Alright guys, I am new to the "do your own maintenance" thinking. I have learned so many things on this website and I am continuing to learn more.

I am looking to buy an air compressor, but I have no idea what I am looking for or even how to use one.

1. What should I be looking for?

2. What additional tools will I need that aren't common hand tools?

3. I am assuming I will need an impact wrench, am i also going to need sockets that fit the wrench?

4. What will the compressor be benificial for other than rotating the wheels?

Like I said, I have no idea what I am doing, any and all help will be greatly appreciated.

thanks,

scott

 

When tires get flat on the bottom you can try and put air in them but 'cause air floats you usually have to take them off and fix 'em first so the air stays in the bottom. All kidding aside, the first thing you want to consider is how much does the budget allow, do you want to have to hard wire it (then usually 220-240 volt). You can get about a 5 or 6hp oil free that will run on 120V so all you will have to do is plug it in. Do you want it to be portable (with wheels) Upright or vertical compressors take up less room put to me would tend to be less stable if they are portable. How much preasure will you need, how many cfm for the tools you might like to use. They can be nice for blowing off the dust in the garage stuff hanging on the wall and carefully off the auto (and I mean carefully as not to get too close). Just open the overhead door and let 'er rip. I'm sure there are a lot more, like an air over hydraulic work table or lift, air over hydraulic jack and on and on.

 

I just bought my first air compressor. A Sears Craftsman (well, made by Devilbiss, anyway). What an incredible difference from electrical. My first job with it will be to steel wire wheel all the old glue left from replacing the headliner in my 1966 F100. Tried using the Dremmel. Used up one of those little wheels in minutes.

Here's a great article I used in the decision.


http://www.colemanpowermate.com/comp...pressors.shtml

I first bought the tools, then selceted the best compressor. Lots of good info on this site on the subject. Good luck and do your research before buying!!

 

I would say buy a belt drive with the highest CFM at 90psi you can find/afford.
I'm no pro at these, but there have been a lot of threads posted and this is what I would go with on my next compressor purchase.

 

Thanks for the link to the article Isendel. So from what i am reading, I need to buy the air compressor tools first, then look for an air compessor so that I am never under powered.

So what tolls do I need? I am mainly doing auto work with this compressor and some small housework. No wood shaping or anything like that. I want to be able to match the specs on the torque of the lugs of my wheels, and I am going to add a lift to the truck in the future and I want to have enough power to be able to do that as well.

thanks for the help,

scott

 

My suggestion would be to get the strongest impact wrench (torque wise) that you can get away with without getting into trouble with the wife. Lug nuts should only be torqued to about 100 ft-lbs and most wrenches should be able to handle that. But remember, lug nuts aren't the only thing that you will be trying to break lose with the impact. I can't comment on body work air tools, because I don't use or have any yet. I do know, however, that sand blasters and sanders take a ton of air. Air compressors and air tools are for the most part a case where bigger is better. Good luck.

Matt

 

I plan on doing the same with my compressor. Some light auto work on my 66 F100, stuff around the house, that sort of thing. I bought a set of airtools at Pep Boys. Combination of five different tools plus attachments on sale for $70. Couldn't pass it up. I see plenty of other types of sets at Home Depot, Lowes, Harbor Freight. Sure, the quality isn't the greatest, but then again I'm not a professional using these things every day. The compressor I bought from Sears (5hp, 150psi, 33 gallon, 8cfm@40psi, 6cfm@90psi) was on sale for $100 off regular price. If I was a member of the Craftsman Club (am now) would have had another $30 savings plus two air tools, hose and some attachments.

Once I knew the characteristics of the tools, I did the research until I found the compressor in my budget. I used the air grinder last night with the steel wire brush to take off the old glue and header material from the inside of the cab. Worked great. Compressor kicked in a once or twice, but in 10 minutes I was done. Wish I had the same when I pulled the mower deck off the lawn tractor to wire brush and paint the deck. Next is researching the correct tool to paint the house. Most paint attachments I see are designed more for auto body painting, not the same surface area as my little one story.

