air tool ?

[goldie lox]

can someone school me on air tools. i was looking at couple die grinders and wondering if they all are rated the same at max speed. and working psi. is it better to go with a lower cfm or higher. will one give more power/torque or does it just use more air and not as efficient. i've seen anywhere from anywhere from 3.5 to 5

 

[mg283680]

Think of the air a tool uses. A grinder uses air all the time it spins.

 

[JJThrasher]

Honestly I gave up looking at air tool specs a long time ago. There's too much fudge factor from manufacturer to manufacturer. I just buy a good brand and look at price. I went IR for all 5 of my die grinders and they're all great.

 

[md21722]

CFM ranges less than 18 CFM are "average" ratings over an 8 hour work day assuming 25% use or something similar. General rule of thumb,

0.33 HP - 18 CFM
0.50 HP - 23-28 CFM
1.00 HP - 30-37 CFM

To run a 1/3 HP die grinder all day long it takes your average 5 HP compressor. If you want to run a 1 HP die grinder all day long then you need 10-15 HP. If you are just cleaning stuff up and using it for 20-40 seconds then an 60 - 80 gallon tank with a lesser compressor will do the job. For Roloc Bristle wheels and stuff like that, a 1/3 HP die grinder ought to be fine. The more powerful air tools come into play with grinding such as in material/ weld removal.