Air compressor recommendation – help me out
Autod1dact
| Posted in Tools for Home Building on
So a few years back I bought one of these without reading any reviews:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000H67YT2
And now it’s leaking. I think framing and roofing the garden shed put it over the edge. 😉 Reading the reviews online, these compressors are very unreliable and prone to dying. I was going to try and fix it but instead I’m just going to move on before it gives me more trouble.
Portability isn’t an issue any more as I no longer work in building. Over time I found the air compressor leaving the shop less and less, and found myself running longer and longer hoses. 😀
I’m half-way through siding my house with Hardie, so I’m hoping for something that could keep up with a siding nailer. I can’t see myself running any other air tools.
Replies
Among others, I have 5 or 6 of the 3-4 HP (advertised HP) Craftsman compressors, not the junk that some would make sears stuff to be. . Paid $50 or less for them at garage sales. Anything you can get for that price is good.
Have a thomas also, noisiest POS, but does compress air pretty goo.
Auto - there's a ton of great compressors that probably would do what you want depending on how much you want to spend and what your parameters are.
https://www.finehomebuilding.com/Tool-Guide/Product-Finder/Compressors/65402.aspx?channel=1
I have a small Thomas compressor that's the quietest and hardest working little guy, and a large Max compressor that's the other hardest working and quietest compressor. For all around use, good capacity, good air flow, quiet, and not too heavy I'd take a look at this Rol-Air compressor. I got a chance to test it and wished that I could've held onto it afterwards.
https://www.finehomebuilding.com/toolguide/product-finder/rol-air-JC10-compact-air-Compressor.aspx?nterms=65402
Back in the day I had three that I used locally. I got rid of two and now just have my old Thomas. Probably coming up on 12 or 13 years old now. A Thomas is probably overkill for you.
Most compressors should be able to keep up wth a siding nailer. Even though you don't think you'll ever run air tools, if yours will pretty much be fixed in location you could consider a large volume tank.
Several years ago I was out of state and needed a compressor, the only one available was a porter cable pancake. I've done a lot of work with that thing ove the past 15 years. Still chugs along. I've framed and finished with it, and bump-nailed sheet after sheet of sheathing and it never missed a beat, but I never ran more than one gun at a time.
dewalt
I bought the same one nothing but troubles
new motor ,switch wire came disconnected pita to reconect , then it got a leak
and i am sure your leak is a small gasket where the metal tube is inserted
i threw mine away motor worked but it had a leak ,
but it is a cheap compresor you get what you pay for
my 2 favourites
I have 2 that I both like.
Makita MAC2400. The standard 2 tank portable. It's relatively quiet, the motor runs at 1720rpm, it has an oil lube pump and a real cartridge input filter. My workhorse. It will last forever. Seems to be sold everywhere. And it's a Makita.
Dewalt D55140. Tiny, super light, quiet. Cost me $99. Perfect for finish nailers. Can handle a framing nailer, but only if you're slow. Did I mention that it's tiny and super light and quiet.
One day i'll add an 80 gallon 2 stage monster into the (auto) shop.
...karl
I Like
I have a 130PSI Makita MAC700 air compressor, it is only 59.6 pounds heavy, very quiet and portable,It is very durable and strong. I often use it for car tyre, very convenient.
I thought most/all compressors will leak a little; at least I've never had one that could sit idle for extgended periods without cycling. But I don't hear the leak, it just cycles about every hour or so without use.
In any event, Emglo makes quality compressors and as someone already stated, worth a repair. I've owned a Rolair vertical pancake for 15 years without problems; it's an oil-splash design so a bit slow to crank in cold temps but relatively quiet.
For small jobs I like the mini Senco that weighs about as much as a fully stuffed lunch pail. You can get about 5 shots with a 15g angle finish nailer and at the most 2 to 3 shots with a framing nailer before cycling. But for small, occassional jobs I find it more economical than buying cordless finish nailers.
Regards, Bob