a/c clutch

[Markus]

I just picked up a new a/c clutch assembly. The two mating surfaces (the pulley and the hub) provide metal-on-metal contact when the clutch is engaged. I am under the impression that one of the surfaces should have a rubber coating on it - the hub I think.

Am I right? Is there supposed to be a rubber mating surface? If there is, what damage may result from using non rubber mating surfaces?

 

[ohioshodude]

why would you think that? its just like a cars clutch except its engaged by an magnet. no rubber..

 

[Markus]

I know that the a/c clutch has rubber in its mechanism somewhere I just don't know where. I looked at the new clutch hub and I can't see any rubber on/in it at all. The rubber is supposed to be there, AFAIK, to cushion the engage/disengage action of the clutch.

 

[Egg]

I just got done adjusting the air gap on my worn compressor clutch and saw no rubber or could think if a reason for rubber being there. Its a simple magnetic clutch, magnetise the two metal plates together and wahlah, spinning compressor

 

[Markus]

Ha! I removed the old clutch hub yesterday. The hub had separated into 2 parts and the material originanally holding the 2 parts together was RUBBER. There are splashes of molten rubber on the subframe and on the vertical wiring loom adjacent to the rad. The new clutch hub (NAPA aftermarket) is a 2 piece hub just like the OEM hub but seems to have a series of wafer-like springs in place of the rubber on an OEM clutch hub.

 

[rangerj]

The rubber is built into the clutch face. It serves as a buffer so that when the two surfaces meet at different speeds the transition from 0 to several thousand RPM is coushioned. Springs would serve the same purpose.