# Air compressors



## Prowler901 (Jun 27, 2005)

Howdy folks,

I'm in the market for a new air compressor. I'd like something with a tank, gage, and moisture trap. Also, money is a factor. So, I'd like to keep the price down. Anyone got any suggestions?

Regards,
Todd


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## WarpCore Breach (Apr 27, 2005)

You'll probably be finding something in the home hardware type of stores. You can get compressors and tank combos quite easily.. most will have to have moisture traps added separately. The only thing I can say about those is that they tend to be somewhat on the noisy side - if you have a house, it shouldn't be that much of an issue. But if live in an apartment and you want a silent compressor, you will NOT be able to get past the cost factor since they tend to be more expensive. You really do get what you pay for!


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## Maritain (Jan 16, 2008)

I love mine, I pick it up at Big Lots for about $90.00. It has an air tank, not sure about moisture trap,(Its in storage for now) I just had to get an adaptor for the hose for the air brush at Home Depot. It is nosiy as hell though so if you live in an apt could be a problem.

Good Hunting.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

I found one at Meijer last year for about $50.00. It's small and it has a gauge. 
I think it's a 2 gallon.


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## Prowler901 (Jun 27, 2005)

Thanks guys. Fortunately I do live in a house, and I'm not concerned about the noise. Although the kids might think otherwise... my new workstation is in their game room


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## Prowler901 (Jun 27, 2005)

Anyone have experience with Campbell Hausfeld?


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## WarpCore Breach (Apr 27, 2005)

Sort of. They are - or used to be - fairly big in the compressor business. At work, we had one of those until the compressor died.. but in my area, Campbell Hausfeld has pretty much retreated from the business and we ended up replacing the entire unit, since we couldn't get a match for the compressor. 

However, not sure of how much of a presence they have in your area. All I can tell you is that I wrote above.

I have a Jobmate compressor/3 gallon tank combo. It has a built-in pressure adjustment but no moisture trap, which I will have to add myself. I had to fit a quick-release connector to my airbrush, but that was easy. However, since I DO live in an apartment, I can't use it in there!! It's nice having the air tank but the compressor is fairly noisy and I don't want to bother my neighbours... I obtained a Testors Blue Mini Air Compressor before Christmas. It's quiet and even though it doesn't have a tank, it's quiet. Winter is quite dry for us here so I'm not overly concerned about moisture at this time, although I might fit a moisture trap on it later. The Testors unit cost about 30% more than the Jobmate unit. But it will allow me to get back into the painting end of things, of which I am terribly and horribly behind and not too good with... what skills I had are very rusty indeed!!


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## Steve244 (Jul 22, 2001)

I bought a porter cable compressor that came with a finishing nail-gun from costco for about $150. Fit a moisture trap for about another $25.

It gets a lot more use than any other power tool I ever bought. Oh and I've painted a few models with it.

Just be sure if you get an oil-less compressor that you follow the break-in instructions. Mine had to be run for 20 or 30 minutes under no load (pressure relief valve open) before actual use. I think people that have had trouble with them didn't follow the instructions.

Check walmart. shudder.


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## bigjimslade (Oct 9, 2005)

*C-h*



Prowler901 said:


> Anyone have experience with Campbell Hausfeld?


My first was one. POS. Died after about 18 months of light usage. By that I mean it simply stopped working.


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## razorwyre1 (Jan 28, 2004)

ive had to return more campbell hausfield products than ive actually used. its the sign of quality... or rather the lack thereof.

i used to teach an airbrushing class so ive had the chance to play with a lot of brands of portable compressors. avoid ones from the "bargain tool" places (like harbor freight). also, avoid the compressors made by airbrush companies. they are inadequate and overpriced. the one that jgg1701 mentioned is a "shop force" (meijer's house brand) pancake model, and its actually pretty darned good for the money, more than adaquate for running an airbrush or filling tires, not too noisy at a good price (that is, if there are meijer stores near you). (i also live in an apartment and my neighbors are far noisier than the shop force compressor.)

the best compressors for the money ive found are by craftsman/sears (to the surprise of no one). very powerful at a great price. their downside is that they are LOUD.

silentaire makes great compressors that are, as their name implies, very quiet, but they are very expensive.


