i can send the guages back and get some good ones

the seal is not 1/4'' like i see on napa
its an off size .301'' but the hose is 1/4'' i think

i got a cheap vacuum pump as well
it stalls if you start it under vacuum
but it pulls a vacuum

i was thinking about getting a quality pump and gauge set but all the other ones on ebay look cheap as well

just took one of the seals out and it pancaked at the top and its hard almost like plastic
i think it might be the problem

i switched the low and high hoses with adapters and the low side of manifold leaked again i took the manifold back peice off and didnt see any seals so i put it back together and ordered a new pair of gauges i put the hoses back on the correct sides and pulled another vacuum now the low side is hold...

i got myself a 30lb tank of freon and a scale
could you describe step by step hot to charge my system

pull a vacuum on low and high side?
zero out the scale before i open the tank?
stuff like that
thanks

i pulled a vacuum on the low side and it does not hold
it very slowly leaks out over time
i think i might of over tighten the low side once could this be the cause?

i bought a side tap almost identical to the one in the link except mine is green
i had to add a shim so that it was the right size for my can
i taped the can and it leaked and didnt work
i dont have faith in can taps as pictured

I been using my regular can tap on the new self sealing freon caps i cant purge the line because its kind of tricky to get the can tap to press the self sealing tap just right and the only time i know its pressed is when i see freon flowing through the sight glass i know theres a better way to do th...

i had my ac on because of the saharan dust out i didnt want to roll the windows down and let the dust in