Hey does anyone have any air compresor experience? I got the new rodmaker and I have to try powder coating! I guess i am starting from scratch because I don't even have a air compresor. I went out today to look at compresors and ask advice from the sales reps. Basicly I think they know as much as me about compresors and thats not much. Space is a factor in my shop as i already have ronzetti and drying rack and finish area and cork/wood sanding area with lathe etc etc. The compresors I saw were 5, 10 and 20 gallons and all varing prices. The small one(5 gal.) included a brad nailer which I could use for some of my wifes around the house projects and its small for storage called a pancake compresor. Would that do the job for powder coating? Will i be satisfied with it down the road? Thanks in advance for any advice anyone could give me on the subject of air compresors.

Billy

Unless you plan to powder coat very large items, you don't need a large compressor and tank. For a few rod building items - seats, caps, gimbals, etc., you can get by with very little.

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Try out a bottle of CO2 gas with a regulator. In business for about $ 100 with a Harbor Freight reg for the service. A small tank will hold a lot of gas and blow a lot of powder. I use one to flock grips and it is easily controlable if set up right. One advantage is that it is totally oil free.

You can do the same thing with an old car tire. But at some point you will have to add more air. With a compressor, you're always good to go.

I haven't priced any lately. I think you could get a serviceable one of sufficient size for powder coating for not very much money.

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I do a lot of custom airbrsuhing and painting. I grew up in my fathers body shop so I have a small understanding of the pros and cons of an air compressor. Pancake compressors are neat portable units which are generally used in construction of new homes. Contractors use them because of the portability thats it. If they could have bigger units on site, they would, although they would be a pain to lug around.. Because of the small tanks, air nailers for roofing and framing are going constantly which means so is the motor. They are loud and tiring to listen too. I dont know how involved powdercoating is but if thats all your going to use it for, it may work well. Im also a believer of "you get what you pay for" and if your looking at higher end pancake compressors you could just as well get a 25-35gal stand up or laydown compressor. This is what I currently have and really like it, but my needs are growing becasue of air buffers and grinders so I really consume air. The 25-35 gal compressors are also a joy to have around the house. You can use them to fill up bicycle tires, auto tires, run hand grinders among many other small air tools. Why I enjoy them is that they dont have to run constantly like pancake compressors. If you are using a fair amount of air in the evening you dont wake up the entire house because of the small tank. With a bigger tank you can fill it up once and you will be good to go for quite a while. There are two different types of these style of compressors, oil and oil less. I dont have much experience with the oil less because I have never cared for them. They are extremely loud. They might work just as well but after a while you will go crazy. Honestly crazy! The oiled compressors are the way to go. Many home improvement stores carry them under different names but I believe most are made at one of a couple of companies assembly lines and stickered with new names. Anything bigger and you have to consider 220V wiring and stationary units so i wont go there. I hope this helps and if I knew more about the powder coating process I could be of more assistance. Good luck. Grant

I totally agree on the oil-less pancake compressors- They are very loud and will drive you nuts in an enclosed space.

I bought a small Makita compressor that has oil and I really like it. Very quiet when compared to the oil-free pancake type. It is used for many tasks in my shop.

Herb

I was a Rep for Sanborn & Industrial Air compressor brands for years. There are pro's & cons to both oil (piston) and oil-less (diaphragm) pumps. They're right about the noise on the oil-less pumps and the bigger the pump, the bigger the noise. I have a 5HP oil-free on a 40 gal. vertical tank right now that's worked like a champ for about five years. If it fires up with the garage door open, the neighbors throw rocks at me. It sounds like a Harley at 5000RPM for about five minutes. Luckily it doesn't cycle often because of the size of the tank. Contractors like these because they can lay them on their side in the back of their trucks without having oil run out of the pump. They're pretty well maintenence free.


I bought this one in a hurry as my quiet 2cyl. belt driven piston compressor went down in the middle of finishing my kitchen cabinets. It was the second one I burnt up in five years. Single stage, belt driven portable compressors aren't what they used to be. Lots of problems with the unloader & check valves, which causes the unit to "hydraulic" and not start. Air needs to be released from the head and back-pressure held in the tank to allow the motor to come up to speed and those two parts seem to give up after about 200 hours on those units. They just don't make 'em like they used to. Even with the valves working properly, if you live in a cold climate, you can forget about running them on a 15A circuit and even on a 20A, they'll dim the lights pretty good and possibly even pop the breaker trying to start on a cold day. Most are dual voltage (110V/220V) and do MUCH better on 220V if you've got it. If you're going to look at belt driven oil bath compressors (rather than hand carried), spend the extra couple hundred and get a two stage. Far, FAR fewer problems.