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## DX-SFX (Jan 24, 2004)

It depends what you're going to use it for. If it's just for an airbrush, there are many virtually silent compressors that are very good but if you want something for a spray gun or pressure pot, you need a large and more appropriate type of compressor that will shift a large volume of air quickly. Most types can give you the same pressure range but it's more important to match the CFM to it's proposed use.


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## Jaruemalak (Jun 12, 2008)

A few years ago I picked up a pretty decent and very quiet compressor from Home Depot for around 90 bucks, and another 25 for the moisture trap. It was advertised as a spray gun compressor, and would probably have worked for one light duty. As an airbrush compressor, it was great. 

However, I discovered I almost never used it, because I have two big CO2 tanks with pressure guage that cost about 12 bucks to fill and last a couple o' years each, easily, and I don't have to use a moisture trap. 

NO, they are NOT portable! In fact, they are a pain to move around, and I was doing shows and demonstrations for quite a while, which is why I bought the compressor. Yeah, I could have gotten a smaller tank (they make them as small as scuba diving tanks) and such, but that would have cost as much as the compressor, and I wouldn't have had to worry about the small tank running out while on the road. Also, the small tanks tend to suffer from cooling and losing pressure during use more than the big tanks. 

I stopped using the compressor very suddenly as my health dropped me to one or two shows per year.


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## Prowler901 (Jun 27, 2005)

Thanks again to all for your info. I'm only planning on using this for air brushing. The reason I want a tank is to keep a nice even airflow. My experience with the small quiet pumps w/o tanks is that the airflow seems to 'sputter' with the pump action. Is there a way to avoid this? Are the newer pump designs better at preventing this?


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## rossjr (Jun 25, 2001)

Check to see if you have a Harbor Freight Store near you, or you can buy from them on line. They sell a couple of nice compressors for less than $80 and they have the regulator and moisture trap included. The web site is www.harborfreight.com


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## Nova Designs (Oct 10, 2000)

I use a Sparmax AC-100 compressor that I bought as a kit for less than $140 several years ago (like 5-6) I have painted a lot with it and its really perfect for someone with limited space, noise requirements and a budget.










Its pretty quiet... not silent, but definitely quiet enough that you can use it in an apartment. My wife used to watch TV in the next room and never complained of the noise.

It comes with all sorts of airbrush attachments and has a moisture trap.

The only caveat is that if you hold the button down for more than say 5-6 seconds the pressure starts to drop off. Now it never sputters, even on low pressure, and its a non-issue for me since I don't spray constantly, but in short strokes. But of you need to hold constant pressure for long periods of time, say more than 10 seconds, you should consider a higher end model. There might even be a way to fix the problem, but like I said, I've never had it be an issue.

That being said, I'm very happy with mine!


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## DX-SFX (Jan 24, 2004)

Prowler901 said:


> Thanks again to all for your info. I'm only planning on using this for air brushing. The reason I want a tank is to keep a nice even airflow. My experience with the small quiet pumps w/o tanks is that the airflow seems to 'sputter' with the pump action. Is there a way to avoid this? Are the newer pump designs better at preventing this?


Pulsing problems are usually a problem with dry lubricated compressors with no reservoir tank. The air flow pulses with the action of the piston and the pressure regulator can't fully compensate. A compressor with a tank shouldn't suffer this problem. However the problem can still be reduced by using a very long fabric covered rubber hose between compressor and airbrush, which acts as a mini reservoir and gives you more freedom to move around. The soft rubber absorbs much of the pulsing. Also add an in-line moisture trap near the airbrush end of the hose. Moisture can form in the hose so the nearer to the airbrush you put it, the less likely you are to suffer any spotting from condensation.


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## Prowler901 (Jun 27, 2005)

Thanks again for everyone's input. This has been very helpful


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