Off Topic Air Compressors

[bdale]

For those of you that have one, I'm looking to buy an air compressor and wondered which one. The ones I'm looking at are DeWalt at Rural King 80 gallon two stage, Ingersoll rand at Tractor Supply also 80 gallon and two stage and Quincy 80 gallon two stage. I don't mind a little over kill probably will just be used to run some hand held impact tools a maybe do a little painting if I get froggy. Other suggestions welcome.

 

[rogn]

Overkill frequently isnt overkill. Continuous run Airtools have an insatiable appetite. Stuborn nuts with an impact wrench for example. Sand blasters use an incredible volume of air. plan accordingly.

 

[Chief 101]

I don't know the Quincy brand of 2017 but the Quincy compressor I had that I sold about 10 years ago was made for industrial use. It was 10hp 3 phase and I used it for over 30 years and sold it for more than I paid for it new. Only issue I had with it was a bearing died on one end of the crankshaft that took me an hour to fix and a couple of bucks for a bearing. As the previous poster said, overkill is good... unless its too noisy. I sold my shop and found that it made too much noise for use at the house.

 

[bdale]

I don't know the Quincy brand of 2017 but the Quincy compressor I had that I sold about 10 years ago was made for industrial use. It was 10hp 3 phase and I used it for over 30 years and sold it for more than I paid for it new. Only issue I had with it was a bearing died on one end of the crankshaft that took me an hour to fix and a couple of bucks for a bearing. As the previous poster said, overkill is good... unless its too noisy. I sold my shop and found that it made too much noise for use at the house.

The Quincy that I'm looking at are American made and appear to be industrial grade, little more expensive but all are going between 1000.00 and 1700.00 with the Quincy on the high end, I believe it is around 5 or 6 HP as are all the rest

 

[Toolbreaker]

20 years ago, I would have said to flip a coin between the Quincy or IR (I'd probably shy away from the Dewalt, myself). Nowadays, I just don't know how the quality of either one are. Whichever way you go, look at the continuous CFM at 90psi and the duty cycle of each one (thinking it should be 100% at that size). That should give you something for comparison. Also, your plumbing after the compressor is just as important as the compressor itself. It's worth the time to think about a hard-line layout with one or two water drops.

 

[ebb]

If you want overkill and quiet there is only one that I know of, Kaeser. The are not piston driven, they are rotary like a blower on a race car or an old Detroit Diesel. The one I used for years made as much air as a 5hp piston type with less noise, less electricity, and less size.

 

[jimbires]

I have a 5 HP and 80 gal tank Ingersoll Rand in my shop . it has to be about 25 years old now . I change the oil and the air filter yearly . I've never had a problem with it . I think it's starting to loose a little though . the guys that pick up my waste oil bring an air pump to pump the oil into their truck . my compressor used to run and shut off while they were pumping , now it runs non stop to keep up . look at the RPM's , you want a 1725 RPM not a 3450 RPM . you also want a 2 stage compressor .

 

[jghoghunter]

I have a 5 HP and 80 gal tank Ingersoll Rand in my shop . it has to be about 25 years old now . I change the oil and the air filter yearly . I've never had a problem with it . I think it's starting to loose a little though . the guys that pick up my waste oil bring an air pump to pump the oil into their truck . my compressor used to run and shut off while they were pumping , now it runs non stop to keep up . look at the RPM's , you want a 1725 RPM not a 3450 RPM . you also want a 2 stage compressor .

I have this same air compressor and it works great. I believe its a mod.c30 or something like that. I use air tools and air sanders mostly. Some painting. Never had any problems so far. 5hp 2 stage 230v. 1725 rpm.

 

[Intheshop]

Obviously buy the nicest you can afford if long term.

But,reason for post is a slight tangent.Those 30g upright,with wheels kind.Get the living chit BEAT out of them by roofing and framing contractors here.Oil-less compressor heads for the most part.The flat out most annoying sound but....

