air comprerssors and kits etc...

[oface]

Looking to buy a a compressors kit/bradnailer combo,, or seprate , which every is a best bargain ..


things is I do not really know what too look for ,, dont wanna drop too much of a dime ,, but i don't want to get garbage either,,,

my projects usually consist of building cabinets for speakers, shelves, and other beginner type of projects,, but i am planning to step things up in the prject dept.

any advise/help would be appreciated in this,, in the mean time i am gonna do a search ,,

thanks ,,


chris

[lkazista]

Chris,

The Porter Cable combo at HD is pretty good. Small compresser with enough capacity for nailers, but not quite enough if you are looking to use pneumatic tools like wrenches or sanders, but it is the perfect size if you need to haul it around at any point in time. The kit gives you a finish nailer and a brad nailer, I got mine for $275 on sale. It is a great kit for the price.

BUT....

I would personally go in a different direction now that I have used it for a couple of years. I would buy an ANGLED finish nailer instead of what I got in the kit, and a slightly bigger compressor. The brad nailer is not used very often, I gennerally find myself using small finish nails instead.

Wonder if any of that makes any sense at all?!

Good luck, and just remember whatever you buy, it WILL work better than a hammer, and make your life A LOT easier.

Lee

[JimD]

Chris,

I think it matters a LOT what you will do with the nailers. I originally bought a Bostich finish nailer combo - it is a 16 gauge nailer. I later added a Porter Cable 18 gauge brad nailer. Most recently I've added a 23 gauge Bostitch pinner. Somewhere in there I bought a HF 1/4 inch stapler. I mainly make furniture but also have made a bunch of cabinets. For this, the finish nailer is the least useful because the holes it makes are impossible to hide under a clear finish. The pinner is the least noticable. The stapler is used to put the back on cabinets only. I thought the brad nailer would be good for cabinets and it is OK but I find the heads of the nails still pretty visible. I have made them less objectionable with color matched putty but the pinner has adequate holding power to hold things until the glue sets up, usually.

My Porter Cable brad nailer works well now but mis-fired sometimes when I first got it. It seems to have worn in a little and now works fine. The HF stapler is a lot worse than either of my Bostitch tools and also my Porter Cable. They are great buys but my experience is that the stapler almost will not drive the 1 1/2 staples it is supposed to be able to drive. I have to jack the air pressure up to 125 psi and even then it will only work in softwood. You can save a bunch of money with HF air tools but be prepared for a functional tool but one that is nowhere near as nice as the better brands. I also had to bend a few parts around on my HF nailer before it would work.

I am happy with what I have but an oiled compressor may be more practical since they are quieter and the oil helps the tools. HF may be a good source of the compressor. I have not tried one but they seem to be priced well and others report success with them. I would price a HF compressor with a PC or Bostitch nailer to see if the PC or Bostitch kit is a good buy. If the kit is less, it could be the way to go.

I have also put up molding in two homes and the 16 gauge Bostitch is the most useful and the 18 gauge brad nailer somewhat useful for this task. The 23 gauge pinner might get used for mitered corners but would otherwise be pretty useless. If you need the nails to serve a structural purpose, you would want at least a 16 gauge nail. Some find 15 gauge nailers better but I have never had a problem with my 16 gauge.

Jim

[LinuxRandal]

Looking to buy a a compressors kit/bradnailer combo,, or seprate , which every is a best bargain ..


things is I do not really know what too look for ,, dont wanna drop too much of a dime ,, but i don't want to get garbage either,,,

my projects usually consist of building cabinets for speakers, shelves, and other beginner type of projects,, but i am planning to step things up in the prject dept.

any advise/help would be appreciated in this,, in the mean time i am gonna do a search ,,

thanks ,,


chris

The whole step things up, is the tricky part. I have a HF special, $89 pancake model, that I added another regulator to. It works great with my nailers (decent brands, bought on sales, and from closing stores). Then I have a 6 hp 60 gallon. Because I do some automotive work, and if I ever get into painting/finishing like I think I might, I'll need every bit of that.
My father has what I would recommend, if you aren't needing the portability. One of those vertical tank models (his is a HF as he doesn't use it hard or often). The whole step things up comment, normally means, you don't know what you need, and you WILL need to upgrade later.

[cwsmith]

When looking for a compressor, you really have to take into consideration what you might "grow" in to. If all you are going to want a compressor for is to drive your nailer or stapler, then the pancake-style compressors will work fine for you. To that end, the Porter-Cable combos are a super deal and that's what I'd look for.

However, if you are thinking that down-the-road, you will want to use some sort of air tool or, perhaps more importantly, a finish sprayer; then, the compressor needs to be a bit larger and somewhat more expensive and therefore purchased separately from the compressor/nailer combo.

There are several factors to be considered, most important of which is the volume of air required. Compressors are usually rated with volume numbers given at both 40 and 90 psi. Volume (scfm - Standard Cubic Feet/Minute) is the amount of air that the compressor cylinder(s) can displace at 40 psi and 90 psi. The Receiver or Tank holds the air at a particular pressure that is the maximum rating for the compressor. The larger the output, the faster the tank fills. If your tool requirements exceed the compressor's output, the tank will be depleted faster than the compressor can fill it. It doesn't mean that you can't run a tool that requires more air, it just means that you'll have to stop occasionally and let the compressor catch up. The difference between the compressor's scfm and the tank size/pressure will dictate how long and how often you may have to wait.

So, you need to know your requirements. In addition, you'll want to know more about lube vs non-lube units. Lube units usually cost more, and are most often cast iron or at least have cast-iron liners in the cylinder. As such, they last longer than the typical NL aluminum compressors. With cast iron, the pistons/cylinders are usually larger and they run at less RPM. Aluminum units usually have smaller bores and run at much higher speeds. Thus, aluminum NL units are quite a bit noisier than cast iron lubricated units. NL Aluminum compressor have a lifespan of somewhere around a 1,000 hours of operation and cast iron, lubricated compressors have a life expectancy of around 4,000 hours. With both you'll need some sort of filtration to remove condensation (when you compress air, you get lots of moisture drop-out) and if you're going to spray finish with a lubricated compressor, you need to filter out the oil that gets in the air stream.

So, if your requirements are for a variety of uses, including some light spraying and the occasional air tool, then consider a non-lubricated 30 gal., wheel mounted unit. They run around $300 to $400 and will handle most air tools and a small spray gun. Craftsman has about the best SCFM delivery at about 9 scfm @ 40 psi / 6.4 scfm @ 90 psi. The HD Huskey-brand units are more like 6 scfm @ 40 psi and 4.5 scfm @ 90 psi.

If you're thinking long term, permanent shop air system, then consider a cast iron, lubricated compressor. But understand that such a decision will run you $600 or more. If that's a bit much for now, then consider buying the smaller compressor/nailer combo. They are certainly more portable and convenient than a larger compressor. Then maybe in a year or so, when you decide to add more things to your shop's capabilities, consider adding a 220 volt, cast-iron, lubricated compressor with a minimum of 10 scfm @ 90 psi.

CWS