Onboard air?

[Jersey Drew]

Inexpensive way to have onboard air in my pickup truck for topping off or filling tires. Does anyone have any ideas?

 

[Walkers]

Small 12 Vic compressor that has battery clamps. Clamp it on, air them up, and go. Probably into it less than 50 bucks.

 

[thr3squared]

300P Portable Compressor

300P is a larger powerful portable tire inflator kit that is capable of inflating up to 33-inch tires easily by simply clamping the power leads to your battery, connecting the tire chuck to the valve stem and turning the unit on. Tire pressure can be checked using the 5-in-1 Inflator/Deflator...

www.viaircorp.com

 

[kbeefy]

a 12v is cheapest, I carry a motorcycle on in my sxs. I think it cost $30. I doubt if it would reach my pickup truck back tires while hooked up to the battery.

Some cordless tool companies make them, if you have cordless tools at home check if there is one available in your platform.

A small c02 tank works pretty well if you have a means available to refill it.

Viair and other heavier duty compressors will be much faster than a $30 compressor, but cost alot more.

 

[RichieP_MechE]

I've got one of these in my daily driver. https://www.harborfreight.com/12v-100-psi-high-volume-air-inflator-63745.html

It's pretty low flow but good enough to get me by in an emergency. There are higher flow versions out there that clip directly to the battery.

 

[dmaxfireman]

I made some brackets for an 06 Chevy to run a York 210 where the second alternator would go. I hooked the clutch to an in tank pressure switch run from a fused auxiliary circuit.

 

[RTM]

Here is a non inexpensive way to do it, with options.

12V / On Board Air System

I am wanting to upgrade my on board air system from my Viair 444 coupled with a 30 gallon tank. I have been looking at multiple options including 12-volt air, Oasis and even building a custom 12v one myself. There is a guy who took a compressor and a winch motor and made his own compressor. I...

www.garagejournal.com

I personally have a couple of cheap ones in my two main vehicles, don’t count on either saving my life tho.

 

[Ign]

I made some brackets for an 06 Chevy to run a York 210 where the second alternator would go. I hooked the clutch to an in tank pressure switch run from a fused auxiliary circuit.

This is the truly inexpensive way to do it, if we define dollars as expensive and time as inexpensive.

A York will run circles around anything 12V electric, take up less space, virtually never overheat and provide infinite air so long as you have gasoline or diesel in your tank.

If you can fab you could build up a York system for less than $50 assuming a York is free (they're all in older vehicles no one wants anymore and people offer me the complete vehicles several times per year) and a pressure switch.

For YEARS (and I mean years) I filled the 37's on my Bronco with nothing but a York, a dash switch and a coil hose. I never even had a pressure switch or a tank, the ex-wife was the pressure switch. Seriously. Years we got by like that and it was fantastic.

You only need a tank if you want to run air tools (which, AFAIC, are now obsoleted by cordless tools) -- otherwise a York straight pumps plenty to air up tires in a relative hurry, even 37's on 15" wheels

 

[csp]

Most Yorks have v-belt pulleys, but serpentine pulleys can be found for them.

There are three different cfm output sizes of Yorks as well, the biggest being 10cfm though I don't recall at what RPM.