Product Review on the:

UV/BLUE

Contact Information:
Phone:
800-274-8888

MODEL # TP-8300
and also the:

OUTSIDE U.S. & CANADA: Phone: 516-333-4840
Tracerline Products Website

e-mail: info@tracerline.com

Universal kit, TP-9742CS

Product review performed by:
Bruce Bonebrake
Managing Editor at BAT AUTO

   Automotive fluid leaks are a problem that vehicle repair shops are faced with daily. Some fluid leaks are severe enough that pin-pointing the leak point is a simple task. Others, and more often that not, the EXACT leak point can be difficult to identify. More and more the engine compartments are very congested with an array of components. With the addition of the ABS systems, and Air Suspension systems, among many others, the underhood space, that used to contain only the engine assembly, now shares this limited space with several other "Sub-Systems". If a fluid leak cannot be positively identified, the results, for the vehicle repair shop, can be extremely costly, and a waste of valuable shop time.
   So, what can we do, to be certain the repair that we suggest to the customer, is the correct repair needed to correct a fluid leak? SIMPLE, fluid leak detection dyes have been on the market for several years now. When first introduced, the UV detection lights would have a "warm-up" period, and most were not "user friendly" due to the bulky size and basically some times were not much help.
   That was then, and this is now folks. I agreed to perform a product review on two products offered by TRACER PRODUCTS. Naturally, as most have, the name was familiar to me. I have used the TRACERLINE dyes in the past, and I know they work well. I purchased an A/C Leak system that uses the 12V UV light last A/C season, and I know the limitations and the advantages of that system, so when offered this review, I jumped on it.
   Without further delay,lets see how these TRACERLINE products perform.

The "timing" could not have been better! I received the package for the product review, and the very next day, I had a "problem A/C system" scheduled. The test vehicle is a 1989 Chevrolet Suburban equipped with a Dual A/C system. This vehicle had been converted to the R134a freon last season, by another repair shop. Since the conversion, the vehicle has been recharged twice.
So, within 11 months, this vehicle has lost three freon charges, amounting to around 18LBS of R134a.
Need-less-to-say, the customer is upset, and wants the vehicle repaired, once and for all.
Being the "family vehicle", dark in color, and dark interior, the 90+ high humidity days here, the A/C system is not an option, it is a necessity. The owner, John, was referred to my shop by a friend. The vehicle arrived, so let us look at this, and try and find the problem.

   As expected, the A/C system was totally discharged. I decided to go ahead and evacuate the system and see if the system was able to hold the vacuum.
   The vehicle connected to my Robinair ENVIRO charge unit, I evacuated the A/C system 1 hour, and then let the system stand, in vacuum, 1 hour. On a system with a leak, this is a standard practice at my shop. With this method, I can estimate what type of Freon leak I am searching for.
   John's Suburban held the system vacuum, with virtually no vacuum loss, hmmm, interesting. I now know, because of the prior history, that this may be a leak that will be hard to pin-point.

The next step is to add the TRACERLINE "Fluoro-Lite" dye into the system. The "BigEZ" system makes adding the dye a snap. The cartridge is granulated in 1/8 oz measurements. The formula is 1/8 oz of dye to every 5 oz's of system lubricant. On our test vehicle, this would equal to 1/4 oz of dye injected into the system.
The "BigEZ" system's applicator has a threaded rod with a knob on the end. Turning the knob, thus installing the dye, was accurate, and very simple to add the correct amount. The dye is added to the LOW side charge port of the system. Our test kit included the R134a hose assembly, and also the adapter for R-12 systems.

The dye installed, A/C system recharged, checking for the leak was as simple as going over the system with the was an easy task. The light has a solid feel and is lightweight.

As you can tell by the pictures, we didn't need to check the vehicle inside the shop with all of the shop lights off. Full sun load, and my shadow being the only break from direct sunlight. I simple checked the entire system, going over all the lines and components.

This picture is worth a thousand words. There is the problem. The R-4 A/C compressor case o-rings are leaking. The picture on the right clearly shows the leak point. This was taken in full sunlight with me being the shadow. Amazing!! This small UV light really impressed me. Being a "cordless" rechargeable type, I know you may be thinking, "What about having to recharge the battery in the middle of a system test?" Well, Tony used this light on his article using the light with the Hydraulic fluid dye, and I received the light from him, and never charged it, and performed the entire test, and RETEST, and the light STILL had a bright light!! For storage, and also to keep the battery charged, there is an included wall mountable charging cradle. The UV/BLUE light was extremely bright, and more importantly, we found the problem. Time to contact the customer. EXCELLENT!!

Well, after talking to John, and explaining the problem with the vehicle, he authorized the repair. The repair consisted of installing a replacement compressor, the orifice tube and the accumulator. The system was reclaimed, repair's performed, evacuated, dye re-injected into the system, and recharged. Once completed, the same procedure that found the leak, was performed again. Always double check the repair!! With the dye in the system, and being an older vehicle, any leakage problems that may arise in the future, will be easy to diagnosis. The dye can be left in the system indefinitely, and the compressor manufacture's warrantee will be unaffected by the dye in the system, AS A MATTER OF FACT, the instruction information, that was packaged with the compressor RECOMMENDS that the dye leak detection method be performed!


	Final step, installing a label to alert any technician that would service the A/C system in the future. The date the dye was installed, and into what system, along with the technician/shop that performed the service, are all included on the label. (The BigEZ system includes the labels).

We are done!!! The job is correctly repaired and the customer is happy!! :)

Product review ratings:

FIRST:

Overall Quality...................................EXCELLENT!!!
Ease of Use........................................EXCELLENT!!!
(lightweight, easy to handle, rechargeable, adjustable-focus beam,"instant on" (no warm-up time required),BRIGHT, Xenon-filled bulb with a patented "dichroic filter lense technology".)

Specifications:
Model...Stinger TP-8300
Inspection range...Maximum (recommended)...1ft (.03m) or more (depending on the room light level) Lamp style............Flashlight
Operation.............instant-on
Bulb rating...........6 watts (Xenon-filled)
Lamp head diameter X length of housing......... 1 5/8 X 7 3/8" (4.1 X 18.7 cm) Weight.................8.7 oz (247 g) with battery
Power requirement................3.6V NiCad rechargeable battery (included)

SECOND:

Overall Quality...........................................EXCELLENT!!!
Ease of Use................................................EXCELLENT!!!
(Simply and accurately adds the Fluoro-Lite detection dye to the A/C system, Cost effective
( 1- 4oz disposable BigEZ cartridge contains enough Fluoro-Lite dye to treat up to 16 standard-sized vehicle A/C systems, and up to 32 compact-sized vehicle A/C systems)

Where to buy:

Tool & Equipment Distributor Associates, Inc.
Stores in 15 states and Canada

Tool Group, Inc
Store in 10 states and Canada

Tools
Stores in 9 states and Canada

If there isn't a store near you, click on the link, fill out the form for the closest Distributor: http://www.tracerline.com/distributors.html
or call their Customer Service at 1-800-641-1133

Thanks for reading my product review. Any comments or suggestions would be welcome, and can be emailed to:

batauto.com©November 2001

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Tool & Equipment Distributor Associates, Inc. Stores in 15 states and Canada	Tool Group, Inc Store in 10 states and Canada	Tools Stores in 9 states and Canada