Bracket-free A/C delete for 3G-swapped 5.0!

On a whim, before committing $40+ to ordering an FRPP A/C delete bracket, I decided to try my old A/C bypass belt that I'd been running for almost a year beforehand (before wasting $65+ on a UPR A/C delete pulley, what a piece of crap). Before, the belt had fit VERY tight and the fit was VERY close at the water pump pulley - enough that the belt was just barely rubbing against itself after the initial break-in period that gave the belt about 1/4" of stretch. (Little bit of rubber powder on the hood and surrounding areas, that kinda thing.) However, the belt DID work back then - the belt length was DAYCO 5060855 / GOODYEAR GATORBACK 4060855 (85.5" length, 6-rib).

However, when I threw on the 3g swap at about the same time as the UPR A/C delete pulley (and thus used the stock w/AC 90.5" length belt), I forgot to consider that the 3g alternator comes with a bigger pulley. Even the smaller one I swapped onto it was a tad bit larger. Thus, when I tried to slip the old 85.5" belt that I'd been using before to bypass the A/C pulley, it was ohhhhhh soooo close, but not quite long enough now.

Being that I was doing this in the parking lot of Autozone, I ran in, bought the next slightly longer belt I could find - GOODYEAR GATORBACK 4060858 (85.8" length ... yeah, weird size) - and went back out there. It took a bit of a fight to slip that sucker over the alternator pulley, but with that in place and the tensioner applied, it's a PERFECT fit! I've got about 1/2" clearance between the water pump pulley-side belt and the upper half of the belt passing by over the top row. The 3G alternator's larger pulley (and perhaps its different case design) gives the belt enough clearance that it doesn't rub upon itself, and YOU DON'T NEED TO BUY AN FRPP/TRICK FLOW/MARCH A/C DELETE BRACKET! Wooohooo!

So, again, here's the formula:

3G swap + 4060858 Goodyear Gatorback belt + stock A/C-equipped bracket =

The belt cost $29.99 from Autozone. That's a buck cheaper than I would've spent buying the Trick Flow A/C delete bracket (which moves your tensioner into a weird position), and I didn't have to buy an additional belt on top of that!

And again, for anyone running the stock 2G alternator and stock A/C-equipped bracket, you can still probably get by with using a DAYCO 5060855 belt, but again the belt clearance is awfully tight. It'll work, but you'll have to dust off some rubber from the underside of your hood and stuff every now and then.

It should also be noted that in either case, you don't necessarily have to remove the A/C components to bypass the A/C pulley; there's plenty of clearance for the belt to run under it from the P/S pump to the tensioner without contacting the A/C pulley.

Enjoy! ... because I know I'll sure enjoy not having to listen to that stupid UPR A/C delete pulley rattling away due to a crappy bearing design. (The snap ring doesn't hold the bearing tightly enough within the pulley, so the whole bearing wobbles back and forth within the pulley - the bearing, itself, is good, but the means of holding it in place is inadequate.)

Oh? Do explain.

I mean, are you saying you just flipped the tensioner somehow and ran a shorter belt that way? ... or are you talking about the March/Trick Flow A/C delete kit that relocates the tensioner?

UPDATE: The belt's past the initial stretch phase. It's actually about as close as the old bypass belt setup was, with just a hair better clearance (probably about 1/8") - enough that it's not going to rub/shred itself into oblivion with friction. So, again, an A/C delete is just a belt-swap away! ... although, of course, you'll still have that goofy-looking bracket sticking up there, unless you want to bother taking the time to saw/grind off the top ear of it that used to hold the A/C compressor for the heckuvit.

*shrugs* I could snap a pic, but there's really nothing special to see. Just a shorter belt and no A/C compressor. The routing is the same as for a non-A/C car (like on the belt-routing diagram sticker most Foxes have underhood), it's just that I'm not actually having to run one of those non-A/C brackets to accomplish the same result. And, again, I have that ugly A/C bracket sticking up, but who cares? (Nobody but me looks under the hood, anyway.)

I dunno, I figure I might as well keep the A/C bracket as-is, instead of chopping it. If I have a few bucks to throw around later and I feel inclined to eBay the bracket off or something, I don't wanna mutilate it. It's certainly not hurting anything where it's at, it's not preventing me from reaching anything that needs to be worked upon, and most everything else under my hood looks like arse, so why bother?

Now that my power steering pump is starting to seep just a teeny tiny bit, I'm contemplating a switch to a manual steering rack ... and, if so, then I won't even need the P/S bracket at all. That's how I do things with my car - if it breaks, DELETE IT!

A manual rack's WAY easier to turn in parking lots than a drained power rack. This is especially important when you go running wider tires up front than the stock 225's. I've felt what my steering is like without power assist, and even when you're going down the road, it's pretty tough work. Sure, I wanna get into better shape this summer, but getting He-Man muscles just from driving isn't quite what I had in mind...

Just curious, has anyone else tried the shortbus ... er, I mean short BELT method of deleting A/C? Did you use the same belt size as I did, or something shorter?