[Che]

Looking to buy myself an air compressor if I can find a bargain in the post-xmas sales. A bit of advice won't go astray. As of right now I want something to spray paint when needed, powerful enough for a rattle and air gun, and potentially something that can be used with a plasma cutter (down the track). I'm thinking a unit that can flow 250LPM will be oodles - now, and long term.

Not sure I like anything I see at SCA or Bunnings - they all look like cheap Chinese rubbish guaranteed to pack it in after a year or two. And no two brands anywhere are the same. Tool shops have much better looking options (Peerless is the only AC brand I know), but they also have a lot of workshop style compressors - I want to stick to 240V alternatives if possible. I know bigger is usually better when it comes to air compressors, but I also want to avoid buying what I simply don't need.

Just wondering what the brands are when it comes to air compressors? What differences should I expect in a $200 SCA compressor vs a $500 compressor vs a $1000 compressor? Motor HPs and PSI means nothing to me, I work off air flow per minute as per tool design.

I dare say i'll use it hard three or four times a year, but every other week i'll be using it as an air gun. Straight up I need to use it to respray the bonnet of my car and I want to do that before I head back to work early in the NY.


Any advice would be much appreciated

[shep]

What power supply do you have?

[Che]

Only 240V.

[sideways]

10a or 15a?

Either way, buy the biggest belt driven one you can afford. The direct driven ones are very loud and generally low quality.

[shep]

I have one of these http://justtools.com.au/prod5031.htm
It is 6 or 7 years old and works great. Also peerless rate air flow at 100psi where most other makes rate airflow at 0psi so
You need to be carefull when deciding on FAD ratings

[Dan85]

I've got a cheap and nasty sca special. It works. Will run a rattle or air ratchet if you take things slow but is noisy as fuck. I only bought it because once the missus goes away for a week she won't notice the difference between a $180 piece of shit and something good and she's happy with a $180 price tag.............

[Che]

shep wrote:

I have one of these http://justtools.com.au/prod5031.htm
It is 6 or 7 years old and works great. Also peerless rate air flow at 100psi where most other makes rate airflow at 0psi so
You need to be carefull when deciding on FAD ratings

This is exactly the brand/model i'm looking at (... maybe it's a sign ). I like the idea of buying Peerless as I see them in every reputable workshop and I know they last a good long time. But @ $850 they ain't cheap. I guess i'm wondering how this outlay stacks up versus buying el-cheapo compressors and replacing them when they eventually pack it in.

And 15A at the fusebox, but i'd prefer to stick to 10A just to ensure the house doesn't shut down every time I fire her up.

[alien]

the hassle of replacing and disposing of the old one, and the fact its bound to die right in the middle of doing something really time critical like painting - i'd go the pricier one =)

You could get a quote on boxing day and ask if they will hold that price for 30 days, giving you more time to save up? (worth a shot). At least the $850 unit will have re-sale value too, should you decide you don't use it enough.

[Dan85]

If you can buy the best you can afford first go. My cheap one is so noisy and is working really hard to run an air ratchet and I regularly get held up waiting for it to "catch up" it will die soon I recon if I keep using as i am.