Air compressor: which of the two?!
 

Hi:
These compressors have a very close final cost. They are the same brand (puma) and same capacity (60 gallon). which one do you chose:
First: 6.5 HP, 135 max PSI, 19.5 CFM at 90 PSI, 28 amp
Second: 4.5 HP, 150 max PSI, 18 CFM at 90 PSI, 17 amp

Thanks for the input.

Re: Air compressor: which of the two?!
 

depend on what your doing, id go less amp and focus on more storage space. IVe painted my cars several times, sand blasted all day, all on a $100 3hp 6gal unit but I have about 300gal of extra storage with used 100gal 300psi propane tanks. Storage volume makes up for less HP, more HP makes up for less storage volume.

Re: Air compressor: which of the two?!
 

More storage space is good. More storage space will also cause the compressor to run longer and wear out the pump etc. quicker. Since tanks are the same size either will have the pump for the size. If it's for your shop at home, go lower amps. Either will run just about any air tool up to really big commercial stuff. The higher amp one will use more power but might be better if you're doing a LOT of blasting.

Re: Air compressor: which of the two?!
 

the second one sounds like it will be running on the ragged edge of self destruction

Re: Air compressor: which of the two?!
 

Why would you say that? Because of lower HP and the high CFM it produces?
Thanks for all the comments.

Re: Air compressor: which of the two?!
 

IVe gotten 10 years of use from my $100 one, does takes about 30mins to fill the tanks from empty, and it does run if in use but only bothers part is the noise if close. [ most of the noise comes from the intake ]

Re: Air compressor: which of the two?!
 

Both look OK. Depending on what you are doing, do you need pressure or CFM. I am assuming both are single stage compressors. What kind of oiling do the compressor have. The one with lower HP may have a self contained lubricate system, which is not worth it ( at least to me).

The larger one probably is oil/spalsh luibe and you can change the oil and get longer life. Since I paint, I would go with the high CFM one myself, if everything else is equal. If the smaller one is self lubricant, then go with the bigger one.

Re: Air compressor: which of the two?!
 

What is your power capability? I just replaced my home compressor and I had to upgrade some of my wiring to get the power to the compressor, without any voltage drop. That is where you will run into issues.

Re: Air compressor: which of the two?!
 

I have a 220 with dedicated 30 amp breaker for the compressor. I just did the wiring. It is a new hobby shop/garage. I plan to do some body work and painting. It is just for personal use, nothing commercial ad that is why I have hard time to decide about the higher CFM versus the final PSI. I have even thinking about a 80 gallon single stage pump instead of the 60 gallon. I still have a hard time deciding!

Re: Air compressor: which of the two?!
 

Your 28 amp compressor is close to what you have for a breaker. What size wiring did you run and how far to the compressor from the breaker box?

Attached is a picture of what I put in my garage just a few weeks ago. To be safe, I ran 8 gauge wiring, since I was around 50 feet from the box, by the time I went around the corner of the garage. I got my compressor for less than the price in this add.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/too...5343_200455343