Black se7en

Well, yesterday I heard a new noise coming from my engine bay.
It sounded *almost* like air leaking, but it wasnt. (At least I don't think so.)
It was almost a metallic/friction sound, but not quite. Kind of like sand paper??
Sound is hard to describe....

Anyways, it seems constant regardless of RPM (at least at lower RPMs, can't hear it at higher RPMs because of engine noise). At idle and low RPMs it's really apparant.

However, when I have the AC compressor engaged, the noise goes away.
This leads me to believe it has something to do with the AC compressor.
Most problems I've read and heard about have symptoms of compressor noise when it is engaged.

What do you think it is? Is it the compressor? Pulley bearing?
I was going to put some oil into the R12 system this weekend as it is.

Background about the car:
Car was sitting for about 3-4 years before I got it.
I put some work on the motor and got it running. Supprisingly the AC system still worked great and blows cold!
I've been using the AC the past month or so with no problems until yesterday when I started hearing the noise.

Any help will be great!!! Thanks!!

WAYNE88N/A

Sounds like you've already figured it out, compressor belt pulley, or compressor itself...

Black se7en

Thanks for the reply Wayne.
I wasn't sure though, most times when I hear about AC problems the noises come when the compressor is engaged.
What does it mean when the noise is there when the AC disengaged and not there when its engaged?
I would think that if the noise appears with the AC enaged that the compressor itself is going bad.
So, would the noise appearing with the AC clutch disengage mean something else?

I just want to make sure before I start replacing parts and looking in the wrong direction.