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Help! Air Hose Reel

MAYOR28

ALLIANCE MEMBER
Joined
Mar 22, 2010
Messages
786
Location
Southern MD
Help me choose an air hose reel for my garage. The wife was planning on getting me the new one at Lowes, but it was not in the store when she went to buy it......That led to me searching for other reels in about the same price range. I have not seen any other reviews on GJ about the newer Lowes reel, has anyone had any experience with it?

Requirements:
Ceiling Mountable
Metal Construction
Retractable
Rubber Hose
Around $100 (including shipping)


Here is what I have found so far:

Lowes:
LOWES LINK

879686003366.jpg



TSC:
TSC LINK

3310323


Northern Tool:
NT LINK

159185_700x700.jpg



A Few From Amazon:

CYCLONE LINK

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CAPRI LINK

61kp7TxYGlL._SL1500_.jpg



LINCOLN LINK

417B4zpw%2BJL.jpg




Anyone have any other suggestions or recommendations?

Thanks, Matt

.
 
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Highlux

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Joined
Dec 5, 2013
Messages
298
Location
Ofallon, MO.
I have a craftsman one I bought 10 years ago or so. I would pass on the same model again. Its gotten jacked up over the years and I dont always trust it....pull it out...it clicks into were you think it wont coil back....then outta nowhere...it coils up dragging any small airtool with it across the gargaee at 65 mph killing anything in its path till it winds up.

Was thinking of making a manual crank one out of a cool wheel.
 

woody 73

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Joined
Apr 14, 2009
Messages
11,545
Location
The Great State Up North
At first I started looking at cox and reelcraft but my guy at the tool store talked me into American, and it is still going strong after all these many years.

The Lincoln above is also a very nice reel.
 

Rickster55

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Joined
Jun 22, 2009
Messages
1,132
Location
Syracuse, NY
Mayor -

just bought it middle of this month but the reviews were good and I gravitate towards USA made stuff when I can. IMHO, the housing seems to be very sturdy!
 
OP
M

MAYOR28

ALLIANCE MEMBER
Joined
Mar 22, 2010
Messages
786
Location
Southern MD
I am thinking about taking a look at the Kobalt one today after work. I am hoping I can look in the box to see the construction of it. For the price, if it is well constructed it may be worth it. Plus, if it has the Kobalt warranty that is a bonus. We will see.......
 

firebox40dash5

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 19, 2012
Messages
4,185
We bought 4 of the Kobalt ones at work. The reels are OK enough for home use, the hoses flat ****. All 4 hoses within 9 months had cracked at the ends, and kept splitting every time I fixed them. I got sick of it and put Flexzilla hoses on them. One reel is all wonky with the stops, it seems to only lock in on like 1/4 of them, the rest work OK enough for being cheap as hell.

I'd consider that Goodyear one posted above if you can swing an extra $45.
 

rsanter

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 22, 2007
Messages
18,514
Location
visalia ca
I have a couple of the reels from HF
Reels have held up well
The hoses were great for a couple of years and then went to ****
Replaced them with rubber hoses

Bob
 

dmeadow

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Joined
Sep 3, 2005
Messages
952
Location
Houston, Texas
I've had the Northern Tool one for several years. Has worked fine and held up great in a hobbyist environment. The reel itself works well and catches and releases easily. The hose is rubber and has survived for at least five years with no leaks and no apparent deterioration.
 

woodstockva

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 28, 2012
Messages
894
Location
USA
I considered purchasing the Kobalt one from Lowes, until I spoke with the tool dept employees at two separate stores & both said this new style is JUNK. They said almost every one of them gets returned & problems range from leaking hoses, non-working ratcheting rewinders, ends breaking, etc....they told me flat out "do not buy them".

I went with an Astro Pneumatic 50'x3/8" from amazon, but most of them (as you can see from the pics above) are most likely assembled in the same factory in china, then painted different colors. I could see no difference between mine, harbor freight, home depot, tractor supply, or many others online.
 

bob_the_builder

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Joined
Apr 25, 2010
Messages
404
I ordered a Cox reel from amazon and could jot be happier with it. It was however a little more then your $100 budget.
 
