HF Fortress Compressor's

[Retroman]

Looking at getting a compressor for my garage, don't have room for a 50 or 60 gallon tank. Would like the 5 gal Fortress which is really nice with the wheels or the 4 gallon model. Don't have any air tools at the moment. Anyone have these or used them is the $130.00 difference for the 5 gallon worth it? It has a 1.6 HP at 225 PSI vs 1.5 HP at 200 PSI doesn't seem like a big difference what am I missing? maybe the extra$ is all into the frame and wheels. I haven't seen any coupons and searched the database, anybody ever see these on sale?

 

[ChrisLS8]

Id look at something bigger if you're getting one onbwheels. I have the Kobalt Quiet Tech 26 gal I got recently and I'm happy with it

 

[MattT]

Id look at something bigger if you're getting one onbwheels. I have the Kobalt Quiet Tech 26 gal I got recently and I'm happy with it

I'd look for 20 gallon minimum and quieter. Also preferably oil lubed.

 

[Retroman]

Thanks for the advice,

 

[GrayEngineer]

I've been looking into the fortress compressors also, because of the aluminum thanks and low noise ratings. I was interested in the 4 gal model at first, then when I heard about the 5 and 27 gal models that were coming out I decided to wait till they hit stores. I looked at all of them yesterday, and I was able to hear the 27, 4, and 2 gal models run. The 27 and 4 gal sounded about the same, and seemed to be louder than I was expecting. I have a Kobalt 20 gal compressor that is rated at 82 db, but the tone and volume of this compressor is making me want a quieter unit. I was disappointed when I heard the bigger Fortress compressors since they weren't much quieter than my Kobalt, and I was ready to pull the trigger on the 27 gal. After hearing the bigger ones, I plugged in the 2 gal fortress for the heck of it and it made me smile. The 2 gal is quiet, albeit it doesn't have the output of the bigger units the noise difference it's totally worth it. I ended up getting the 2 gal and it's going to be my go to compressor for small and simple tasks, and I'll keep my Kobalt for when I need more volume and output. I ah also pick up one of the aluminum 7 gal tanks from HF for some extra capacity for the 2 gal. Another thing I love about the 2 gal is that it fills up fast and recovers fast. Down the road I may consider getting the 27 gal fortress to replace my Kobalt even though the noise level is similar. The aluminum tank, higher psi, higher cfm, and the quicker fill/recover time have me still interested in it.

The short of this is that the Fortress compressor lineup is impressive, and whichever one you pick up you'll be happy with.

 

[Retroman]

Just saw the video for the 2 gallon unit looks like that will be my choice as well. unfortunately I just don't have the room for a 20 or 30 gallon unit.

 

[sk farmer]

you never said what you wanted to do. a 2 gallon might work for blowing off the bench, airing up the bike tires air mattresses and running a small air nailer. filling truck tires, 1/2 impacts or really most air tools and it is severely lacking.

it doesn't matter how quiet it is if is too small for the job. the flip side is you can't take a big compressor up to the attic or down the basement for small projects. a 1-2 gallon mini compressor and 20 -30 gallon portable are completely diffent animals than a full size stationary in the 60 plus gallon range

 

[Citation]

I'm not sure I would go with either. The 5 gallon model seems rather bulky for a 5 gallon tank. It's a design that makes sense as a job site compressor but if this just stays in your garage this is cheaper and probably takes up no more space.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kobalt-20-Gallon-Portable-Electric-Vertical-Air-Compressor/1000578469

Having lived a number of years with a 4 gallon, 120 psi compressor, you can get a lot done with the smaller unit. The extra tank capacity due to higher pressure would actually have addressed one of my big problems. My compressor was 4 CFM but the tank ran out fast when I was doing extensive blow gun/air nozzle work. Sure on average I didn't need more flow but double the tank capacity would have been nice.

For home use I wouldn't get too hung up on oil vs oil free. Oil free compressors are both the loudest (the old oil free models by Sears and others were very loud) and generally the quietest (the more recent designs made common by California Air Tools). Check the claimed ratings. They aren't always reliable but I would trust that a 75 db claim is less than an 85 claim.

Until I get my bigger compressor back together, I've been using a 5 gallon CAT 5510A. It's not big, the lower pressure, 5 gallon tank doesn't have much reserve but it is enough to get a few quirts out of my impact wrench before refilling. It's useless with my cutoff wheel. However, it is quiet and light. It can handle some amount of air gun and has no issues with tire inflation. Yes, it does take longer to refill vs my older 4 gallon 4cfm roofing compressor but with the low noise levels I don't care as much.

 

[Citation]

Just saw the video for the 2 gallon unit looks like that will be my choice as well. unfortunately I just don't have the room for a 20 or 30 gallon unit.

If 20-30 gallon is too big but 5 isn't, skip the HF 2gallon and get something like the 5-8 gallon CAT (or similar).
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HHMFRGD/?tag=atomicindus08-20
This one seems to have good sound levels and higher pressure
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-4...wered-Silent-Air-Compressor-3320445/305026725
This is the steel tank version of the CAT I have
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Califor...-and-Oil-Free-Air-Compressor-5510SE/205602927
BTW, see that little bit of tubing that seems to be stuck into the air filter housing? That stupid little bit of tube makes a significant difference in sound level! Prior to getting my CAT (ebay find, listed as broken so very cheap) I had used a similar "GMC Cyclone" brand compressor that appears to be the same thing as one of the CAT models. It was very quiet. When I got the CAT I hadn't attached the air cleaner before turning it on to listen. It wasn't nearly as quiet as I expected. Then I screwed in the filter housing. Well that helped quiet a bit. Then I followed the instructions and put what looked like a small section of fish aquarium tubing into the hole in the filter housing... I was stunned at how much that stupid bit of tube helped! That is why I tried the same trick with my larger belt drive compressor. Man, it really worked!

 

[mike93lx]

Another Cat fan. My 4610 is super quiet and light. I wanted something that I could bring to the work (lots of nail gun usage) and not hate having it running nearby.

At only 130psi,it doesn't have a lot of reserve,but it is an OK compromise. If I didn't need portability, I would have their 20 gallon.

Also, having the aluminum tanks is also nice from a corrosion perspective.