Words don't do justice to how these seemingly POS last under these conditions.Take a roofer runnin two guns,in August.Zero maintenance,almost always plugged into an extension cord,whilst every other sub is pulling from the same 20 amp receptacle?Rain or shine.

 

[Riesel]

Obviously buy the nicest you can afford if long term.

But,reason for post is a slight tangent.Those 30g upright,with wheels kind.Get the living chit BEAT out of them by roofing and framing contractors here.Oil-less compressor heads for the most part.The flat out most annoying sound but....

Words don't do justice to how these seemingly POS last under these conditions.Take a roofer runnin two guns,in August.Zero maintenance,almost always plugged into an extension cord,whilst every other sub is pulling from the same 20 amp receptacle?Rain or shine.

Ain't it the truth??

 

[jimbires]

Bdale , I was going to give you my compressor guys number , but I see you live in N carolina . are you close to a northern tool ? northern tool did sell IR compressors at a decent price . just a thought .

 

[Intheshop]

Speaking of compressors and contractors killing them...

The best hoses from a,you wouldn't believe it 'til you saw it are,those Hitachi green hoses sold at sLowes.I've got a bunch of high $$ ,old,large diameter real hoses with high flow QD fittings for HVLP spray guns and pneumatics.BUT,those sort of cheap green hoses have been proven to be dang near trouble free....as seen on construction jobs.Go figure?

 

[gambleone]

If your not in a hurry, you could look for a good used one for a lot less.
There not hard to repair.

 

[Intheshop]

An old Saylor-Beall would look dang nice in my shop....just sayin.

Google old images of them,paying particular attention to the finned cast aluminum "expansion tanks" plumbed in between the compressor and the tank.Then,do a search for,"franzinator".Ours is water cooled,no less.I forget the numbers shot with a temp gun,but it is a HUGE drop in air temp reaching the tank.Old school engineering at it's finest!It's the first line of defense in water and mayonnaise (oil funk from compressor oil,blow by) that makes it to tha tank.Really lessons your downstream water traps job.It can be threaded connections.Ours is tigged,but take this dead serious....pressure vessel welding ain't something to play with.Just check out the old Saylor-Bealls,you'll see it.

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

Rotaries are the way to go for high volume applications. They're overkill for most applications, though. Blast cabinets are air eaters. A local shop has a two man blast cabinet and a separate walk in blast room. The one rotary compressor runs it all. It's big but I don't recall the specs. He said it was the best purchase he had made in some time. He also runs a large refrigerated air drier in his shop.

 

[butchlambert]

Be sure to run them through dryers to protect your equipment.

 

[ebb]

I live in south Florida and humidity is terrible here. I have lots of problems spraying, a dryer is out of the question for several reasons. Not enough money, not enough space , not enough electric service. So I plumbed 3 long vertical PVC pipes and hooked them up to each other with elbows and a drain on the bottom of each. The long vertical will not let much moisture pass, 3 wont let any pass. When spraying I crack the valves and let the air push the moisture out the whole time I am spraying. It may not be as good as a chiller but it works and is almost free.

 

[stretch257]

I just bought a dewalt 60 gallon and the down fall to them is no cooler to cut down on condensate. So that leaves the choice to put a auto drain or splice in a radiator. Not as quiet as some but it was in the price range with good volume.

 

[DRNewcomb]

Brother-in-law went to Tractor Supply for a part for an about 40 gal compressor that went bad. They just gave him a new compressor. Didn't even want the old one back. Parts aren't available. All made in China.

 

[butchlambert]

I live in south Florida and humidity is terrible here. I have lots of problems spraying, a dryer is out of the question for several reasons. Not enough money, not enough space , not enough electric service. So I plumbed 3 long vertical PVC pipes and hooked them up to each other with elbows and a drain on the bottom of each. The long vertical will not let much moisture pass, 3 wont let any pass. When spraying I crack the valves and let the air push the moisture out the whole time I am spraying. It may not be as good as a chiller but it works and is almost free.

I also did the same thing. Fortunately I don't paint, just a lot of air tools.