Air compressors of choice? Craftsman?
I need to buy a compressor and I want something durable at a reasonable price(who doesn’t right?). I’ve worked on jobs that had the wheelbarrow twin tank types wired 220v. and they were great for whatever we were doing. I’ll be doing shop projects, trim and occasional framing with it. It will need to be relatively portable(I’m a big, strong guy so it doesn’t have to be tiny).
The wheelbarrow type mentioned above are probably too expensive and overkill for what I need. I recently saw a framing crew running 3 guns off of one of those Oiled Ridgid twin stack jobbers but surely they will wear that thing out before its time.
Anyway, Sears is having a sale on there vertical Craftsman 30 gallon 6hp portable compressor. I believe its oil-free and 120v. A couple of reviews on the web have said its a good compressor except it’s real noisy(don’t care too much about that). I would typically just leave it in my trailer and run hoses where ever I need them. It’s on sale for $279 which is $50 off their normal price. Seems like a good deal for a larger compressor that should be able to keep up with me no problem. However I don’t want to regret it in a couple of years if the thing craps out on me or something.
What do y’all think?
Replies
I have three that I use. One is the 30 gallon sanborn 220 that never leaves the garage, an 11 gallon that would do just about anything you need, used to stay in the trailer until someone decided they needed it more, and one of those craftsman quite type 150 psi for running nailers. I'll get another 11 gallon later, it doesn't like to climb stairs as easily as the 150 psi. The only thing I found about the oilless is they're noisy, but works well. good luck on the search..
GB
Most of my experience with compressor failures is with the either the pressure switch or motor starter. I have never seen or heard of a pump failure, although I suppose they happen. I'd go with the Sears you like, then think about buying a spare set of controls for it (maybe at Grainger) and keep that on hand. The tanks and pump will probably last decades with decent care. I have a 13-year-old Emglo that's like new, and it's been used HARD a lot. Change the oil, like Dad said...
If you are looking at 30 gal compressors, I assume you want one that will be pretty much stationary, and useable for air tools.
As you no doubt know, you sure don't need one of that size if you are just going to be using it for nailers.
For portability, I got a Thomas Ultra, oil-less, single hot dog tank, easy to carry around, and pretty much bulletproof. Does great with finish nailers, and will keep up with a framing gun -- but it would be too small for a serious framer that works really fast.