deb,

I'm going through the same thing right now.  I have an '85 that I bought knowing that the low pressure hose had a hole in it.  Well, this weekend, I removed it (16 feet of cursing and bleeding!) and today, I'm going to drive to a place to see if they will do it.  Both NAPA's in my area couldn't do it.  One of them said that these hoses need to be hydraulically crimped.  I have tried farm machinery shops, etc. with no luck so far.

At least they are standard size (5/16"), which gives me hope that I'll be able to find someone who can make one.  You will also want to replace the 'O' rings on the ends of the hose too.  Since the system is already open, I'm going to replace all of them that I can.  Also, someone recently suggested replacing the receiver/drier.  Anyone know why?

Will this be worth it?  Any '85 Westy owners out there with a functioning system?  We have 2 small kids (3 and 6 mos.), so that is our primary motivation.  The blower on the Westy should make a difference for where they sit on the back bench seat, but will we be able to feel it up in the front seats?

And Ken, if you are still following this thread:  I wish I lived near you, because I'd bring it to you for vacuum/charge when I get it back together.  When I bring it to a local tech, what should I tell him?  The system lost some oil through the hole in the hose, and the system has obviously been completely open.  Should he completely evacuate the system and start from scratch?  Does he need to add oil?  Is this a good time to convert to another refrigerant?  Thanks for any advice.

John Haddad