air compressor advice wanted

So I will be driving my Taco practically to Guatemala and back soon and I imagine I will want to do some cruising on the deserted beaches along the way. I have heard that airing down your tires is the best way to keep from getting stuck. but have never actually tried it. I have also never gotten stuck in the sand with four wheel drive either. I still want to bring an air compressor for the trip. to be as self sufficient as possible in the event of a tire related problem. I was thinking of getting a pancake air compressor like the one people use for roofing and plugging it into the stock 110 plug in the bed of my 08 trd sport. I am interested to hear what other members of this forum have used for similar purposes. I have very little knowledge of compressors or electrical stuff so any advice is appreciated.thank you

 

I made the mistake of buying a small 110 compressor. It would take almost 20-30 minutes to air up a single tire. Was absolutely garbage. If you can afford it, look at viair. I have one that will pump my 35 up in 3 min. even less from 18 psi to 35. Basically look at CFM @ 0psi and that will tell you how fast the air flows. I believe my Viair is 3 CFM @ 0 PSI.


http://www.viaircorp.com/440P.html

this is the one I have and I love it.

You can get one of the cheaper set ups if you arent running as big of tires.

 

3 CFM is awesome, nice little compressor. I have a small one that does 2.54 CFM. I think they started selling it again, but for closer to around 50.00 or so. When I got mine it was 24.00. I bought 2 and gave one to my buddy for a Christmas present. Sort of wish I would have kept it and gave him something else now, ha ha. Here is a test some guy put the one I have through:

http://www.gearinstalls.com/pepboys.htm

Some guys mounted these and plumbed them to a tank so they could work off of the tank air, while the compressor only works on keeping the tank topped off.

Whatever you choose, CFM is what you want to look for. The better the CFM the better It will be for filling. Even some decent size compressors have crappy CFM ratings.

 

Go with a real compressor, not a cheapie. Viair, arb.

I have the

$338 arb ckma12 on-board air compressor high performance 12 volt for air locker differentials and tire inflation

arb ckma12 with tire air up kit. I've used it for all sorts of stuff. Works pretty good. I've managed to kill 2 though. I think water related

 

do you guys think the vair 300p would do the trick for 265/75- 285/75's? still be super reliable and possible run tools like a grinder if necessary? thanks

 

ha ha.. hope that's not directed at my cheapie . It's still going strong after 9 years. A 25 dollar investment, divided by 9, = $2.77 a year, for onboard air, and getting cheaper every year. I chose not to mount mine, due to worry of it getting flooded or whatever and instead try to keep it stowed away. Plus I can throw it in my wifes 4x4 if we're on a trip or whatever.

But, I do agree, there are some crappy ones out there. When a lot of wheelers found this one, they flew off the shelves quickly and it resulted in a lot of crappy knock offs, that cost a bit more and delivered a lot less.

 

IDK about a grinder but it would definitely be plenty for your tires. Im not sure how much CFM is requires for your grinder but I would start with finding out how much is required then go from there.

I know WARN had a compressor they had awhiel back that they dont offer anymore that was a 12CFM @ 0 PSI designed specifically to run heavyduty air tools off of.

 

Try a CO2 tank and have very quick air-ups. And it will air up a lot of tires before empty.
Or if you have an old scuba tank, even cheaper.
Air compressors run very hot, air up very slowly, crap out quite frequently.
If you have to have a compressor, ViaAir and ARB are ones that seem to last, but they are not that cheap.

 

good list to see how much CFM needed for air tools

http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/air-consumption-tools-d_847.html

 

Nice link, that can come in really handy. Over the years, I've tried to keep my trail tools off air as much as I can by getting as much of them in 18v as possible. But, I still do have some things in the form of air tools of course. But my impact is a 18v Dewalt that works great. Also the usual DeWalt stuff, drill, saws-all, grinder. My cut off and chisel are still air driven. I have a 12v DeWalt vehicle charger and just rotate batteries. For my impact, I snagged it off ebay as a single tool deal, no box or batts, and got a great deal on it about 8 years ago. The grinder works pretty good for a short while, enough to get most smaller jobs done, but if you use it a long while, it drains the batt's faster than most other tools.

Agreed, high pressure tanks are another great option. Old oxygen bottles can work too, and are usually a nice slim design. But if you're making a system like that from scratch, you have to get the correct regulators.

 

maybe gas?

 

Nah just a general statement. Ya get what ya pay for. I haven't had good luck with the cheap compressors myself.

 

ARB made a compressor that would run small air tools. I have a cheapy 12v pump. It's not quick, but it gets the job done and is small enough to store under the rear seat. I also keep a tire plug kit with me at all times as well as a full sized spare.

I would make sure you at least have a tire plug kit, a compressor and the know-how to reset the bead with what you've got in the truck if necessary. The compressor is useless if you can't set the bead on the tire or plug the hole that's letting the air out.

 

I hear ya, buddy. I was very skeptical of mine, but then someone showed me that link and I figured I'll try it for 25 bucks. Glad I did, because so far it's been a pretty respectable little unit. But to go out and get a cheap one I know nothing about... eh, probably not.

 

are there any specific tire plug kits you recommend? I have never set the bead on a tire before but I'm going to learn how now. thanks

 

thanks bro. I think that is the one I'm leaning towards. It's about 200 on Amazon right now

 

We don't have everything on the site yet. But we can get any VIAIR products that you need.

 

Nope, just a generic plug kit but with a decent plug tool and rasp. Definitely learn how to set the bead using the tools in your truck. If you push a tire off the bead and can't get it reset (and have either used your spare already or don't have one), the compressor you brought with you is useless. There are a lot of methods to setting a bead off road, watch a few youtube videos and see which methods match your comfort level and tool set.

 

I have posted this before but I use a small Porter Cable compressor and the factory inverter to power it. Fills my 35's from 18-20psi back to 35-36psi in about two full cycles per tire. Not the fastest option but it works and also can be used around the house.

PORTER-CABLE C1010 Heavy-Duty 1-Gallon 135 PSI Max Quiet Trim Compressor

http://www.amazon.com/PORTER-CABLE-...ressor/dp/B00519EUCE/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top


I do want to go with an ARB compressor and mount it under the hood so it's easier than lugging the compressor around and its a "out of the box" solution thats cost effective with the ability to use with their Air lockers... Viar makes great compressors but I would also look at Air Zenith compressors which are popular with the air ride suspension crowd. Be weary on what Viar you get some require you to have a tank and pressure switch set up. The options are endless when it comes to OBA. Just depends on how creative you want to get and what you actually need it for.

 

Viair 100% Duty cycle mounted under the bed.

airs up tires and will run an impact enough to get wheels off.

2.5 gal tank

Justin