Air Compressor Recommendation

[Jstock85]

I plan to start some body work in the near future. I will need to upgrade air compressors. It's been several years since I last bought one. Any useful information will be appreciated. Anything on Size, PSI, SCFM. Thanks!

[tinydb84]

As big as you can afford or fit. I got a 60 gallon, 3.7 hp, and around 13 cfm. I wish I would have went with a two stage 80 gallon.

[68Timber]

Originally Posted by tinydb84

As big as you can afford or fit. I got a 60 gallon, 3.7 hp, and around 13 cfm. I wish I would have went with a two stage 80 gallon.

Yeah me too. I get tired of listening to it run.

[andrewmp6]

How big do you have now?And do you have 220 power to feed a big compressor?

[bilfman]

Bare minimum 3hp and 60 gallon if you plan on body work and any 'more then a minute' use air tools.

[hatzie]

Go shopping and read reviews. This is a fairly big ticket purchase that you'll want to love for many years not regret buying it...
As the guys stated get as big a tank and as many CFM of air flow as you can afford.

I have an older Ingersoll Rand Type 30. It's been darn near bullet proof. I killed a pressure switch, just shut off and wouldn't turn back on, at just over 4 years otherwise it's been very good to me. It has a Cast Iron 2 stage pump with an intercooler between stages, 5HP 1720RPM motor, 14CFM @ 90PSI, 80gallon and 100% duty cycle. You don't need a welder plug to run this but you will need at least 30A 250V power. My motor plate states 22.5A current so I used an inexpensive 30A NEMA L6-30R outlet on 10ga wire.
Northern Tool has the Type 30 for $1500 with shipping to the lower 48 included. I paid over $1800 for this model several years ago and I had to pick it up. My Compressor and tank was made in the United States. This is not necessarily true of new units. If this is important to you be aware.

Northern Tool has the The Ingersoll Rand SS5L5 for $929 shipped on sale. It has a Cast Iron SINGLE stage pump, 5HP 3450RPM, 18CFM @ 90PSI, 60gallon, and 100% duty cycle.
This is an example of a compressor that looks like a great deal. Be careful. It may be a great deal for you but you need to be informed...

The price and higher CFM rating make it look more attractive than the Type 30 till you look closer... I mentioned it to show what you need to look at besides the price and CFM rating. It's actually a fairly light duty compressor for a 5HP unit.
Look at the motor RPM and the HP ratings...
3450RPM is how they manage to wring that air flow out of a single stage pump. Running a single stage pump at nearly twice the RPM means it will run much hotter and wear out much faster than the 2 stage Type 30 running at 1750RPM.
If you pay attention to the specs you'll see the motor is rated at 5HP/11HP. This shows the higher startup load placed on the motor to overcome the head pressure on a single stage pump.
The motor plate states 28.5A so you can not use a 30A outlet safely... you'll have to step up to a 40A outlet with 8ga wire.
A 2 stage pump requires a LOT less startup current and a lot less rotational speed to build pressure than a single stage pump so the electric motor will last longer on a decent two stage compressor not just the pump... and it uses less juice so it's cheaper to run and cheaper to wire up.
An intercooler between stages cuts the startup head pressure and increases the pump efficiency.

Don't assume a brand new pressure vessel will be perfect. Look over the welds for porosity and excess spatter on the tank.

There are portable compressors that are rated at 10 CFM but be careful. The marketing geniuses are hard at work... if you read the specs it's at max pressure of 125 or 135 PSI not the standard 90PSI.
Some portable compressors will require a NEMA 5-20 20A 125V outlet instead of the common NEMA 5-15 15A 125V so you'll need to run 12ga wire and the correct outlet. Usually you'll see this on 3HP 125/250V switchable voltage motors.

If you don't know your local electrical codes or you just plain don't understand the difference between ground and neutral and hot then get an electrician to wire your outlet. You don't want to screw this up. Burnt out motors on new compressors voiding your warranty are expensive. Electrical fires and insurance denying your claim are even more expensive.

[jdl71]

I'm in the same boat. My little pull around 5hp 20 gal is leaking due to a rust hole in the tank and I'm trying to decide if I should pay now (good 2 stage) or pay later (cheap single stage). Lowe's has a 2 stage Qunicy, which are supposed to be pretty good for around $1200. Napa has one (unkown who makes it) for around $959 or I'm looking at a 60 gal 3hp single stage from the farm store for around $500. I have a 100a panel in the shop and have already added the 30a breaker and got some 10/3 wire.

[Jstock85]

Thanks for the help!

[franken]

I bought a lightly used industrial grade Saylor-Beall (http://www.saylor-beall.com) for less that $1k off CL. Its the one pictured on the page I pasted. 80 gallon, 5HP 1725 RPM Baldoe, 2 stage, 17CFM@175PSI. The lowest price I can find for a new one is $2300.

The CFM@PSI is the meaningful part. Makers like to play games w/ the numbers. Motor qualiry and RPM is important as well since a 5HP 3450RPM motor is half the size/cost of a 5hp 1725RPM motor. It speaks to the quality of the system. If the compressor has a cheap motor, it probably also has a cheap pump, etc.

Once you have a compressor and power, you need an air system to cool, dry, and filter the air. There's always a lot of debate on air lines. Just stay away from PVC.

Then come air tools. I spent years trolling CL and swap meets to get tools before having a good compressor.

The air system and tools may cost as much as the compressor unless you spend time locating used.

[hatzie]

If you go used I would carefully examine the pressure vessel and make sure the safety valve is in working condition. If the over-pressure safety valve has been tampered with walk away.
Crack the drain open. If is any water in the tank walk away. If the PO was not careful about draining the tank it can have lots of rust inside. I've looked at several nice looking used compressors that had more than half the 80 gallon tank full of rusty nasty water. My compressor has a 1/4 turn valve and a pipe running out through the garage wall to drain the tank. I unplug the pump and crank the valve open when I finish in the garage.

Any dents or creases in the metal will weaken the tank This is not scratched paint it's where metal has been moved. You don't want a compromised tank it can explode.

Check the air intake filter. If it's filthy they don't do preventive maintenance.

Check how fast it recovers from low PSI to shutoff. Check the specs on a similar new model if you can find em.

If you put in pipe use Black Iron or Galvanized and put in condensate drains for the pipe.

[Jstock85]

Any particular brand recommended? Or any I should stay away from. Husky? Kobalt? Craftsman?
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[hatzie]

Craftsman had two grades. Red Craftsman and Black Craftsman Industrial.
I have a Craftsman Industrial 3HP 30 gallon in the garage at the house. It's a good portable machine. Not up to the same kind of work as the 5HP Ingersoll Rand Type 30 80 gallon in the barn but a good solid portable machine.

Husky, Craftsman, Kobalt, and several other store brands used to be made by the big boys like IR, Sullair, DeViblis, and Quincy among others... Just like Kenmore is rebranded Amana and Frigidaire and Whirlpool and GE and ...