73 A/C box rebuild, putting it back together

[wh23g3g]

How are you suppose to get these clips back on the A/C evaporator box? It was easy enough to pry them off, but all the articles and instructions I've read never say how to get them back on. I'm not happy with the way the box went back together. I got a new heater core and evaporator core. It states in the 73 chassis service manual two screws hold in the heater core, which is correct. But my aftermarket evaporator core doesn't have holes for screws, which there is suppose to be three according to the 73 chassis service manual. It's been so long since I removed the box, I don't remember if the original evaporator had screws holding it to the box or not. The seal between the box halves is not available anywhere in the world and I didn't have enough of my old one left to make a good template. Then the blower motor I bought wouldn't fit. The evaporator and heater core tube seal holes were so small when working on the seal it tore the seal in half. I can't find the original blower motor nuts and I keep buying the wrong ones. But I can't tote it around in my truck because it won't fit in the cab and I don't want it to roll around and break in the back or have someone steal it. Does anyone know where the seal could be found? Is there a tool to make it easier to get the clips on? What size are the blower motor nuts? Does the evaporator core have to be screwed into the housing or can it move around freely?

[willille]

Since mine is a beater instead of a show car, I did not reuse the clamps. I drilled holes and use machine screws and nuts to put it back together.

[hotrodder]

unfortanatly, I have this to look forward too on my '72.....

[wh23g3g]

I didn't find the same pliers as used by Classic Auto Air. They never would tell me the actual name or company they got them from. But I was able to find some pliers that work just as good, and I had little to no problems using them. I got them from the Matco Tools truck. They're retaining ring pliers the part number on the handle of the pliers are TP49R. They cost me about $45, but it's better than destroying your plenum box or your hands trying to figure out how to get the clips on. These pliers are large and have flat horizontal ends that will sit in the grooves in the clips and the large size of the pliers makes easy enough to spread them apart with enough torque to slide them back on the plenum box perfectly. I had no problems reassembling my plenum box now. It's not a perfect one like Classic Auto Air would do, but it wasn't perfect to begin with. It's got all new foam seals inside and out, new heater and evaporator core, and a new blower motor. So it should function good enough.

[Deleted]

#WorthlessWithoutPics#

[moparguy01]

you gotta use some farmer ingenuity to get those little bastard clips on. Yes, Bastard clips is their technical name. at least if you ask anyone in the shop I work in.
Here's how you get them on. You need to get yourself a couple of pliers. One of them needs to be a regular sized needle nose

and the other set needs to be like this the one in the middle.


anyways what you need to do is this, take the pliers I showed you in the second pic. THE MIDDLE PAIR!!! now theres the top, and the bottom, the bottom is the side with the joint. You dont necessarily need one just like this, but you need one that has a angle head similar to that. Then take the TOP side of that pair, and grab onto the very edge of one of the clips.
Think of the clip kind of like this. Grab at the makeshift arrow.
_ _
_! u !_ <------Right there

Now grab the other one with the needle nose. now you have to pry the needle nose against the center of the clip. This uses the center raised area of the clip as the pivot point to pry again. This opens the clip. then slip it over and release the tension. Sometimes its only partially on, then use a small ball peen hammer, and LIGHTLY tap it (I am not responsible for you breaking it if your unaware of what the definition of the word lightly is )

On a side note, sometimes the angle head pliers will stick in the clip, just tap it off with the hammer.

Hope that helps, its easy to do, but its a bitch to explain.

[hotrodder]

Maybe I'm going blind, but I only see one pic of needle nose pliers #Thinking# #Drunk# #leaving#