Since I hijacked a thread previously regarding A/C R12 refrigerant unavailability and/or exorbitant black market prices, based on Nori's advice above I decided to give the Red Tek R12a refrigerant a try and start a new DIY thread.   I ordered the Canadian manufactured Red Tek R12a Refrigerant Recharge Kit with Gauge from Amazon HERE. It comes with two cans of R12a, a can of stop-leak, a hose with a quality pressure gauge and brass fittings, and an R12-to-R12a fitting adapter for the compressor