3200psi air source
anyone have any expedrience with one of these?
thinking this might be a good alternative to the more expensive fx unit and rated for continuous use (ie filling large tanks)
Price looks like a good deal
thanks
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Viewing 13 replies - 1 through 13 (of 13 total)
Here’s an email I sent them—>protecair@aol.com
“I have a new 5.5HP Honda engine that needs to be put to use.
I shoot a PCP air rifle that requires 3000 PSI air and was wondering
what it would cost me for everything I need to make a complete
unit (minus engine and misc.fittings)?”
REPLY–>
“Thanks for the inquiry. This compressor requires a 3/4″ tapered shaft.
You will need the following:
Compressor pump: $650.00;
Water separator with pressure relief and drain: $189.00;
Frame: $50.00
Best regards,
Marge”
It might be worth it to buy a complete rig for 950 (manual included).
Get a can of gas/rope and give’r hell! 8)
william, I forgot to ask, do you still have and use yours?
if not, reason for getting rid of it?
thanks
shrpshotr28
Don
thanks and excellent info. think this might be a good way to go. like that it is a compressor and not a “electric pump”. Time to consult the financial manager. SHOP needs a new compressor. Definitely couldn’t get away with “i need 800.00 for a compressor so i can shoot my airgun”
anyone else have any input?
Great write up. Lots of info.
Thanks
> anyone have any expedrience with one of these?
>
It’s supposedly a flamethrower compressor. I have one but
haven’t used it for a few years. However, it worked well when I did and
it was well worth whatever I paid.
I bought it after going back and forth on the FX compressor. The latter
had just become available and was selling for something like $1100, quite
a bit more than I wanted to pay. I’m now glad I decided on the Stewart
Warner. It’s a real compressor–the FX is just a powered hand pump. Simply
in terms of price/performance the SW blows the FX away. More than that,
the SW is much better designed and better built–simple, rugged, and
so on–what you’d from mil spec stuff designed to be beaten on in
the field.
I, too, was sceptical of the motor that was built for it, and thought I’d
buy just the compressor, add a 5.5 hp horizontal-shaft motor, and
build my own frame. However, no bare compressors were available at the
time and I wound up with the complete package of compressor, frame, and motor.
On paper the motor seems underpowered, but mine clearly puts out
a lot more than spec. Rumor has it that SW already had this motor in
production before it bid on the contract for the compressor unit, and
was able to lowball on cost and time to delivery even though the
motor was more powerful than necessary to meet the minimum spec.
In any case, it worked well enough that I never felt a need to replace it.
Not too long ago Protecair was selling this same motor for $35, and
the frame is pretty nice and certainly convenient. What I’m saying is
that if it’s not too much more money, the original pancake motor
may work well enough already.
Another rumor has it that someone is selling a 4500psi compressor
based on this unit. It might even have been Protecair. As far as I
can tell, the compressor itself is not limited to 3200 psi or whatever
is advertised. The limiting factors are the fittings, tubing,
and oil trap (the can attached to the frame in the pictures), and
overpressure valve. I ran mine to 3600-3700 psi to test hoses
and fittings several times without any problems. I’m sure it could
have gone higher, but I didn’t want to push the motor.
The outlet is at the top of the oil trap (the aforementioned can), which
is tapped for the same thread as a flare fitting. I forget what size, but it’s
a standard thread and adapters to 1/8 NPT and thus to 1/8 or 1/4 BSP
can be found. However, it might be better to use 5000-6000 psi rated
stainless, so if Protecair or whomever has something already made up,
you could save yourself a lot of aggravation by buying from them.
What else?
— You’ll need a special mil spec oil or a close equivalent,
and as with all compressors like this you will have to change it on a
usage-based schedule.
— As I mentioned above, the original motor might have enough
power for your use. It wouldn’t hurt to have more, especially if
you’re planning on running it to higher psi, but the main reason to
change out the motor is convenience–electric start, electronic ignition
and so on–that comes with anything you’re likely to buy today.
— My SW came with mil manuals for both the motor and compressor.
Diagrams and operation and maintenance instructions are decent. Parts
are listed, but not in any way that’s useful for finding
off-the-shelf replacements, so you might have to rely on surplus places
like Protecair.
— The big cost in buying just the compressor and DIY is the
oil trap/filter/separator, which you’ll definitely need. This of course
is on the high-pressure side, so it’s not just something you can replace
with parts from the hardware store.
Well, that’s all I can think about for now. If you have questions
about the unit just ask.
One of the regulars on the Yellow Board has the same unit,
posted a picture in the last week or so, and may be another
source of information and perspective.
William
6.5hp horizontal shaft motor, harbor freight, 129.00 (honda clone)
please post what you find out
good luck. It’d be a few weeks before I can even think about funding one of these but wanted to see what everyone else thought.
I emailed them asking what all the stuff needed to make a complete
unit would cost (I have motors).
I know the main air compressor rebuilder here and parts shouldn’t be a problem for me. 8)
not too worried about the motor, supposedly by research 800-1000 hour service live per mil spec, but basically considered disposable if it breaks. Read on dive forums of being able to tweak high pressure cutout to about 3800+ psi, at what expense in longjevity who knows. was thinking more like using the pump w/ about a 2hp electric motor or the 5.5hp honda clone that HF sells for $169.00. Main thing is durability of the pump. so possibly 3500 psi, portable, and enough volume to fill large tanks/portable cf bottles for under $1000 total. seems like it would be a bargain setup vs. one of the “electric hand pumps” rated flow would fill an empty 80cf tank in about 25 minutes so going from 2500 to full should be no big deal.
thats a nice find and definatly cheap…..shame its just 3200 psi that means the scuba tank will run low fast…of course filling directly to the gun is a possibility
Looks like OLD military surplus of some kind. He says it comes with an engine to power it and then also says he can help you hook it up to a new Honda motor. That may point to it not being a good or reliable motor or be so old you cant get parts for it. If you look below he also sells this compressor without motors for 650. Maybe one of those and a brand new motor would be a better choice?
Viewing 13 replies - 1 through 13 (of 13 total)
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> william, I forgot to ask, do you still have and use yours?
> if not, reason for getting rid of it?
>
I still have it and plan to get it running again “soon”. I put
it and the rest of my shooting stuff in storage about eight years
ago when I took a job that required me to stay in Massachusetts
much of the time.
When I bought the SW the normal thing to do was to use
1/4 inch SCUBA hose and fittings. Someone I knew needed a
high-pressure setup, and I gave them what I had on the
SW because I wasn’t using it. Basically, the compressor needs to
be set up again, which this time I’ll probably do with 1/8 inch hose
and quick connects and whatnot.
The SW looked fine when I got it back from where I had it
stored (sealed in plastic, oil in the spark plug hole, etc.), but
it was already too cold to mess around outside so I haven’t
tried to start the engine yet. Maybe when it gets just a little
warmer…
William