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GTO

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Joined
May 8, 2009
Messages
3,927
Location
NJ,FL
The #3-5 reels pictured are identical to he HF hose reel,which are fine,just don't buy the HF whip hose.
Good luck
 
Last edited:

woodstockva

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Joined
Apr 28, 2012
Messages
894
Location
USA

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PDXCummins

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Joined
Nov 4, 2012
Messages
72
Location
Oregon
I have a 50 foot HF. I like it just fine but realize that sometime in the future i will need to replace the hose with a more high quality one.
 

kts

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 9, 2012
Messages
158
Location
MD
Northern Tool:
NT LINK

I bought this one a bit over a year ago, I wish I had done it years ago. A HUGE improvement over the cheap PVC hose I had been used. Rubber is so much better!

The reel as worked well for me with my off and on home use.
 

y5e06

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 5, 2012
Messages
51
Location
Austin, TX
any specific reasons it has to be ceiling mounted or auto retractable?
thats what I originallyl wanted. However I ended up w/ the manual wind version and put it on the wall. I have a ceiling mounted retractable shop light. I much prefer winding the air hose at a chest level manually than the self retracting ceiling shop light. surprisingly so, in fact. I have 2 car garage and the hose mounted up front reach all corners of my shop w/ a 30'. I have a couple spare coiled 50' hoses on the wall i can use to reach the street if I need.

I have this from HF and its been incredibly reliable with minimal leaking.
I replaced the hose long ago w/ a 50' goodyear version though. not to mention the barrel of this is a much smaller diameter than those auto retractors and makes for a compact fit.
image_19682.jpg
 

cooljoe57

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 7, 2014
Messages
104
Location
Arizona
Might be a little late to chime in, but i would highly recommend the reel-craft reel. If you can afford one or maybe find a used one a Cox reel would be a great choice as well. I've had my cox reel for the past 5 years with out any problems and my father has had his for at least 10 that i know of and no problems with his either. Plus they are all made in the USA.
 

1SlowFormula

Well-known member
Joined
Sep 1, 2008
Messages
199
Location
West Linn, Oregon
MY father-in-law has the HF retractable one, no issues with it's retracting operation, but it leaks a little air at the swivel air inlet fitting so he has to remember to always shut his comprtessor off or it will gradually leak down and cycle the compressor. However then when he needs air he has to remember to also turn it on and let the tank refill first...
 
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MAYOR28

ALLIANCE MEMBER
Joined
Mar 22, 2010
Messages
786
Location
Southern MD
Update:

I found one of these on woot.com:

20140212_180717_zpscbw2jzur.jpg


I haven't put it up yet, but this thing is HUGE, maybe I misjudged it, but I was expecting something smaller....

.
 

boomer12831

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Joined
Jan 6, 2013
Messages
526
Location
northern New York
I have the Goodyear one that I have hanging from the ceiling. I am very happy with it. I have a separate valve to shut it off, It does leak from time to time and I have a new swivel to fix it but haven't yet. Ed.
 

got2boostit2

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Joined
Dec 7, 2012
Messages
691
Location
West of I275 & I94
Hose management, I need to be schooled. I like those soft green hoses. Bought a couple of HF manual reels but don't have them installed yet. I like to run two hoses,regulated 85~ 90 psi for smaller hand tools and line pressure for IR impact. So I always have two lines everywhere. Lol, thinking about getting an electric 3/8" driver. Screw air. I still want nice reels, so this thread helps.
 

Jbullfrog

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Joined
Jan 9, 2007
Messages
2,347
Location
Avoca, Iowa
I have a Zilla Reel and a Cox reel mounted currently. The only issue with the Zilla is the hose guide rollers drag a bit. I love all of my Flexzilla hoses.
 
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