the bearing. Nine times out of ten, they're not removable.

Yes, I can now hear! I can hear that I'll need to replace some steering bits. Damn.

By the Way:

The black dust down there is asbestos. You have been warned.

Technorati tags: compressor, clutch, removal, replacement, gm, hd6, a/c, pulley, noise

Yet Another Kind of Death Rattle

This time, the a/c compressor started making a whine and rattle. It was, at first, quite difficult to track down until I got on the ground next to the passenger tire and had a good listen. As it turns out, the large bearings holding the compressor clutch and pulley assembly to the compressor shaft are prone to failure. This wouldn't be such a problem if there were a bypass belt available for this car. Unfortunately, due to the odd routing mentioned before, it's not. The aftermarket for a pulley that spins freely to replace the compressor hasn't enough demand for production (though it's available for many other year/models), so no joy there.

Being naturally frugal, I'd originally thought to replace just the bearing to keep the pulley from eventually welding itself to the shaft and snapping the serpentine belt. Don't bother doing this. Not just because the compressor usually fails shortly after. Don't try it because it won't work. The majority of a/c shops no longer do this particular repair, either. (Luckily Ancira Chevy let us return the useless $30 bearing, even though I'd opened the package)

I know this sounds silly, why would the dealership and parts store carry the bearing alone if there were no way to replace it? I don't have an answer to that, but let's have a look at the clutch assembly on the HD6 compressor that came with this car. *

Here's the front view and if this doesn't make you think twice about fooling with it, it should. First, you'll need three special tools that will never see light of day again after this job. Second: If yours has been doing it's noise bit for some time, there' a good chance that the heat has welded the bearing to the surfaces you'll be trying to remove it from.


The tools:


I found the puller/installer tools at Napa for about $35, but if you can wait a couple of days, they'll be found quite a bit cheaper on the net. Autozone had the loaner clutch holder (which I'm keeping) for $18. The pipe used to hold this rather dinged up the handle of what was a brand new tool.

On the left we have the tool used to install the clutch and on the right is the removal tool. Be sure you have a wrench large enough to fit the big nut.

Keep in mind, if you plan to actually use the air conditioner, it's been fairly well established that the compressor usually fails shortly after this clutch and bearing part. You may just want to replace the entire thing, which involves replacing the evaporator/dryer unit as well as flushing the entire system.

Coming Next: The actual procedure, with a few brand new Miserable Failures thrown in. Titled: Now I Can Hear My Failing Power Steering Pump Very Well.


*Words of Warning: If you're thinking of doing this, you need to look carefully at the part offered from the part store. The car this came from was a non-supercharged model, but the compressor clutch is from a supercharged version. Whether this was swapped at the factory or later is anyone's guess, but you might want to be sure the part you're getting is correct because the pulley is a different size and may require a different size of belt.