I took my bus over to a retired wrench who said he has worked on reefers. he put in some r-22 and then held some sort of sniffer by the clutch/seal area. it sounded like a geiger counter in a nuke plant. so we assumed it to have a bad seal. still have a problem in that i guess it takes a special tool to get it off, but i guess it shuoldn't be that expensive.

just for general info, i have an 05g compressor. Since the auto temp control in driver's area seems to work, the fans all blow ok and i don't see any leaky hoses or bad belts, i'm hoping that's the only issue.
welch's told me the r-22 it says on the side door to use in mine, can easily be replaced with R134 which is cheaper and easier. no changeover kit required. someone earlier asked if they could and i guess that's a yes.
so now i'm back to no battery bank cause i don't want to use any other space just yet. need it for the antenna systems we carry for installations and to rallies.
justin, if i could get to texas, i'd be happy to hold the light and watch it done so i can learn. if you can get Merle to Ohio, i'll see if i can find an audience for him while you and I fix my a/c.

you are one lucky dog to be drivin' that kind of talent around. Obviously, you've got some talent yourself.