Suggestions for portable Air Compressor

Smmertime is coming and that means I'll be driving on the beach to do some fishing. My routine has been the same for a few years- deflate the tires to 15 PSI, hit the beach, then get back on the road and drive 8 miles to the nearest gas station to fill back up to 32 PSI. This has worked fine except for the fact that the gas station detour adds 40 minutes to my return trip home. I also don't feel safe driving on the highway with such low pressure and my 2 year old son in the truck.

I'm looking for a cheap air compressor I can throw in the back of the truck to re-inflate my tires after I get off the sand. I don't mean those little crappy emergency tire inflators that take 30 minutes per tire. I'd like something quick that can get all 4 of my tires to 30 PSI.

Can you help me determine which compressor would work best for this simple duty? I have an '07 Tacoma with the outlet in the rear cab.

Thanks in advance.

 

I just bought this

http://cgi.ebay.com/PUMA-12-VOLT-1-...460?pt=BI_Air_Compressors&hash=item41574dac7c

I based my decsion on the reviews of several people on various forums. This one can run air tools as well as fill up tires. I don't have a personal review for you yet since I have not used it but its my next project to get it mounted up (although you can leave it portable).

 

$74 Q Industries MV50 SuperFlow High-Volume 12-Volt Air Compressorhttp://www.amazon.com/Industries-MV...8RT8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1303053884&sr=8-1

 

^Get that. I have had mine for 4 years and it still gets the job done.

 

What about a portable air tank? They're cheap, don't take power, and work fast. You fill them up at any decent source of air pressure (usually up to 100+ psi).

The only thing I'd want to check first is that one 'charge' of the air tank can refill four tires from 15 psi.

 

this is what i have, works great. may not be super fast, but it does the job just fine

 

I suggested the PUMA because it appeared he wanted something somewhat quick. But if you are looking for cheap and dont mind drinking a few beers while your tires air up lots of people are using the MV50's.

 

Why did you make 2 threads?

 

http://www.slime.com/product/71/Heavy-Duty-Tire-Inflator-(COMP-06).html

Ive got one of these and it works great for my purposes! it does take some time though

 

In case the other one gets lost?

 

Thanks mate. I do want it to fill quick so that PUMA fits my needs better than the MV50.

 

Is the outlet in the bed enough to power one of those home compressors? I couldn't see spending the money for a compressor you can only use to inflate tires if you can plug in a home compressor and use it to power air tools.(unless space is a huge issue) If that wont work just Port and polish a harbor frieght air pump, it will inflate tires faster than a warn powerplant

 

Nope... draws too many amps.

Get a tire pump that clips onto the battery, not into the cigarette lighter... The battery clip ones pump 3 times faster... 6 psi per minute (vs. 2 psi per min.).

 

You can run air tools on the 12v puma for light use. Its still a small 12v compressor so don't think you are going to run a die grinder for hours, but for lug nuts air ratchet type stuff its fine. If you want a compressor for a shop enviroment you need to pony up the cash for that but the 12v puma is ok for a weekend warrior. As a side note I just mounted it today in my large bed box. I will mount the air tank in a seperate location and then wire it up. I removed the bed box and basically cut a large opening in the top to drop the compressor into them jockeyed it back in. I can even put the box cover back on and it looks like normal.

 

I only need this thing to pump air in my tires from 15 PSI to 30 PSI - preferably in under 60 seconds. Don't own any power tools that run off an air compressor and need the thing to be relatively small so I can store it out of the way in my overcrowded garage.

I think this is the one I'm going to get. What do you guys think?

And I really appreciate all the feedback and input so far. Thank you.

 

I think that will probably fit the bill for you nicely but I would be extremely surprised if it will inflate a tire in under 60 seconds. Anything under 2 minutes isn't bad though. Hope it works out great for you!

 

If you're set on a compressor, this is a case where this rule applies:

SMALL FAST CHEAP <---You may pick two.

 

3 minutes to fill a tire is fast... You should get a tank of compressed air if you need to faster... but then you won't have time to finish you beer!

 

Buy two the MV-50s and you can cut the work in half. J/K bad idea.

Cheap and still decent time: MV-50

Got more money Puma.

Got even more then the new ARB Twin setup: http://www.pirate4x4.com/news/arb-on-board-twin-air-compressor-100-duty-cycle/

 

Any updates to this thread? After spending most of last night researching the best compressors that I can keep in the bed, I have learned two important things: 1) Cigarette lighters are for suckers. Not enough power and can fry your accessory port. 2) Only a few have lasted more than two years for, according to Amazon reviews. The Slime Heavy Duty 40026 and the MV-50. The Slime edges out the win in my book as it comes with a case. Sorry but that matters to me. Before I commit I wanted to check this thread to see if there are any new recommendations that are compatible with the plug in the back of the bed. Thank for the help. -A