Good luck and have fun. These air tools are incredible!!

 

All,
Here are some clues:
1. A two-stage compressor can create higher flow (ACFM) @ pressure with less horsepower than a single stage compressor. Unfortunately, it cost more.
2. There is no such thing as a 6HP motor. It is simply a 5HP with no safety factor, SF=1.0. This is actually a good thing assuming your compressor is operating in perfect order. If it overheats, your motor will overload and your going to have to reset it.
3. If you can find a compressor with a aftercooler, chances are you've found a good one. Ingersol-Rand makes top quality compressors. Can you afford one? I can't.
4. I bought a 240V compressor and simply use my dryer plug. No need to have a designated circuit. Yes, it is a pain to have to switch the plugs. My roomate hates it.
5. I bought an oil compressor because I feel that they are of heavier construction and should offer longer life verses oil-free compressors.
Consider it,
KingFisher

 

If you look in the craftsman catalog at compressors they have them rated by what each will do. This will give you a very good idea as what to buy. I use wood, metal and automotive tools off of a 5hp 33Gal, single stage oil free and have never had any issues with low/lack of air. Oil free compressors are always recommended if you will be working on anything wood, even with a filter you can still get oil splatter, even though the life is not as long. Hope this all helps...

 

air tools are awesome to work with. you can get pretty much anything imaginable. DA sanders, die grinders (dremel tool), ratchets, metal shears, grease guns, the list goes on and on. they are a great addition to any shop

 

I dont have a compressor, but when I need air Power I head to my freind justins house. He has a craftsmen compressor(25 or 30gallon) and a 600lb impact wrench. The $300 range, 30 gal. compressors are a good choice and the 600lb wrench can handle anything. Most things I do can be handled by a breaker bar and a cheater, but the impact is 10 times faster. Ive been lookingt into getting one.
Thigs to consider,
-compressor $300 or so(thats what im looking at)
-air hoses ($25-50)
-tools (the cost is limitlss, impact wrench, Grinder. Spray guns;Etc)

Every so often sears offers 0% for a year if you use a sears card to buy a compressor. Atleast thats my plan.

Air tools dont cost money, they pay for themselves with the time and energy they save.

 

I bought a Coleman for less then $300. I would have loved a 230 V IR, I just could not afford it and portability was a factor along with 110v. I can throw the compressor in the truck and go work anywhere there is 110v.

From experience I bought it because of specs. If you get anything less then 6cfm at 90 psi you most likely will not get much work done without waiting for the compressor. The 25 gallon rating was borderline too. So, I bought the most compressor for the least amount of money with the longest (two year) warranty that I could return locally.

If you use a sander, DA, or cut-off tool more then 2 minutes at a time, this might not be the compressor range for you. Then a two stage with a belt drive and 175 max. psi would be better.

The Coleman looked exactly the same as the dead Craftsman it replaced, so I suspect they are probably all made by the same company. I would shop by features and warranty with the stress on stress free replacment.

 

OK, I, too, am new to this DIYS (to a degree at least).

I just bought my first compressor from (gasp!) Harbor Freight. It is a Central Pneumatic (Harbor Freight brand) 2 HP 115 PSI max 8 Gallon 110 V 3360 RPM Oil Lubed compreesor rated for 6.0 SCFM @ 40 PSI, 5.0 SCM @ 90 PSI & 4.2 SCFM @ 115 PSI (max). Picked it up for $99.00 on sale. I also bought a 50 ft. lenght of hose and one of those 25 ft. coily yellow hoses (to use for spray painting, filling tires, blowing dust & other non-oily type jobs. I bought an oiler for to use with the other (big black) hose with the power tools to cut down on how much I was going to have to oil those.

