ARCHIVE Wits' End York On-Board-Air Schematic and Discussion

[NLXTACY]

I seem to be getting a lot of questions lately about the York OBA setup since I started taking pre-orders on the bracket and pulley kit: Bringing back the York OBA bracket and pulley kit!

Rather than writing a novel with each PM or email that comes in or sit on the phone for a good hour trying to explain the pros and cons of different aspects oft he OBA system, I figured I would start one thread that encompasses everything pertaining to this setup. At the same time I would like to get some discussions going pertaining to options and kits. My goal is to make different kits available depending on what your wallet, time or bravery will allow.

I am going to be right up front and say that nearly everything I am going to show on the diagram, or make available in kit form, can be purchased right from Harbor Freight. I say that because I am a realist. But at the same time, I'm NOT putting Chinese junk in my truck or anyone else's truck so I will be sourcing the best quality for the money, period.

As you look at the diagram you will see that I may have gone over board (big shock) with how I may do some of my hose routing or even available disconnects or even the type of hose. Well, that's just me, I won't change but my goal is to take the fear out of doing this mod. Now yes, there are about a dozen or so other York OBA threads and I will be sure to bring that tech in here as well to try and pull everything into one place. I want to make it as easy as I can for people to understand as well since there were pieces of the puzzle that even I had to do some research on. I knew the what, just not always the why. Heck, I'm sure all the folks that have already gone this route will point out my mistakes in no time.

 

[NLXTACY]

Now the illustration you see above I created myself so I can adjust it all day long. This shows kinda everything, well actually, I take that back. It doesn't show air lockers. But thats the point. Let me know what your application is and what you would need to change to make it what you want and I will make and illustration that better matches what you would like your setup to be.

The PDF is high resolution so you can zoom in for further detail.

 

[JaketheSSnake]

Very cool! I'll mainly be using it to air up my tires and run an impact. My biggest concern has been getting the right fittings, the intake into the air filter, and what to use for the first section of hose that sees all the heat. Looks like thats all taken care of here Now, on to the questions.

1. Would that be considered a left hand suction in your diagram?

2. What kind of fittings on the York are the most desirable, or do they all thread into the top the same way and get replaced by your fittings?

3. Is there anywhere to mount a tank other than the factory spare tire area?

4. I'm sure I'll have more questions!

 

[jonheld]

Good stuff. This was my original OBA system design in my white 91 from 2001 or so. The 2 gallon tank was attached to the frame crossmember with the LSPV.
I also had the tank upstream of any filtration. This gave the air a chance to cool and a large volume to allow water and solid contaminants to drop out. It had a bottom drain valve that I needed to clean out once a year.
When my ARB compressor died (yes, at one point I had 2 separate air systems) I added a small 2nd regulator downstream of the primary for the lockers. I was able to dial in the pressure for the ARBs so they would reliably lock at the lowest pressure possible. This worked extremely well.

The system on my 97 will be significantly simplified. I don't need air for lockers anymore, and I won't have the control system and coalescing filter in the rear cargo area. It will be kept under the hood. Also, I don't need the status lamps or the second gauge. I added them "because I could" on the original system. It was way more complicated than it needed to be, but I had fun and it worked reliably for many years.

 

[DancesWithMutts]

I will be doing the absolute bare bones setup on a over landing build. All I'm worried about is airing up tires and I'm not in a big hurry to do so. I like the York because it seems like a simple and reliable solution. I also like that it only takes up a small amount of otherwise unused space under the hood. That is a huge bonus for me.

One fitting mounted somewhere away from hot components and a slinky style hose that will reach all tires is all I need.

Edit: I'm sure I'll also need a couple of the other components, the check valve, blowoff ect. I haven't done any research on my own yet.

 

[Dissent]

I could see an application for a dash mounted pressure gauge and a line running under the driver's seat for say, air horns.

 

[Kernal]

What ballpark price range might a complete system come in at?

Novice questions:
Is a rock shield for the tank required?
Would mounting the tank under the US driver's seat (left front) be a good location?

 

[NLXTACY]

Good stuff. This was my original OBA system design in my white 91 from 2001 or so. The 2 gallon tank was attached to the frame crossmember with the LSPV.
I also had the tank upstream of any filtration. This gave the air a chance to cool and a large volume to allow water and solid contaminants to drop out. It had a bottom drain valve that I needed to clean out once a year.
When my ARB compressor died (yes, at one point I had 2 separate air systems) I added a small 2nd regulator downstream of the primary for the lockers. I was able to dial in the pressure for the ARBs so they would reliably lock at the lowest pressure possible. This worked extremely well.

The system on my 97 will be significantly simplified. I don't need air for lockers anymore, and I won't have the control system and coalescing filter in the rear cargo area. It will be kept under the hood. Also, I don't need the status lamps or the second gauge. I added them "because I could" on the original system. It was way more complicated than it needed to be, but I had fun and it worked reliably for many years.

I'm waiting for someone to chime in about AIR lockers, I have a feeling those will be less popular since their air lines kinda suck and now we have the Harrop.

I like having the filter a little closer to the compressor to get the solids while still warm and flows better. I think keeping condensation out of the line before the tank helps things along. That way the tank itself isn't storing air, oil and water. There is a way to re-route the drain from the coalescing filter back to the York but if there is a lot of condensation that isn't a good idea for the York.

I too considered the gauge and light and all that stuff in-cab but I just never pictured the need as well.

 

[NLXTACY]

What ballpark price range might a complete system come in at?

Zero clue. Everything is getting sourced now. I am using Parker fittings and hoses. Yeah its a little more but its damn fine stuff that will last forever. My goal is to make things plug-n-play. Because I'm concentrating on the 80s it means I can terminate lengths because I know what I'm building for.

