60 gallon air compressor? Best for shop?

[asap2stacks]

Me and my crew are moving to our new garage/shop at the end of may and we will be remodeling the whole place and on that list is installing a new 60 gallon air compressor, does anyone have any suggestions for something for us???


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[fightnews]

Me and my crew are moving to our new garage/shop at the end of may and we will be remodeling the whole place and on that list is installing a new 60 gallon air compressor, does anyone have any suggestions for something for us???


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what do you mean by installing? when i think of a 60 gallon air compressor the small portable ones come to mind. BY installing it sounds like you mean a big machine that stays in place and has multiple air lines running off it. what kind are you looking for

[asap2stacks]

60 gallons does stay in on place


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[Donnym]

A 60 gallon tank is a good size. However, the tank size is not what's important. You need to be concerned about the CFM (cubic feet per minute). This is the volume of air the compressor produces. A good commercial or industrial compressor should give you 4 CFM per horsepower. For example a true 5hp compressor will produce 20 CFM but after displacement you will have about 17 CFM to use. How big a compressor you need will depend on the tools you want to use. A spray gun, palm grip sander or an air drill take a lot of air. Any tool you trigger and hold open will consume a lot of air so my opinion is buy the biggest compressor you can afford because you can never have to much compressed air.

[connor]

Another vote for "as big as you can." Our 60 at work is running constantly because we have a lot of hard lines and connections, and it seems that there is always at least one person using an air tool at a time, and often times 3 or more. And inevitably there is a leaky air hose hooked up slow leaking air. Granted we are a commercial garage with 2-5 mechanics and a few shop hands.

Also if your compressor is running a lot you will be getting water in the lines. Always have a separator on to cut down on how wet your hands/clothes/work gets, and run a cooler/bucket with the separator when you spray.

[ducksfan]

Back 10 to 30 years ago, the standard in the construction industry was Emglo compressors. They were tanks - reliable and lasted forever. Then Black and Decker bought them out and I guess took their technology and eventually merged/shut them down. Well, in true Black and Decker fashion, they don't make them like they used too and they eliminated a competitor.

Present day - B&D only bought the retail operations. The commercial part eventually became an employee operated business. They operate under the name Quincy. You can get them around the internet at some commercial tool shops. I got mine at Northern (QT-54. About $1300. I got in on the $200 rebate they run every once in a while for a $1000 purchase). They still use Baldor motors (The best there is from my experience. I have 6 or 7 tools with them with their motors.) and they make their compressor motors here in the USA (as they have for decades).

I can't say how there quality is now (Just bought it). But do a little internet research and you can confirm the probability looks pretty good.

[ducksfan]

One more thing. Whatever you get, make sure it's a two stage (I think all 60 gallons probably are, but???) Even a Tornador Black needs a constant 90psi source. You want something that works in the 170psi area to not have your compressor constantly cycling on and off.

[asap2stacks]

Some links to good ones would be helpful ty for the info


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[Kainic]

The best is always going to be an industrial quality compressor that has the capacity in CFM and the size tank you need. Figure out which tools you intend to drive off of the compressor and learn how much air in CFM they need, then get the best bargain you can find that provides what you are looking for. I got a Schulz compressor 5 Top 60 Gallon Air Compressors - Review and Comparison [2017-2018] on sale for $400, and have had zero problems.

If you don't intend to paint with it, you can get adequate compressors from any of the sources you mentioned in the range of $350 - $500. As long as they are oiled, they should do fine for your application. If you intend to do a substantial amount of painting with it, that's another story. People have built RVs with the smallest compressors you can imagine, as well as the largest. You can do a search and find several threads discussing this over the last few years.

If you get a 220V compressor, be sure and figure in the cost of wiring to accommodate the compressor, if you don't already have a 220V outlet.
On YouTube there are a lot of useful videos on a similar subject, I'll leave here one, I hope this will help someone in the future.

[ducksfan]

"The best is always going to be an industrial quality compressor that has the capacity in CFM and the size tank you need."

Very true. But true industrial quality starts at $1000+(Actually, that would be commercial. Some would say Industrial starts @ $5000+(???) others would say $15000+). All of the stuff cheaper than that are personal quality or single use construction site portable compressors.

I doubt if your going to find even a handful of members on this site that would be in the industrial category. There may be a significant number that would be at the entry level of commercial (Just look at how many people have bought the Kranzal 1322 pressure washer model that Matt sells - an entry level commercial tool.)

If you're serious about having a fixed commercial level shop compressor, you're looking at a quality two stage pump, 60+ gallon tank, and quality motor(think Baldor, Leeson). The Quincy I listed above is one such entry level compressor (Just buy it at Christmas when Northern runs their $200 bonus on a $1000+ purchase.)