Air compressor: to fix or not

J

Jamus

Member
Hello all--
So here's the question: I have come into an old sears air compressor, which in its prime, was used to spray paint among other things. All in all it was/is a nice machine--20+ gallon tank, 2 hp 240 volt motor--but it has since given up the ghost. The motor is dead and replacements will run north of 200 new and there's a chance I will also need to replace the pressure switch (40 plus some effort due to a corroded and possibly welded connection between the old switch and the pressure deck). That said, I do like the idea of a nice compressor in the shop to run all tools and painting needs.

Being very new to the concept of painting by sprayer (but quite taken by the idea), what are the required air flows to paint adequately? The guns that came with the tank are standard HVLP guns BTW. I'm trying to get a sense for the cost of a replacement compressor just to make sure it's worth the effort to invest in a repair.

Thanks all
Jamus
 
Jamus,

About a year ago there was a guy here at work that had a Sears horizontal 30 gal tank 4 or 5 horse 240V compressor but turned out that there was a hole in the tank. How's your tank? If left too long / often undrained they rot out. If your tank is still good and you're interested I can call him and see if he still has it kicking around. Once he found the tank was bad he would have given it to me for free. Unfortunately i couldn't find a replacement tank for less then $250 and a new set up was only $125 more. Plus I wanted a vertical set up.

Scott
 
I'd check out some cut rate outfit like Northern Hydraulics and price a new one as rebuilding the old one sounds pricey and you have no warranty yop can make it work right. Bud of mine purchased one with a 40 gallon tank for around $400 a year ago.
JMO.
Harry
 
Here's my take on it. The ideal setup would a compressor with at least a 80 gal tank. For a home shop could operate you air tools and sprayers with min down time waiting for the compressor to catch up. $$$$$ The other route a smaller compressor with low volume paint sprayers. The air tools especially air grinder need a large volume of air. If you are not making you living from using them you can live with it. Less $$$$

I would retire the old compressor. Next thing to go is the tank. Now you would have more money tied up than if you bought new. After that the compressor it self. etc.

At present I have a old John Deer compressor. The tank has a hole in it. Rusted right out. I got this used. Jerry rigged a new tank to it. Not a ideal situation. Will pump up tires. With a air compressor make sure you can drain it on a daily basis I am sure that is what happened with the one I have. If you go new, shop around there is a lot of junk out there. They might be all right if you only use every two or three months. They might last for years that way.
 
Jamus
I have that Sears compressor and have had it for years. The tank developed a leak and I had the bottom half of the tank repaired for less than a new tank. You could have the motor rewound for less than a new one but you have to figure your costs against a new one. It has been a good and useful tool for me and living in the country has saved me many times in time and expense.
wis boz
 
Jamus
I have that Sears compressor and have had it for years. The tank developed a leak and I had the bottom half of the tank repaired for less than a new tank. You could have the motor rewound for less than a new one but you have to figure your costs against a new one. It has been a good and useful tool for me and living in the country has saved me many times in time and expense.
wis boz
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Hi Jamus,

What are you painting? I have a Wagner 505 airless sprayer for houses and such. It has been a few years since I ran it, but it should work. It needs a new gun and maybe some hose.



Nate
 
i'm painting a coffin box that I just rehabbed. I don't need the compresor to paint it, but then it was just sitting in the basement and this project was the inspiration. how are you doing?
 
You could buy a new air compressor and plumb the two tanks together. You would then be doubleing your air capacity.
 
i'm painting a coffin box that I just rehabbed. I don't need the compresor to paint it, but then it was just sitting in the basement and this project was the inspiration. how are you doing?
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Hi Jamus,

Things are OK here, just busy. You could probably get a pancake compressor for pretty cheap. The Rockler store in Peabody just went out of business and they were selling a bunch of tools and machines for cheap. I am not sure if they are still open. Might be worth a call there.

Still need to talk with you about turkies. I am heading up to KTP this weekend and will likely get some dekes. I need to get a bird this spring.


Best,
Nate
 
I have a Craftsman 5.5 hp single cylinder 25 gallon oil free compressor.

I have an old truck I play with. I also have 110 mig welder and do my own (bad) bodywork. I think the compressor has a nylon piston. It is fine for spray painting. OK to run powertools but not great for something like a DA sander that needs a lot of air.

When it dies I'll buy the same but I doubt these cheap compressors are worth fixing.
 
Paint guns, air tools need large volumes of air, some of the tools that I design use 1 - 2 liters (@90psi) of air for each fireing. Sanders, grinders use huge amounts of air. If you have a small compressor and want to use it to paint or for high consumption tools then what you need to do is get a extra tank. You can get tanks and just tie them in series with each other. We do this on our large machines that have air cylinders with 4" pistons and strokes of 24-36". We use 5gal to 50 gal tanks mounted right on the machine this insures that our tools and cylinders always have enough air. Worst thing you can do is starve paint guns of air. Also take a small regulator and put a male air fitting on the inlet and a female coupling on the outlet side. Plug this directly into the gun. This will allow you to regulate your air right at the paint gun. You'll find that this will give you much more control of the gun.
 
A cheap Craftsman 5.5 hp single cylinder 25 gallon oil free compressor is fine for painting a car (I've done it several times).
 
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