An oil bath direct drive (rather than belt drive) compressor like the Makita mentioned above (which is actually manufactured by Devilbis) is pretty much bullet proof and you can still hear the wife over it while it's running (that may be why I bought an oil-less). I've got a 1-1/2hp nail gun compressor with this motor/pump set-up that refuses to die after twenty plus years. The pump/motor combo is an Italian "FINI" brand part which is who makes (or DID make) the pumps for the Emglo & DeWalt direct drive/oil bath compressors. Just make sure that a little "finish" compressor like this will blow enough air for you.

Look at some online air tool catalogs and see what kind of CFM demand the tools that you might purchase down the road will require. In the application that you're talking about, you won't have a problem with a finish compressor. However, if you think you might want to run a paint spray gun, air ratchet, sander, etc... in the future, you'll need more air than these little guys can deliver for more than a short burst. Match the compressor's CFM delivery at a given PSI to that of the tool. Also remember what Grant said above. The more air it will store (larger tank), the less often it will have to run.

Stay away from the $99 compressors that LOOK like a Makita. There's a reason they're $99 (or less). They're more or less disposable. Most repair shops won't touch them unless they have an external problem like a switch, filter, etc... What ever brand you look at, make sure they offer warranty service/repair local to you. There's really no such thing as a warranty "repair" on a cheapo. Pep Boys, Kreagan, etc... just replace them over the counter for 90 days or so. After that time period, or if they change vendors as they often do, you're pretty much S.O.L.

Lastly, if you’re going to run oil lubricated air tools in the future, stay away from the Co2 tank. Bill’s right, it would be fine for the powder coating gun you’re looking at, but if you think you might run other tools down the road, keep looking. Co2 when mixed with certain air tool lubricants can actually cause an explosion inside the tool. I’ve never seen it happen, but have heard of housings being blown apart on impact wrenches & nail guns because of this gas/oil mix which is why most air tools manufacturers warn users not to do it. In a low volume spray application like you're looking at, it would work great. Nice and small and they hold a LOT of air.

Oh, double lastly... If you're going the compressor route, spend $15 on an inline filter (aka: water trap). Compressors make a LOT of condensation. The pump heats up the air, which then cools in the tank & hose causing condensation. The filter will prevent this water from getting in to your tool and possibly contaminating the material you're trying to spray. I run these small filters between the hose and the tool and have to drain them often. You'll be amazed at how much water a little compressor will generate on a hot day.


Mark Griffin
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C&M Custom Tackle
San Dimas, California

Mark - My CO2 tank has a sign on it that says - "Flock It!" When nails need to be driven I hire a carpenter!

Gon Fishn

I wish I could get myself in that mode Bill. If a nail needs to be driven, I have this nasty habit of going to the store for nails, seeing a newer, lighter nail gun than the one I was going to use, buying it, shooting a clip of nails through it, then repeating the whole process the following year. The Wife says stuff about “excessive / compulsive behavior”, but I don’t know what that means… She muttered the same thing after I had a few rod component back-orders and decided to open her up a parts business. At least now she’s so busy shipping parts that she doesn’t have time to pay attention to my tool purchases.

Mark Griffin
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C&M Custom Tackle
San Dimas, California

Mark, I seen your @#$%& store today. I need some stuff. How do I get a hold of you? Everyone else, sorry to threadjack. Ignore me. (smile)

I'm not trying to talk you into or out of anything, just passing on info. Although I have a well equiped shop (compressor, lathes, drill presses, Hyd presses, etc,etc) I seldom use the compressor for powder painting painting.

I have refurbished several old saltwater reels by polishing the phenolic and powder painting the previously chrome parts. I also do my guide feet tips, after preping them, reel seats, winding checks.

My method, for these small parts, is to fabricate some kind of device for handling it, heat it with an alcohol lamp or propane torch, (about 275 degrees F.) swish it around in the powder, and hang it in a 375 to 400 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes. It works like a champ.

For the larger items like reel mounting base and the beauty rings, I use the disposal baking pans from the grocery markets.

Grant,

I'll be at the shop in about a 1/2 hour if you want to call (909-394-7486), or you can just drop me an email if that's easier.

Mark Griffin
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C&M Custom Tackle
San Dimas, California

It is real simple. Just go to Sears and buy an air compressor. Get either the vertical or the horizontal with a medium sized tank. Good for everything. I use mine for painting, cleaning, blowing up tires, etc. I use an air impact wrench for driving lagbolts in woodworking, etc. Got a little air grinder if I need to cut off a bolt or something. Just a good tool to have. Unless you are into sandblasting or painting cars just the medium Sears will suffice.

Seconding yje Sears suggestion. If you want to save some money, visit the reconditioned tool section. Most of them have a one year replacement warrenty on them.

Bill in WV