I have 35 years of experience in the industry as a mechanical engineer. One thing I have learned is to use the right tool for the job. Putting the hand in front of the vent is subjective. The right took is to use a ac vent thermometer. It takes away guesswork.
I restored a 1985 VW van. This car had R12 refrigerant which has become illegal since 1997. The van ac system had to be converted to R134a. Much work was done and in the picture below you can see me checking the ac temperature using a digital thermometer.
Click on the picture to see full image in this picture temp is 18 degrees which on the test drive dropped to 8 degrees.
If you want to do the work right, read up and do research, educate yourself as you have decided to do, use the right tools and then proceed to do the work. In this way money is not wasted on stuff that is not needed.