Best compressor for the money

[Fly]

I know that is a loaded question. I have been away from PCP air rifles for the past few years. There are some many different brands now. What would be a reliable 

air compressor for under $300?

 

[bertman77mk2]

Hand pump!

 

[Navyblue]

Not much available under $300 except a Yong Heng or a hand pump.

 

[WorriedMan]

Fly,

Inexpensive Chinese (under $45) handpumps are easily found on eBay. I have one that works great on my first generation Umarex Gauntlet, but proved a real workout on my FX Wildcat and M3. I bought this Yong Heng on eBay for $270, a few months ago. This set-up includes a water-separator (bronze-colored one by back wall) that I need for the humid Florida garage I use it in, you might not need one. Most only use the gold filter to remove oil and moisture from the air. I couldn't be happier with this set-up. WM

 

[biohazardman]

Yup as he said the Yong Heng is the one. It's actually about the best you can get unless you want to upgrade to the Alkin, Bauer or Coltri $2000+ units. So, at near $300, it's a bargain.

Be sure to check out the link below, before you buy, so you don't get something you will have to upgrade right from the beginning.

 Yong Heng post link

https://www.airgunnation.com/topic/a-dedicated-yong-heng-subforum/#post-1127767

 

[WorriedMan]

Fly,

Listen to Bio, he won't steer you wrong.

WM

 

[AZGman]

If you need the compressor to be portable, look at the Vevor compressor. Otherwise, The YH with it's water cooling will have a longer service life and will be suited to filling larger air volumes (> 500cc).

 

[Chickenthief]

Best compressor for the money will cost you less than $3 for every working hour + filters. Coltri; Alkin, Bauer etc.

But the best bang for the buck wont be the cheapest unit!

I'll bet you $$$ for donuts than no'one has run a Yong Heng for 125-150 hours for a $375-450 sales price. Oh and then you have to fork over for a proper dessicant filter!.

A true diving compressor doing 100liters/min, at $3000. Run for 500 hour will cost ($25 filter for every 12 hours) = $3500 for 514286 cubic feet of air. Or .0068cents/cft

A YH $300+ $75 filter will run for 100hours and cost = $375 run. At best 30liters/min, so = 6356 cubic of air. Ie .059cents/cft

Thats a factor 10 right there! Not taking into account the resale value ;-)



So cheap is just that, but not the best bang for your buck.



So define your needs and your wants!!!!!



For me i ran a YH, then a booster and then said sod it, and went for a Coltri MCH-6

 

[Harv24]

Where /Who is the best place to buy a Coltri MCH-6 from?

 

[Humdinger]

Where /Who is the best place to buy a Coltri MCH-6 from?

The largest dealer for Coltri compressors in the U.S. is Nuvair in Los Angeles.

 

[hammer0419]

I went to Chinese route. Trips the scuba shops. Finally took the dive and bought a daystate/coltri. Figure I have $3,500 into my FX impact M3. I should be able to fill it when I need it. Buy once cry once

 

[Nsboost]

I went with a nomad clone that was about $380. Figure it would get me started. I don’t expect it to last forever, but it will last long enough for me to determine if I’m gunna be in the hobby for the long run or not. Then I’ll spend the big bucks 

 

[delooper]

I went with this "GX compressor" off Amazon. It's about USD $380. It's air cooled.

What I've done is bought a big air tank. Rather than worrying about a compressor that can fill a tank rapidly, what I did is build a small Arduino circuit that turns the pump on and off, to give it enough cool-down cycles so that it never gets very warm. I leave the pump on for about 90 seconds, then have it off for about 5 minutes. After about 3-4 hours, my Air Venturi 74 cu.ft tank is full to 4500 psi. That's starting from empty. 

 

[MSG13]

I had the same questions about a compressor. Thanks for the info. 

 

[gregme]

I'd love a copy of the arduino code and schematics! 

 

[WorriedMan]

MSG13,

If anything I shared was helpful, you're very welcome. I think you'll find most AGN members are glad to help, just don't hesitate to ask. 

Happy Holidays,

WM

 

[delooper]

I'd love a copy of the arduino code and schematics!

The Arduino code is very simple. It's just an on/off cycle, and stopping after a fixed number of cycles, to avoid over-comprression. I'll probably modify the code eventually so that the arduino has a thermistor, to get a better sense for the pump temperature. I could also add a little camera for it to read the tank pressure meter. A less direct way to do this would be to record the current being used by the pump -- as the tank pressure goes up, the current demand goes up. That might be the more electronically-savvy way of determining a cut-off time. 

I'm using an Adafruit Feather plugged into a solid-state AC relay. Eventually I might replace the pump's on/off switch with this feather-controlled relay, so that I can keep the pump's fans working while the pump is off. 

There isn't a whole lot of safety precautions built into this at present. When you build this you want to have a relay that is "usually off". Avoid locking relays if you can. 

#define SECOND 1000UL
#define MINUTE (SECOND * 60UL)
#define HOUR (MINUTE * 60UL)

int TRIGGERPIN=8;
int LIGHTPIN=13;

unsigned long timeUp = 1UL * MINUTE + 40UL * SECOND;
unsigned long timeDown = 5UL * MINUTE + 0UL * SECOND;

int countVar = 0;
int numCycles = 40;

// the setup function runs once when you press reset or power the board
void setup() {
// initialize digital pin 13 as an output, this is the RED LED.
pinMode(TRIGGERPIN, OUTPUT);
pinMode(LIGHTPIN, OUTPUT);
}

// the loop function runs over and over again forever
void loop() {
if (countVar < numCycles) // run for this many cycles.
{
countVar++;

digitalWrite(LIGHTPIN, HIGH); // turn the LED on (HIGH is the voltage level)
digitalWrite(TRIGGERPIN, HIGH); // turn relay ON 
delay(timeUp); // on delay

digitalWrite(LIGHTPIN, LOW); // turn the LED off by making the voltage LOW
digitalWrite(TRIGGERPIN, LOW); // turn relay OFF
delay(timeDown); // off delay
}
else
{ // have the light flash rapidly when pumping is done.
digitalWrite(LIGHTPIN, HIGH);
delay(1000);
digitalWrite(LIGHTPIN, LOW);
delay(500);
}
}

I'll fire along some more details once I've got this process a little more reliably "cooked". Currently my circuit is torn-apart as I put together the 3rd generation...

 

[delooper]

v3 in progress:

Once I've finished this version and have fully debugged it, I'll post a thread describing the make.

 

[sticman77]

and you even comment your code lol!

i have read that starting these pumps under pressure can lead to failure pretty quickly. just something to double check if you did not purchase the warranty.

is there any danger in using these smaller pumps for tanks they were not initially built/recommended for? i.e. are they built to withstand the pressure of 74cuft at 4500 psi? or am i thinking about this incorrectly, and 4500 psi is 4500 psi to the parts in the compressor, regardless of the size of tank its filling pushing pressure back?

 

[Fly]

OK Yong Heng has been around for years & for a budget compressor it has a good following. Vevor also has been around a long time also,& looks to be the same compressor. Whats

your thoughts on those. Please don,t report hear say, I would like someone who has had one. Are the piston & seals the same as the Yong Heng?

Thanks Fly