Air compressor died! Any recommendations for a good 60-80 gallon upright around $1000?

[toolmanmike]

A screw compressor is NOT for the car restorer or hobbyist! The motor runs all of the time and the
compressor loads and un-loads constantly. Too much money, and synthetic oil and filters will drive
you to the poor house.

Industrial applications

 

[torredcuda]

I restored my Barracuda in the early `90`s using a Sears 5hp 30 gallon oil less compressor. It ran a LOT as it couldn`t keep up with tools or paint guns. It used to overheat and pop the breaker on the motor and I would hit it until it reset and keep going. That poor compressor held up really well to all of the years of abuse. The only things I ever did were rebuild the top end which was cheap and easy as it was just rubber type rings that would wear out and replace the metal tubing lines.

 

[1KoolBee]

Been seeing lots of industrial compressors for sale on wastebook marketplace. How’s 24 CFM @ 375 psi sound? Hafta run as 3 phase as I don’t think you can get single phase 15 horse motor.

 

[YY1]

If you're sandblasting and using high volume air tools-

Get the most CFM@90psi you can afford.

I briefly had a 9 CFM DeWalt and it was barely adequate for blasting.

I now have a bought used Bel-Air "318" that is either 32 or 18 CFM@90 depending on what literature you read.

Night and day difference.

The blast cabinet can still exhaust the 80 gallon tank, but the motor and compressor proper can keep up with the demand.

 

[c body convert]

Campbell Hausfield 5hp two stage is what I have now and this is the second electric motor failure.

my buddy has a 5 hp upright Ingersol Rand from Tractor Supply and it's gone through 2 motors also...last time I was in there they were carrying DeWalt also

 

[1KoolBee]

my buddy has a 5 hp upright Ingersol Rand from Tractor Supply and it's gone through 2 motors also...last time I was in there they were carrying DeWalt also

If both motors were Baldor, I’d check friend’s wiring to make sure the startup amps are well supported (at least 30A) Baldor motors are pretty reliable but I suspect the Tractor Supply IR uses cheaper motor. A real 5 horse Baldor motor costs more than most guys spend on their Compressors. Also , the Tan IR’s are made in India, the Gray ones are made in USA.

 

[zyzzyx]

Again, a REAL 5HP motor runs @ 1720RPM and draws bout 23A. A good compressor
will put out around 4.3CFM/HP. Get a cast Iron pump too.

 

[RJRENTON]

Industrial applications

IMO.....I always spec's SULLAIR with the 24kt lubricant, it is a screw machine. I used two 500 hp SULLAIR machines w/ 4160 volt 3 phase motors in parallel for the entire plant, with refrigant-dessicant dryers as I needed -20°F dewpoint air for instrument air. ALTHOUGH Ingersol-Rand makes an equilvant machine. Atlas-Copco makes an oil-less machine ....but a 2 stage, with an innercooler, recriporating machine with a 240 volt single phase motor, 5 hp minimum and a 60 to 80 gallon tank (either vertical or horizontal...depending on space available) would be best for home or light commercial use.....use synthetic oil as recommended by the maker. Garder-Denver is another good machine. Just my opinion......
BOB RENTON

 

[YY1]

Again, a REAL 5HP motor runs @ 1720RPM and draws bout 23A. A good compressor
will put out around 4.3CFM/HP. Get a cast Iron pump too.

Not entirely true.
The 1980's 5HP motor on my Bel-Air is as big around as a 8 3/4 pumpkin and runs at IIRC 2800 RPM pushing a 2 stage pump.
The output is close to your math, though.

 

[zyzzyx]

2800RPM is a weird number. Who makes the motor?

 

[YY1]

It actually may be higher.

This is the model I have-

The pump is the same but it was born with a 3 phase motor (model 338 IIRC) and converted to single phase with what I believe is the correct, period 5 HP motor.
The motor is significantly larger physically than the 5HP one shown above on their current model.

Thought I had a pic or two on here somewhere.

 

[YY1]

Check out the physical motor size relative to the pump.
...and the standard 19" stereo equipment.
The speaker on the purlin has a 12" woofer.

