Air Compressors?

[dudemind]

I use a little Viair 88P. Sure, it's not as fast as a good on-board pump, but I've been thoroughly impressed with it. I've pushed it well beyond its rated duty cycle, and it just kept chugging along. It's rated for 25 mins @ 30PSI. A couple weeks back, I ran it for a bit over a hour filling up all four tires on three and a half Wranglers (all ranging 32" to 33") from about 12-15PSI back up to 38-40PSI. It wasn't fast, but I want to say it took less than 15-20 minutes per vehicle. If the gauge on it was a little more accurate, it probably would have gone faster (it always reads too high, and not by a consistent spread either). I have to keep stopping the pump, removing it, checking pressure with a digital gauge, then continuing to fill up.

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[dudemind]

Hey,

Seems that there are a lot of tools advised, but check this fair and unbiased review of garage air compressors, these guys are doing really nice buying guides. I'm sure that you'll find a solid product to pick up!

Cheers

Welcome to the forums, Fred.

I think what you've linked to are a slightly different type of compressor, intended for driving pneumatic/air tools around the garage/home. Not that you couldn't use one of them with a typical air inflator attachment when the rig's at home.

The thread here is more focused on comparing vehicle-mounted or otherwise portable compressors, powered by the vehicle, intended for filling tires back up after a day of off-roading with tired aired down.

That said, I do own the ubiquitous Porter Cable pancake rated #1 in your link and used it just yesterday to finally finish up some baseboards and trim. And if I'm already working on the car and rummaging through tool storage, I do pull it out (along with my cheap inflator gun) and get the tires topped up. Absolutely faster than any on-board system I've seen, just not something I'd be hauling around off-road.

 

[mandrew]

I have the Viair 400P and it never fails me yet. Very reliable and no overheating issues.

 

[RubenZ]

For those of you with the VIAIR setups. Where are you mounting the big 2.5 gallon tank? Right now I have it all bolted up to a 1/2" piece of plywood, but I'd rather mount it a little better. I was toying with the idea of building up a BUMPER to also be a Air Tank.

 

[Shenanigans]

After using a viair for 8 years, I finally got frustrated with the 20-30 minutes time it took for it to air up. I went to a Powertank and now won’t use anything else. Simply an amazing setup. They are actually based out of my city as well.

 

[DirtRoad1981]

Smittybilt 5.65 CFM. perfect for airring back up when leaving the trail

 

[spurly]

I run the Viair 88P with zero issues. It's a lot less expensive and will do just fine with 35" tires.

 

[Grumpy Wrangler]

I have no idea if it's still the same, but back in the early JK days the best for the money was the Q industries - SuperFlow MV-50, also known as the Master Flow MF-1050. Flows as much as ViAir 400 (2.54 cfm) but only costs $50-$70. I've had 2 since 2007 and while they both still work fine I did have to replace the chuck & fix the battery clamps on one of them and replace the fuse holder on the other. (One seems to run faster and hotter than the other.) Still, I've got less than $125 in both of them and the couple parts needed to fix them.

I never timed it while I aired up our 35's, but it will air up all all 4 32s ('07-'18 JKUR tires), at once, from 20 PSI to 37 PSI in around 11-12 minutes. I made a hose setup so I can air down / up all 4 tires at once. I hook it up, set the compressor on the fender and sit in the Jeep for 10-11 minutes and then go check the pressure. I'm fine with waiting an extra few minutes to air up vs spending tons for a bigger named compressor. Plus, 90% of places we go have air available, like local wheeling parts, Moab, etc, so don't need to use it every time we go wheeling.

$52 at Amazon right now.

I have one of these little guys. It gets really hot and I’ve blown a hole in my airline more times than I can count. I’m not sure if there is a way around this or not cause I like the price and portability.

 

[Shenanigans]

I have one of these little guys. It gets really hot and I’ve blown a hole in my airline more times than I can count. I’m not sure if there is a way around this or not cause I like the price and portability.

Is the hole in the airline caused by contacting the hot compressor? What is the airline rated at and what is the compressor putting out? Perhaps try to be more gentile on the coiled lines as they are much thinner than the rubber hoses. Rocks and jagged edges don’t play nice with them, especially when they are under pressure.

 

[Grumpy Wrangler]

Is the hole in the airline caused by contacting the hot compressor? What is the airline rated at and what is the compressor putting out? Perhaps try to be more gentile on the coiled lines as they are much thinner than the rubber hoses. Rocks and jagged edges don’t play nice with them, especially when they are under pressure.

The hole is a combination of the barbed fittings being too hot and the compressor not regulating or turning off. So as long as I run over and manually keep turning it off without allowing it to climb too high in pressure I can make it work. At the end of 4 x 33” tires though the compressor head is so hot to the touch I gotta let it sit and cool for a while before putting it away.

 

[Shenanigans]

The hole is a combination of the barbed fittings being too hot and the compressor not regulating or turning off. So as long as I run over and manually keep turning it off without allowing it to climb too high in pressure I can make it work. At the end of 4 x 33” tires though the compressor head is so hot to the touch I gotta let it sit and cool for a while before putting it away.

They all get smoking hot. Do you have a regulator on yours?

 

[47Jeepster]

...

The black hose with the pressure gauge (?) going to the tire ... looks like an addition. Did you make that or buy it? If bought ... brand and where you bought it from ... please?

I'm using an ARB portable compressor. Went to the portable 'cuz I couldn't find an easy mounting point under the hood for the non-portable. I like the portable, it airs up my 33" tires from 20 psi to 37 psi in two minutes. In fact, that's what I've been doing ... airing up for a timed two minutes and then deflating it a little to a measured 37 psi. But, a pressure gauge would be a good addition to the kit.

 

[DirtRoad1981]

Came with the kit. Bad ass though and the coil reaches far without feeling it’s too much. Has a rubber hose feeling not a plastic feel. Airs up quick too didnt time tho.

 

[Andy2434]

I'm going to pull the trigger on a 10lb. Power Tank.

 

[Alacon01]

Smittybilt 5.65 CFM. perfect for airring back up when leaving the trail

I run this same setup, however, as others have stated with other setups, my hose heated up and blew a hole in it. I replaced it with a better hose and has been going strong for a while now.

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