Is a rock shield for the tank required?

No not really. It really doesn't matter where its mounted but the need for a plate isn't really there. Tanks are dirt cheap and they are steel. On top of that they are mounted in places that are out of the way.

Would mounting the tank under the US driver's seat (left front) be a good location?

Yes there are a few people that have mounted it there on the frame rail.

 

[FZJohnny]

I would stuff the tank under the driver door outside the frame rail! Super easy to mod a bracket or plate off your sliders and a big enough hole for a decent size tank! IIRC the metal tech sliders are pre drilled and accept an additional plate for a spare battery or a air tank.....

 

[NLXTACY]

I would stuff the tank under the driver door outside the frame rail! Super easy to mod a bracket or plate off your sliders and a big enough hole for a decent size tank! IIRC the metal tech sliders are pre drilled and accept an additional plate for a spare battery or a air tank.....

Yeah Metal Tech sliders are ready to go for the tank.

 

[NLXTACY]

I could see an application for a dash mounted pressure gauge and a line running under the driver's seat for say, air horns.

definitely could

 

[NLXTACY]

I will be doing the absolute bare bones setup on a over landing build. All I'm worried about is airing up tires and I'm not in a big hurry to do so. I like the York because it seems like a simple and reliable solution. I also like that it only takes up a small amount of otherwise unused space under the hood. That is a huge bonus for me.

One fitting mounted somewhere away from hot components and a slinky style hose that will reach all tires is all I need.

Edit: I'm sure I'll also need a couple of the other components, the check valve, blowoff ect. I haven't done any research on my own yet.

Are you ok with lifting the hood to plug in the coiled air hose or looking to have a quick-disconnect mounted on the bumper? Let me know this and I'll do up an illustration for you with what you need and why.

 

[NLXTACY]

Very cool! I'll mainly be using it to air up my tires and run an impact. My biggest concern has been getting the right fittings, the intake into the air filter, and what to use for the first section of hose that sees all the heat. Looks like thats all taken care of here Now, on to the questions.

Yeah the tires and the impact have different pressures they like so its good to be able to regulate pressure when you need it. Everything else I should have ready to go.

1. Would that be considered a left hand suction in your diagram?

Yes, looking at the compressor (pulley side). It doesn't matter if its left or right side suction. It just means hoses will be routed a little differently. The bigger issue is if the compressor is flange, o-ring or rotolock. I have a bunch of fittings for each that I sourced so no worries about the compressor you have.

2. What kind of fittings on the York are the most desirable, or do they all thread into the top the same way and get replaced by your fittings?

No, the top of the compressor will have a different plate depending on what type of application it was for. I will have to have at least three different types in intake/suction hoses to fit all possible variations. Nature of the beast. I am trying really hard to take the guess work out of this for everyone. But there are a bunch of options. I know for a fact that people's York installs come to a grinding halt because they can't figure out some funky fitting or adapter.

3. Is there anywhere to mount a tank other than the factory spare tire area?

• Behind the bumper
• Under the DS framerail
• Inside the cargo area
• Roof

 

[Golgo13]

Did nobody else notice the engine name in the diagram... Joey, stop making this stuff at 2am... Just kidding, this looks awesome, but I have a 3FE, so I'm stuck for now. Of course, with a little tinkering, it wouldn't be hard to adapt the design for a different compressor mount location.

 

[DancesWithMutts]

Are you ok with lifting the hood to plug in the coiled air hose or looking to have a quick-disconnect mounted on the bumper? Let me know this and I'll do up an illustration for you with what you need and why.

Thanks a lot for putting all this time in for your customers!

Popping the hood is fine, I figure I'll mount the clutch switch under there so I don't need to take up a precious switch blank. I figure the fitting needs to be kept high in the engine bay so my slinky hose doesn't get near hot components.

Edit: is there a easy way to tap into the wiring for the AC clutch so my idle raises when I'm using the York?

 

[NLXTACY]

Thanks a lot for putting all this time in for your customers!

Popping the hood is fine, I figure I'll mount the clutch switch under there so I don't need to take up a precious switch blank. I figure the fitting needs to be kept high in the engine bay so my slinky hose doesn't get near hot components.

Edit: is there a easy way to tap into the wiring for the AC clutch so my idle raises when I'm using the York?

Yeah so for you guys that want minimal I'm making a basic mounting plate with the crucial bits all on one bracket to make your life easier. Bolt-on for the most part.

 

[NLXTACY]

Did nobody else notice the engine name in the diagram... Joey, stop making this stuff at 2am... Just kidding, this looks awesome, but I have a 3FE, so I'm stuck for now. Of course, with a little tinkering, it wouldn't be hard to adapt the design for a different compressor mount location.

Oh jeez! Yeah stupid late is the only time I have that's largely interrupted. I could take a look at a 62 Series and see what's up.

 

[Kernal]

Are there unused studs spot welded to the underside of the floor below the US driver's seat that might be used to mount the tank?

 

[bulhas]

Zero clue. Everything is getting sourced now. I am using Parker fittings and hoses. Yeah its a little more but its damn fine stuff that will last forever. My goal is to make things plug-n-play. Because I'm concentrating on the 80s it means I can terminate lengths because I know what I'm building for.

As a guy who services air lines at work and installs stainless tubing STAY FAR FAR FAR AWAY from parker, its by far one of the worst manufacturers in my opinion, while swagelok may be worth more money ill take it any day

my second is DK Lok, I have 10+ years as an instrument technician/mechanic/engineer there is a reason we dont use parker