Ultra-quiet air compressor question

[BrianPowley]

There are several makes of "silent" or "ultra-quiet" air compressors out on the market and there's been enough time for a review on "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly".
So I ask of my fellow "GraverGeeks" what's the verdict on these whisperpumps?
Anyone have a recommendation?

 

[Dave London]

I have a Val air 50-24 AL, made by silentair, over ten years old still going strong. Only a click when it turns on sits right at my feet under the bench. Maybe a very light swirl sound

 

[Brian Marshall]

Got two of 'em. Had 'em for maybe 7 years and they were slightly used when I got 'em.

One is upstairs on the apprentices bench, the other floats around. Sometimes take it to local demos or workshops.

One is a Sil-Air 50-24-V, the other a Panther 50-24-AL.


Did NOT pay a thousand dollars each for them!


Can't remember the details clearly, but it was some kind of horsetrade where I swapped sumthin' for the pair that was worth maybe $500?

Not had a single complaint, and the one upstairs got used pretty hard for about 4 years.


Brian



Well, I guess there IS one little complaint... they'll definitely clean your pockets out for an oil change. Never understood what makes that oil so expensive!

 

[Dave London]

You can get the oil a lot cheaper, ask for a MSDS sheet they are required to give you the info on the oil.years ago I bought 5 gallons for $125.00
Use the search engine here I have listed the info several times on weight , grade, etc

 

[Dave London]

Ok here is the oil any brand will do

 

[dave gibson]

I'm going to get a silent compressor just as soon as I get my silent air engraver.

 

[Chujybear]

jun air..
i like it

 

[Dirtdigger]

This might be a bit off topic, but here it goes anyway.
I´m using a compressor that i built from old "loud"compressor and old discarded refrigerator. I used tank and switches and other fittings from compressor but discarded the motor/compressor part of it and fitted a refrigerator compressor in there. I have had it allmost 10 years now and i´m really happy with it. Only thing that i´m not sure about is that it gets quite hot when i use it so the motor comes on alot. I now have another refrigerator compressor waiting to be fitted side by side with the previous one to keep the motor time shorter to prevent overheating. I you are on a budget i can really recommend this DIY solution, it doesnt have to cost you anything if you can find old busted compressor and refrigerator and few hoses and clamps!

Edit
And it´s as quiet as your refrigerator is!

 

[fegarex]

Brian,
There are a of quiet compressors out there and some are quite inexpensive. They do work well for the "hobbyist" engraver but may not last a long time. The Silent Air has a duty cycle made more for commercial use. If you are looking for an extra or "show" compressor some of the other ones would work but knowing you are engraving every day I would pop for a Silent Air.

 

[sam]

Sil-Air purchased 10+ years ago. Still going strong and delightfully quiet.

I've been told that the Rolair compressors (on Amazon) are American made, quiet, and reliable. The prices are very attractive as well.

 

[Ron Spokovich]

Not being one who's knowledgeable enough on air compressors, I'd say to look for one, that states such on the motor tag, of at least 50% duty cycle, or higher. This depends upon your use, and handpiece. Ideally, I'd think, you'd strive for your engraving time to be way in excess of the time the motor/compressor is 'on'. If motor time exceeds engraving time, you'll probably run hot, and nearing failure prematurely. I have an old fridge compressor down the cellar I saved for just such a use, and it's a future project provided I can figure the thing out. Probably, there are a lot of these units around, and hopefully they haven't made their way to the Chinese landfills. I just happen to know where there's anothr one, waiting for me, if my buddy gets around to parting with it. Maybe I can 'gang' two together?

 

[BrianPowley]

My needs are for an air supply mainly for travel, (Shows, seminars,etc.,etc.) but if it can also do the "day to day" scut work, I'm all for that too.
I've burned up 3 air compressors in the last 12 years---Campbell Hausfeld-Craftsman-DeWalt.
Had to buy this crappy KOBALT (Lowe's brand) in an emergency and it is the noisiest compressor I've ever heard.
My luck it will last a lifetime.
Thanks for the input.

 

[JJ Roberts]

I have a Craftsman 30 gal. air compressor in the root seller 50 feet away from my shop had it for 20 years drain it every two weeks no problems still going strong. J.J.

 

[monk]

i got a jun-air for free- over a year ago. brand new.the engraving time is maybe 90%, with the other 10 for recharging the tank. my hand piece still works when it begins to charge. the tank is around 6 liters or so. runs very smooth & quiet.

 

[JOEYS CARVED ART]

If you are just needing one for engraving there are a couple of the smaller "silentaire sa-20" types on the bay right now, used, for around $300, one of them is $220, they look good as far as the pics go on them. 2-7-15

 

[JOEYS CARVED ART]

There is a thread called "air compressor selection" on page 6 of the tips archive, and this guy explains everything you need to know about air compressors. It is a great thread, if you are in the market for a compressor I would recommend reading it.

 

[KCSteve]

Brian I have a little Kobalt compressor I use for small utility work and it is also incredibly noisy. Wonder if that's a Kobalt thing or just a cheap compressor thing.

 

[tim halloran]

Brian: Go to home depot on line and order a quiet compressor for about $220.00 plus free shipping. California Air Tools model 6310 ultra quiet. I've had it for about a year and use it every day. It has not missed a lick yet, and if you get 3to4 years out of it you could go 15 to 20 years and still be money ahead. It is really pretty quiet . Try it you'll like it!

 

[dogcatcher]

Brian: Go to home depot on line and order a quiet compressor for about $220.00 plus free shipping. California Air Tools model 6310 ultra quiet. I've had it for about a year and use it every day. It has not missed a lick yet, and if you get 3to4 years out of it you could go 15 to 20 years and still be money ahead. It is really pretty quiet . Try it you'll like it!

I believe this is the same one. http://www.amazon.com/California-Air-Tools-CAT-6310-6-3-Gallon/dp/B00889ZYPQ
It is $199 on Amazon with Prime shipping. I bought one for my shop air source in New Mexico, my neighbor's bedroom is about 20 feet away and he didn't know I had it until he was visiting one afternoon. Will it run a engraving setup, I don't know I use it for other purposes. If I ever buy a pneumatic system then I will find out. 3 years of part time hobby use and no complaints.

 

[tim halloran]

Dogcatcher: I use mine every week day 6 to 8 hours a day to power my Gravermach AT and ocasionally my ultra high speed handpiece. Never heard it complain.