Quiet Air Compressor

[Joe R.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Cool! Let us know how it performs please once you get it wired up Gary.

Joe

[Roger W.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

It will be interesting to see how you like it. For a small unit that is easy to move around, it has impressive specifications.

[Gary R.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

So fast forward to today. I got the compressor wired up last month and had 2 issues.
1- It came in overfull and blew oil out when it unloaded. Found out the level should be 1/2 way on the sight glass- that solved that issue.
2- There was a pin hole in the tank weld. Not from corrosion or rust jut a bad weld spot. I ended up shooting it with my MIG last week to seal it up.

Eastwoods was right on top of it and supported the whole process, I am very pleased with their after sale service.

I used the compressor to blast 4-5 boxes so far and it works well. It is constant draw but this scroll is built to handle that from what I was told.

The compressor is 68Db- very pleased with that. I ran a 240vac 30 amp circuit but 20 would probably work I think I measured 12 amp running. It moves freely but I added on a handle on the front cover to aid in removing it for service.

I found a 3 year old 80 gallon air tank on the local CL last week and bought it. I fab'd up some risers and mounts for them on the tank and plumbed it to the compressor today. Took about 10-15 minutes to pump them both up but I didn't time it. I was checking for leaks and only found one on the top tank plug. With the 6' whip I don't see any vibration or movement but I want to replace the thin casters I used on the tank with better ones.

I am pleased with this compressor, yeah a couple of bugs to work out but it fits my needs and shop well. Better then anything else I have looked at. I can easily work in the shop with the compressor running and it is not heard outside of the shop.

[David H.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Gary,

Thanks for update. Quiet is good!

Dave

[Roger W.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Thanks for the update. It appears that Eastwood needs to do a little more quality control work on this product. I am sure that they will. Usually new products have a few bugs. Your experience with the compressor seems to matche their specifications.

[Gerald C.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Okay, I've read through this thread and have a couple of questions. I have a Harbor Fright Blast cabinet and do some "hobby" blasting when I'm restoring my cars. My Sears leaked air like a sieve and won't hold pressure. Can someone guide me to Tank Size and CFM? Currently I have a 20 gallon with 155 PSI and a 4.3 CFM. It constantly runs when I'm blasting parts.

Anything else I should know before I make a purchase? I want a 120V set up.

Thanks

[Stephen L.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Look first at the highest CFM you can find using a 120vac compressor. Then look at the pressure attained (in excess of 125 psi) Finally look for the largest tank you can find with the above parameters. HIGH CFM allows the compressor to stay ahead of the demand by the blast cabinet nozzle. You need about 100 psi for the blast nozzle to work efficiently. Finally, the tank size allows the system to store enough compressed air to maintain the high pressure.

Tractor Supply or Harbor freight have compressors that will do the job...... Cost $750 to $1000.
Install a water separator and a pressure regulator on the tank. Don't forget to periodically drain water from the tank.........install a drain valve in the bottom.

This is the system I've had for 20 years

[Richard G.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

There is a check valve between the compressor head and the tank. Often it is build into the top of the tank and is not visible. If you are sure the tank or hose isn't leaking the check valve may be gummed up or defective.
Even if you purchase another compressor you can hook the tanks in series and have extra air, like Gary did.
Go slow and work while the compressor builds pressure and it's workable.
I have a 5hp 80gal and it's not really large enough for blasting.
Look at the amp draw for real HP comparisons.
Some manufactures even hide that specification and it's listed on the motor as SP. (special)
They all lie.
Cheers.

[Gerald C.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Thanks for the info. Very helpful.

[Gary R.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

I see this came back so I might as well give an update over the past 5 years.

I started out with the first design compressor Eastwood came out with. At the time I was working full time and rebuilding vettes full time. Now I am full time in my own vette business and using the compressor more.

The first design compressor has some minor issues as outlined that I corrected. Some revisions were made along the way but overall, it worked as expected. It provided enough cfm to run my blast cabinet, it would run with extended use but I stop after 15 minutes to take a break and let the compressor unload.

The first compressor lasted 2 years and locked up. Eastwood stood behind it and got me a new revised compressor within 3 weeks, no charges for anything. The Eastwood Engineer in charge of this machine was extremely helpful with any question I had and really, I have not seen that level from any supplier, certainly not many corvette vendors.

So far, the 2nd compressor is running great, and I hope I didn't jink myself, but I can blast differentials, boxes, arms, really anything that will fit in my top load cabinet. My shop is tight, I call it a submarine shop because I use every inch and everything is on wheels to move around or out in the warm weather.

I have a cabinet from TP Tools- made in the USA and they stock all the parts for it so it's never been an issue to get resupplied.
I use their vacuum system and highly recommend that over a shop vac for durability and noise level. The parts aren't cheap, but the quality is good, and it is part of the cost of doing business.

The hard part is when a part comes in that was painted with hard paints, or several layers of hard paint. Sometimes I have to scrape and wire brush them. It takes longer but I control the process. If I use an outside shop it costs more, $100hr, and takes longer plus I have to drive 30 minutes or more to get there.

The setup I bought is TL780 but that was 15-20 years ago so I am not sure that model is still sold but check their website-www.tptools.com I am sure they have another top load, which works better for me than the side door due to space.

[Joe R.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Hi Gerald,

I would suggest rethinking the power supply question. The compressors that have enough CFM for blasting are going to need a 240 V supply. There is a pretty good thread on air compressors over on the GarageJournal website if you would like to do some more reading. Please let us know what you come up with and how it works out.

Thanks!
Joe

[Mike T.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Joe - I used to be on the Garage Journal fairly often but haven't visited in a couple years.
Will I find that one thread on Compressors in the Tool Section?

[Joe R.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Hi Gary:

I just saw this thread for the first time when it popped up with your update. It's a great thread. On the general topic of compressor noise, I want to offer a couple thoughts:

1) One post early in this thread suggested using a belt-driven piston compressor that has more CFM capacity than you need (say, twice the CFM that you need) and then running it at one half the rated speed with a motor that is half the rated hp. I think this is a great idea if you can source a used piston compressor at a reasonable cost. Most manufacturers of off-the-shelf compressor-motor-tank setups run the compressor at the maximum rated speed to squeeze out as many CFM as they can. Running the compressor slower might help a lot with the noise.

2) A lot of posts talked about placing the compressor outside the garage to reduce noise. In my case, based on space considerations, I ended up placing my blast cabinet in the basement of my home, and ran an underground hose-in-conduit out to the compressor in my detached garage. When using the blast cabinet, I cannot hear the compressor at all. I also think it's helpful to keep stray blast media out of my garage.

What I find is that while my compressor is noisy, I only have to tolerate the noise when using it in the garage to air up tires or operate an air tool. For these operations, I typically, only need to run the compressor for one cycle to fill the tank. So, the annoying noise only lasts a few minutes. For my blast cabinet, though, I sometimes use it continuously for hours at at time. I'm glad that I don't have to listen to the compressor while using the blast cabinet.

[Joe R.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Hi Mike,

I believe this is the thread I was thinking of:

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/compression-show-off-your-compressor.4901/

Joe

[Mark F.]

Re: Quiet Air Compressor

Sold my compressor and media blasting stuff, but I always used disposable soft foam ear plugs (many manufacturers available) or ear muffs when I used to run it...

We all suffer from presbycusis (age-related hearing loss), so use of hearing protection devices is warranted for old folks like us

Another advantage is they keep airborne particulates (fugitive media blast materials) from getting in your ear canals.

I know welders who used them for that reason alone (kept welding sparks out of their ears)...they didn't care about the noise.