First compressor purchase - 2 issues

[steve1279]

Well I purchased my first compressor, its a HF 2hp 21 gallon compressor that I couldn't pass up. They were originally on sale for $219, then super savings sale for $179 that was tempting, then a new catalog came in the male to me and it was even lower at $154 but only with the super coupon. So it was purchased along with 50' of hose and a blow gun. Right now its going to be used for my grit blaster/air eraser and air brush for painting. Don't have a garage for working on things or any real projects to warrant more tools. The pancake one I was using just couldn't keep up with the air eraser and had no way to keep up with the grit blaster that I wanted to use. Anyway......

Issue one is the noise, i was very surprised at how loud the oiled compressor was. Watching the youtube videos, alot of the guys said that it was quiet. And from when i remember my friends having the husky oil less i was excited to have something quiet. But oh boy, unless it's just because i haven't been around one but my goodness it was loud. I've read on here you can add mufflers to them. But being that I'd like to keep this compressor mobile, is this something that's possible?

Issue two is the regulator knob. It is almost on top of the electrical panel/box making it very difficult to turn. The knob assembly itself is dam near impossible to turn its so tight. Anyone else have this problem with this compressor? Is there a way to loosen it up so its easier to turn/adjust? i would like to space it further apart from the outlet pipe so there is a little more room for my hand to grab the knob. Where could I find the right parts to space it maybe 1 inch?

 

[Skin]

Its a direct drive pump exactly like an oil free unit so you gain basically nothing in the noise department. The only advantage is reliability. Most of the noise, be it oil free or oiled, is the motor whipping that puny pump around at a few thousand RPM. By comparison a belt driven unit spins at 600-800 at the pump. Muffle all you want but you wont fix that, best to just stick it in another room.

 

[steve1279]

:/ well that *****. Atleast it fills up fast. Listening to it for the 30 minute "break-in" period was brutal the other day.

 

[ovrrdrive]

I've always heard it's the intake to the compressor that makes all the noise... Either way I agree the best solution is to put it in another room and run a longer hose. A "quiet" compressor just makes less noise than the last one the author heard. They're all pretty noisey.

 

[steve1279]

After I did the break in i noticed alot of liquid stuff around the factory fittings from the tank to the pressure dial to the regulator. After the regulator I had already removed the quick connect that was from teh factor and put on a air filter with teflon on the threads, then a quick connect with teflon. Would it be a good idea to break loose all the factory fittings from the regulator back and add teflon to the threads? The heat that the tank/pump created looked to have melted whatever they put on the threads from the factory.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Would it be a good idea to break loose all the factory fittings from the regulator back and add teflon to the threads? The heat that the tank/pump created looked to have melted whatever they put on the threads from the factory.

Yes, but be very careful ! The metal thy use to cast some parts like manifolds is very low quality and can break.

I had just the opposite problem. They used some kind of glue as a pipe sealant. Broke off 1 fitting, bent the **** out of another. A small amount of heat from a propane torch is not a bad idea.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Not that you want to buy another compressor right away, but California Air Tools compressors are the quietest ones around. They sell an enclosure so that they can be used in dentist offices, Now that is quiet !

 

[tatra]

Are you pulling the regulator knob out first to adjust ? Pushing it in locks the knob. a thought for the noise issue might be to remove pump motor assembly and mount on a cart or whatever else strikes your fancy. Of course the necessary ancilliaries would have to go along with the p/m assembly. Use as large a hose as you can afford to connect to tank and apply a second regulator to tank to control pressure to tools . nice thing about this setup is now the pump is small enough to be mobile so if need be you can take with you wherever and a smaller space can be used to house the p/m.