100+ psi compressor

hey all,

this isn't a woodworking question, but members are in the know and i thought worth asking here.

i need a compressor to check tyre pressure on a truck, 100psi is the pressure the tyres need to be, so compressor would go from 90psi to 100psi. would probably check them once fortnight.

now is there anything out there for under $300 that will do the job, would like it to be small as may need to take to yard so 25-30kg max weight.

have asked at some of the 4*4 shops they have the small units they claim are suitable but they look like the items you use to pump a basket ball.

looking at the tool shops they have small units with a 10-30L tank claiming to go to 120psi, but doing some searching here says they will more than likely be around 90-100psi.

any guidance welcomed.
sorry for long post.

cheers
manni:?

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is there anything out there for under $300 that will do the job

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Hi mate! I was at Bunnings yesterday and they had on clearance a 50 lt compressor (single piston) with a belt driven 2.5 hp induction motor for $289, marked down from $389, but I forget the brand.

AutoOne have a 50 lt Hyundi compressor (single piston) with a direct-drive 2.5 hp induction motor at back for $249 and would be a lot lighter than the Bunnings job.

Happy hunting.
Cheers
Graeme.

Does the truck have air brakes on it?

If it does, hook up a point into the airline as it should be capable of pumping the required pressure, if you're not sure of where to hook up to, get your mechanic to do it for you.

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Originally Posted by msman

now is there anything out there for under $300 that will do the job, would like it to be small as may need to take to yard so 25-30kg max weight.

have asked at some of the 4*4 shops they have the small units they claim are suitable but they look like the items you use to pump a basket ball.

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Don't let looks deceive you, I have one of these small units, a 'Bushranger Max Air'.

Pumps up tyres faster than my $150 Bunnings 240v compressor and has no dramas popping the bead back on a 31" 4X4 tyre. Bought it for a trip around Australia and was used almost daily to air up the tyres on two 4X4's and a camper trailer, 5 years later its still going strong.

Worth around $400, but just wait for a 4X4 or camping show and you should pick one up on special for $300.



Check em out here. Max Air 2




.

if you are wanting to do it quickly, the biggest problem you may have is the compressor tank and the truck tyre may end up equilizing in pressure due to the truck tyre holding similiar volume of air to the compressor tank, and it may take a while to put the required pressure into it.
Hooking up to the trucks existing air system may be the best bet, will only cost you a few fittings, that is of course if the truck has an air system.
Out of curiosity, are the tyres steer, drive or trailer? if steer I can understand the pressure, if drive or trailer it seems a bit high.

just got new steers put on and told pressure for them is 100psi will be trying to keep at that pressure at $500each not a cheap exercise and quite painful knowing they still had life in them if pressure was checked regularly when it comes time to replace.
thought about using the air brakes but the dash gauge reads 7-8 kg/cm^2 which is only about 85psi using an online converter, its an isuzu fvr950 2001 year.
don't mind it taking 5-10mins a tyre, as to check them now we go to beurepairs etc and have to wait 30-45mins in the middle of the day and pay $25 for the service, all the servos we use don't have enough pressure.

cheers

This would be perfect for maintaining air pressures.

Holds enough air to inflate 15 4WD tyres.

Air-Up Australia - Portable Air Anywhere

But not cheap at $747 & $20 per refill.

100 psi sounds right for steers, to work it out you can check the load rating of the tyre and reference against a chart that will allow you to work out what pressure to inflate to for the given load on the tyre.
Tyre pressure is very important (as you already know), as it is the air in the tyre that carries the load, the tyre is just the pressure vessel used to contain the air.

I think something that has around 50 litre tank and twin cylinder pump, belt driven with around 10-12 CFM displacement would be the least you would want, but it isnt exactly portable.
Anything smaller is going to labor a lot doing the job, the thing I just described will also but not as much.
If you get a chance, next time you are near one of the service trucks that tyre blokes use for roadside repairs try and sneak a look at what type of unit they have mounted on their trucks, it will give you some idea as to what you need to aim for.

i thought i might have to get a full size unit but its not ideal as the truck doesn't get taken home often.

cheers for the input people will have to do some thinking.

About 10 years ago I bought a Project Air 2.5 hp direct drive compressor with a 24 litre tank for $99.00. I have used it for exactly the job you describe, has no trouble getting truck tyres up to 100psi, it is a little slow but it doesn't take anything like 10 minutes. It is quite small and light, and this thing has had a flogging for 10 years and is still going strong.(think I might have fluked a good one)

something out of leftfield. what about hiring a bottle of nitrogen. That is what we use for all of the aircraft tires, a new bottle of nitrogen has about 3200psi in it, then you just need a regulator and connect to an air line and you are good to go.

100 psi, that's about 7 bar, right? Most decent compressors should be able to manage that, even in the budget range. It may a simple one cylinder direct drive type, running at 2800 rpm. Those are usually the basic types that are used for nailing and light spray and clean jobs and for inflating tyres. The European market is flooded wiith such compressors, often of Italian make. They have a 200 litre tank, an 1125 Watts motor (net approx. 1 HP), 213 litres per minute mximum intake volume and 8 bars of pressure. They come with auto switch on/off, pressure regular and gauges and can be had for 199 Euros. Something like that should be available near you.

Be sure the cylinder is oil-lubricated. Oilless systems with teflon or other stuff will not have the same lifespan and will leak sooner if there is something wrong with the intake air filter. For a compressor, the rule "the big, the better" is very true. Battery fed compressors have relatively small motors with a max input of 500 Watts, their performance is nowhere near the oomph you can get out of mains driven systems.

greetings

gerhard