On board air for air tools

so i was wondering if anybody has ever done an on board air setup geared more towards use for air tools rather than only airing up tires.

the big issues i'm thinking about are

1. how is it actually using a 2-5 gallon tank and a 12v compressor for automotive work (impacts, small grinders, etc.)? i've never used a small compressor or tank before.

2. how large of a tank can you fit under a 1st gen while keeping the factory spare in place?

3. how much would a project like this cost most likely using a compressor good enough to last for years and years on weekend hobby duty?

i'm sure someone must have done a project like this before, if not in a tacoma, maybe some other kind of compact truck like a ranger or s10 perhaps. maybe a magazine article? and the reason i'm interested in this instead of just getting a normal compressor is that i won't have a good permanent place to work on cars for a long time. and even once i do, having a mobile workstation would still be great

 

I don't have air on my tacoma but I have it on my s10 for air ride. I don't think it would work to good because the small tank wouldn't give you enough air to really get anything done. I think if you were using a impact, you would have enough air to break 2 or 3 lugs loose then have to wait for the tank to air back up. I haven't actually tried it, but I have thought about it a few times. As far as price I would expect to pay anywhere from $500 to $1000 for a good setup. Thats including fittings and everything. For my s10 I have dual Viair compressors and I love them. They work great and the ones I have are 100% duty cyle.

 

I have the Viair and 2.5 gal tank for tires and such only. For air tools i'm with Southern01Taco, it's going to cost 500-1000? You can go with a CO2 tank. After fittings and regulator you might be in just under $500. But with a large size I have seen them run air grinders and impacts. http://trdparts4u.com/Scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=-8546

And something new I think, that I have been thinking about using to replace my VIAIR is the XD4000 from Oasis. http://oasismfg.thomasnet.com/viewitems/air-compressors/xd4000-continuous-duty-air-compressors? This ones runs over $1000 but will do it all.

 

Check this out. This is a buddy of mine's FJ60. http://forum.ih8mud.com/60-series-wagons/259374-borad-air-york-210-install.html

Always wondered if you could fab something up for a taco using one of those. It's super clean, and he says even running without a tank it's pretty substantial flow. I'd imagine with a tank, even a small one, you'd be in pretty good shape.

Edit: I don't know that you're going to be able to do something really high flow like a grinder or sandblaster. But then again, why on earth would you run one of those off of a small displacement compressor and tiny tank. You've got a truck bed, put a compressor in it! hahahaha

 

If you're referring to using liquid CO2..... Not a good idea at all (for air tools).
If you use liquid CO2 too quickly, the gas comes out rippin' cold and freezes up the air lines and could freeze up your air tools. I've had it happen after airing up about 5 rigs on the trails. I had to stop and wait to allow things to warm up.

 

OP, here are a few options I'd look into if it were me:
1) 120v invertor and a standard portable air compressor? You'd have to have the engine running to handle the load but at least it'd give you enough air to run air tools.
2) Stand alone unit with a small engine dedicated to run the compressor.
3) Hide away the tanks and compressor wherever you want and use a gas-powered portable generator to power them. I'm assuming you'll be using other tools besides air tools and the generator will provide power for these also.

 

hmm. looking at prices that's not a bad idea. i could get a pretty decent traditional portable compressor like this (http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00988720000P?prdNo=11&blockNo=11&blockType=G11) for less than any onboard setup that might work. and i just remembered that my dads camper came with a generator when he bought it over 5 years ago, never got it to start, but haven't really tried as we haven't had a use for it. probably wouldn't be hard to get running.

 

I wanted to do an OBA that would handle air tools, but I realized it's just not practical. I called VIAIR about it and they recommended their constant duty set up, which is like $600+. Even then they sounded shakey on how well it would work. The issue is that you need a large tank to handle running air tools; and that even then you need a strong compressor to keep up with demand. When you have a small tank, you need an extraordinary compressor to keep up. You could run it off CO2 but I doubt it'll run the tools that long and then you're out of air. You'd be better off buying a cordless impact wrench, etc.

 

what do you need the tools for?

is this for work? incase something happens in the bush?


you need to give us more info on what you want the compressor for

 

just personal use/work on the side. mmmm maybe i'll just tough it out for now and wait and save up for something like this http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_158284_158284

i could do anything i ever wanted with that one. even painting (something i eventually wanna try)

 

ya so why not just leave it at home and plug it into your wall?

but you want one 'mounted' to your truck?

 

You are correct Janster. But if someone is using this paticular set up on any given air tool for the amount of time to air up 5 rigs, they should be using something else. I wouldn't run any air tool for long periods of time with this set up. But for an impact to take a wheel off or even all 4 and even a nail gun all day you would be fine. Yes it does get COLD. The biggest issue with this is, for working on cars, through out the day, you'll be running to the welding house for refills all the time. Just depends on what you want it for. But it is a great scource for air for many jobs/projects. I've been thinking about getting one and keeping it in my offroad/camping trailer. I do like the one from Oasis that I posted above. Again, just depends what the OP is using it for. Here is a review....

http://www.4x4review.com/Reviews/Pr...ies/TheSourceCO2System/tabid/124/Default.aspx

 

that that setup is cool (no pun intended lol)....but pricey at $275-325

but saving a tire, or rim or time stuck out on a trail could be very much worth it

 

read the original post.

it was more just an idea because i looked around and couldn't find anyone that's done it. i guess i found out why. it's just not really possible in the way i was thinking. for the price of anything that might barely work, you could buy a completely badass home setup.

 

your original post still doesn't tell me WHY you want it other than the fact you think it might be use full

i then asked if it was actually needed to be mounted to the truck and you didn't say yes, so just get a good one for home and leave it at that

sears makes a very good 33 gal tank and compressor setup, i have one...under $350

 

unedited.

 

I'm pretty sure that York compressor will do it. Maybe not for a sandblaster, but for moderate flow tools I think you'd be fine. Just need to fab a bracket and get a belt to it.

 

Those setups are nice...but you can build your own CO2 setup for much less money.

http://www.lieblweb.com/liquidco2.html

 

We had a York Compressor on our Jeep. It was a sweet setup but you'd still need a good sized tank. Plus - if your running it off the engine, you'd want something to hold the rpm's up high so the compressor works that much faster. We had a hand-throttle setup using a bicycle shifter.

Here's another similar thread for this topic
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2n...ngine-mounted-york-compressor-2nd-gen-v6.html