Air Compressor

[qctech]

Whats up everyone, I was just wondering if any body here has or has used a gas powered air compressor? I was thinking about getting one due to the fact of the inavailability of electrical service. And if anyone has recommendations on a particular make and or model. I was looking around a bit and saw a few. Hope to hear from some of you, Thank you.


Anthony

[rdnkjeeper]

A buddy has one, aside from the maintenance and the noise they aren't that bad. The one he has is really old and everytime we use it, it needs major service. I thought my direct drive compressor was bad!

[kartracer55]

Well For motors, Honda or briggs, nothing else.

As for compressors, most brands make gas compressors. You cant go by horsepower, because gas compressors use motors that are rated for a higher HP than an electric motor, so dont be surprised if you cant find a compressor with a motor under 8hp.

AS for brands, Id say avoid HF.

Look at Eaton, Quincy and Curtis. Eatons arnt quite as nice as the other two, but they are still very good compressors. www.eatoncompressor.com is thier website. I have one, and I have been very pleased, I know A guy who owns two and runs a buisness with them, and I have also encountered numerous satisfied owners.

As for Particular models, What are your requirements? Are you looking to run a Sander or die grinder? Or are you looking to run a nailer?

Jim

[kartracer55]

I noticed A member on another board responded to you, and what he was talking about is called an automatic head unloader. I believe all three of the brands I posted have them.

Jim

[JasonK]

Get you an old junk engine and make it your compressor. Isn't that what an engine is anyway,...

[kartracer55]

No, Its a bit different. The problem you will have is sealing of the pushrods and stuff.. For example, if you wanted to turn an old briggs and stratton motor into a compressor, you would have to find a way to seal off the valve stems completely from the breather and Crankcase. You will also have a problem with air leaking past the rings, because typically, Small engines do tend to have a little bit of blowby. You usually cant run 10-30 in a small engine, only straight 30, because, due to the the relativly loose fitting rings, and small amount of piston slap, The engines will burn oil until everything heats up and expands. It Can be done in old cr engines, but only if it still has good compression and the rings arnt worn., You can typically, use 3 or 4 cylinders to turn the crank, and have the other 2 (or 4) pumping air. Not the most efficient thing in the world, but they typically put out a TON of air.

Jim

[AdamMopar]

I noticed A member on another board responded to you, and what he was talking about is called an automatic head unloader. I believe all three of the brands I posted have them.

Jim
I can't speak for the other two brands but Quincy it will depend on what model you have. That is an option with most of their compressor models. All of there compressors do have un-loaders but not necessarily head un-loaders. I imagine this is true for the other manufactures as well. Adam

[kartracer55]

Eatons use Head unloaders, and Id imagine curtis, at the very least, has it as an option.

Jim

[AdamMopar]

Some of Eaton's compressors do have Head Un-loaders some do not.

Some just have centrifugal type un-loaders which only un-load the compressor when it shuts off, as do most of the compressors most people will be looking at, as opposed to Head Un-loaders which will set it up correctly for continuous run.

Adam

[evildky]

I am currently using my OLD 5hp Sanborn, it's been abused over the last 10 or so years and it has served me well but my air demand has gone up and it seems to be having a harder time keeping up so I just got a new IR 2340, this think puts out 15 cfm @ 175psi! I can hardly wait to get it hooked up to my blast cabinet :)

[qctech]

Whats up, well I finally got a compressor. I got a sweet deal on a Curtis 30 gallon three cylinder two stage. Its awesome and it operates so nice. I got it all together and ran it for the first time and could not be more satisfied. The unit has a Kohler engine and isnt even that loud (13hp). It has unloaders built into the head. I hope i get some good service out of it.

Anthony