I bought (each item from Harbor Freight and each on sale) an 1/2 inch drive Impact wrench, 1/2 inch drive ratchet, & an air hammer. I also bought two sets of "quck connects and a tire inflation tool (with the built in gauge). Oh, and a "blow gun" - came as part of the "starter kit" with the yellow coily hose. Oh, and a set of 1/2 inch drive impact sockets.

I have used, so far, the tire inflation tool and the blow gun. (Really does clean the heck out of stuff - blowing clean everything I can think of!)

I expect to get the most use out of the ratchet. Though I do have a question on that - since it is not an impact wrench, I CAN use the regular sockets instead of impact sockets, yes?

I expect I'll be using the impact wrench soon to do remove tires to rotate and do some brake work. Possibly some other front end work. I plan to do so exhaust work but I've seen coments to the effect that I shouldn't use it on the exhaust as it would likely bust the bolts.

I'm sort of "feeling my way" into this. There seem to be many tools available as pneumatic tools that are also available as electric. Drills and sanders for instance.

I'm also curious as to the uses and purposes of such tools as "Die Grinders" , "AIr Body Saws", "Pistol Grip Air Shears", "Air Punch Flange Tools" and "niblers". Any discreptions as to these items would be greatly appreciated.

Now, as I understand it, the larger the compressor, the more pressure it can build and the quicker it can fill the tank. Correct?

And the larger the tank and the higher the pressure rating, the less often the compressor has to cut in. Correct?

And for those of us that use a tool for a minute or two and then admire our work (with another beer of course) for five minutes we are just as well off with a smaller tank and lower power compressor. Correct? (When I hear the compressor working more than I am, I need to get a larger compressor / larger tank.)

What are the advantages of a pneumatic tool over an electric one? (i.e. a grinder)


The following are all of my current "undrstandings". Please add to them, elaborate or correct me!

As I understand it, if you are going to be using the compressor indoors, you should get one that doesn't use oil. Otherwise, get one that uses oil as it will last longer.

As I understand it, you should always oil your tools after use. Just a drop or two into the air connection hole.

Teflon tape seals the connections. Use it with the quick connects and that saves having to use it each time you use the tool.

The tank should be drained regularly to keep it dry.

It isn't necessary to bleed off the air at the end of each day, nor even to unplug the compressor. (But I do shut it off at the end of the day/job)

On the larger tanks, the Automatic Drain Kits are a good idea.


Oh, and one should take off lugs with an impact wrench, and put them back on with a torque wrench. (at least the final tightening)

I will appreciate any input on this, and I'm certain that scott (coachhomer) and others will be glad to see all of the answers to my "noobee" questions/observations.

 

Great post Rory, curious to see if anyone else has any ideas as well. thanks all

scott

 

Rory,
To answer some of your questions with my experience and knowledge (which a lot of it comes from woodworking) and to make remarks on some of your observations. Die grinders have a lot of uses, the most recent thing I did with mine was to grind down my upper intake manifold to match my new throttle body. They can be used for head work, flaring metal and plexi-glass too. Just grab the right bits and play around.

I let all of the air out of my tank every time I use it. I live in Connecticut along the coast and the temperature changes are drastic in the summer time, there is nothing like eating breakfast on a Sunday morning and hearing the relief lift on your compressor as it warms up 20 degrees. I use quick disconnects on everything except for my blow gun, that is a dedicated double filtered, oil/water free line. The reason for this is going back to my woodworking, if you are doing a project for someone and are blowing off the saw dust and happen to get oil on that unfinished wood, that piece is ruined.

Now that we are on the topic of hoses, I have “clean” and “dirty” hoses. “Clean” being one that never sees oil, while “dirty” being ones that get an in-line lubricator.

I own four pneumatic ratchets. I have used both impact and regular sockets on them. They all recommend impact sockets be used, but I have yet to shatter a socket.

As far as advantages of electric verse pneumatic, for me it is based on the application and personal preference.

Take care…