 

[fesser]

Lots of good info here, but to be fair, a lot of it is ignoring that torredcuda is looking in the $1,000 price range. I just went through this after my 80gal., 5 hp Tractor Supply compressor got a rod knock. Kits for the pump weren't cheap. The pump itself was listed for more than the price of the whole unit (at least based on my web searching), and reading lots of old reviews I saw that there were lots of complaints of motors failing and/or bursting into flames. Nevertheless, the one I had (inherited) was at least ten years old and the motor was still running fine. After all of my searching I just went back to the same IR compressor from Tractor Supply. The new one has a different motor manufacturer, but I still see bad reviews regarding motor failure here and there. They go on sale regularly for 1249.00 (or thereabouts) and everyday pricing is about 1499.00. Rated at 15.8 cfm at 90 psi. According to my electrician a lot of motor failures in equipment like this is due to inadequate/wrong wiring. He ran 8 ga. wiring to a dedicated plug, I think on a 30 amp breaker (I would have to check), although in my research some manufacturers fine print says they must be hardwired without a plug.
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/ingersoll-rand-80-gallon-5-hp-reciprocating-air-compressor
Are there better compressors out there. No doubt about it. I just found myself starting to look at compressors that were 2500 and up before I remembered that I am not running a commercial shop.

 

[YY1]

Again-

Based on the OP's needs-

Get the most CFM @ 90 psi that you can afford.

My relatively small blast cabinet can exhaust the 80 gallon tank in under 2 minutes.

...but the CFM output of the pump and motor can keep up with all but the most stubborn part.

 

[j-c-c-62]

According to my electrician a lot of motor failures in equipment like this is due to inadequate/wrong wiring. He ran 8 ga. wiring to a dedicated plug, I think on a 30 amp breaker (I would have to check), although in my research some manufacturers fine print says they must be hardwired without a plug.

I disagree. First indicator of any plug being an issue, is under load how warm or hot does the plug get?
If not at all, and unit is operating, the connection is fine. Any felt heat above the proper sized wire temp, away from the plug, is an indication of the plug connection not being 100% efficient. The above quote might be a bit self-serving for an electrician to make. And no one can argue any connection is another protentional source of failure

 

[YY1]

Mine ran fine for almost 10 years on a 125 foot run of #10 and the specified 30A breaker.

 

[fesser]

I disagree. First indicator of any plug being an issue, is under load how warm or hot does the plug get?
If not at all, and unit is operating, the connection is fine. Any felt heat above the proper sized wire temp, away from the plug, is an indication of the plug connection not being 100% efficient. The above quote might be a bit self-serving for an electrician to make. And no one can argue any connection is another protentional source of failure

I probably wasn't clear. The electrician just put a plug where I wanted it and ran 8 ga. to the plug. In conversation he mentioned that some people fail to run large enough wire which he said could be bad for the motor. The part about not running a plug at all came from websites/instructions from some of the other compressors I was looking at.

 

[Chatt69chgr1]

Check out the Castair line. They are out of Spicer, MN. They use real USA Baldor electric motor. The compressor itself is sourced from India. They told me that no actual compressors are made in the USA. The compressor on my Castair is a twin "V" in cast iron. The rest of the unit including the tank are made in the USA. I bought the 30 gal single stage unit with 5HP motor to replace a compressor with 20 gal tank (not ASME) I bought from Sears in 1981 which was just worn out. I had to fabricate wheels and a carriage for it as they don't offer that as an option. I added my own regulator made by Parker Hanafin. You can find those on EBAY at a good deal. I added a motor starter to mine as I didn't want the pressure switch controlling the motor. Got the motor starter off EBAY too. They make 2-stage units also. You need to look at their website and then once you determine what unit you want you need to search the internet for a good dealer with the best price. They told me that they sell a lot of units to car guys for installation in their garage shops. They said that the car guys talk to each other at car shows and swap meets and that is how people hear about them. I just stumbled across them while playing around on the internet looking for a repair parts for my old Sears unit. I really like my little 30 gal unit. For really big jobs I have a 80 gal Ingersoll Rand vertical. Got it on super sale at Home Depot. The compressor was a cast iron vertical twin. But the electric motor was a cheap piece of junk Emerson. Folks had reported them catching fire. I got rid of the electric motor and replaced it with a USA Baldor which ended up costing as much as the compressor. It had a larger dia shaft but fortunately, the Ingersoll Rand used a Browning Sheave with interchageable center sections so was able to get the right center section from Fastenal. I added a motor starter to this compressor too (sourced off of EBAY). Too many amps for the pressure switch to be handling all of the time. So the pressure switch operates the motor starter and that operates the electric motor. I ran 20' of black iron pipe across the garage ceiling to remove moisture and the "J'ed" off of that down to a Parker Hanefin filter and regulator.

 

[not so famous bob]

Seems OK for the cost if it really can deliver 11.5 SCFM @ 90 PSI?

I didnt read any of these posts , but , "I WOULD AVOID ANY AIR COMPRESSOR FROM LOWES , (CHINESE JUNK ) , ASK ME HOW I KNOW !!"