Hand Held Air compressor opinions please

I’ve been happy with the

$90 viair 88P - 00088 tire inflator portable on/offroad air compressor for car, truck, SUV & RV | 12V heavy duty pump 120 PSI, alligator clip, twist chuck

viair 88P i picked up last fall. And the jaco digital elite tire pressure gauge. A good combo IMHO.

 

After all the suggestions, I watched at least half a dozen comparison videos, and have yet to see one that the Milwaukee M18 inflator didn't win. I found one on sale for $59.50 and snatched it up before they were all gone from the site.

 

Whoa!! $60 fantastic deal! Good on you …

 

FYI: I purchased this model this size at Home Depot early December they were having a sale on them. 50% off… This one lasts 5 complete cycles on all 4 tires, 33s aired down to 20psi aired up to 36psi i’ve read that they have a new more powerful edition that’s more compact also I purchased a charger locally off offerup
You won’t be disappointed

$279 Milwaukee Electric Tools M18 High Output HD12.0 Battery Pack

https://www.amazon.com/Redlithium-H...=&hvlocphy=9061197&hvtargid=pla-2281435180498

 

I've used the Superflow MV-50 for years and run two hoses off of it simultaneously. I think it fills my stock size tires very quickly.

 

Well, I fell for it. Too good to be true? Yup. The $60 Milwaukee M18 inflator I ordered from that site almost 4 weeks ago was a total scam. I should know better. Paypal has already refunded the payment. I guess I'll have to buy it from a reputable source. Talk about stupid...

 

I have the Viair 300P and it's not bad with my 295's. I think I timed it around 2 minutes per tire to get from ~15 (might have been 12, but not sure) up to 35.

A guy in our group has the ARB twin, and it seems really nice!

 

That's not bad at all.

The Viar 88P takes about 30 minutes total going from 12 psi to 40. For the price the 300P seems like a great value and a huge time saver. Thanks for the heads up!

 

$90 Viair 88P - 00088 Tire Inflator Portable On/Offroad Air Compressor for Car, Truck, SUV & RV | 12V Heavy Duty Pump 120 PSI, Alligator Clip, Twist Chuck

Viair 88P duty cycle is 25 minutes. FWIW.

 

It gets crazy hot be the end of it...
Maybe takes two minutes to change from tire to tire. So I bet I'm pushing that 25 minute duty cycle.

High time to upgrade. But I've had analysis paralysis about this... Bigger Viar, Thors lightning, or on board air....
Should probably just settle for the 300P or maybe even a 400P EF.

 

It seems like there are three tiers of air compressors.

Tier 3: the smallish models with the internal rechargeable battery.

• Budget option.
• Small and very portable. Can often fit in a glove box or cubby.
• Usually has a brand name you never heard of.
• Not intended for inflating 4 off-road tires. Better used for topping up tires, or airing up after repairing a flat.
• Not very reliable.
• Slow.

Tier 2: compressors that use common power tool batteries.

• Price and quality are variable.
• Reliability can be predicted by the performance of the brand’s other tools. (i.e. Milwaukee, DeWalt, Makita, Bosch).
• will all be more reliable than tier 3 compressors.
• Capable of swapping out depleted batteries for charged ones.
• Middling in terms of speed.

Tier 1: you know who they are. ARB and Viair are the big players here. There’s also a dual head compressor that is marketed under several names, like Maxi-Trac and SmittyBuilt, that seems to be gaining a reputation.

• Output varies by model and price. You pay more for speed.
• They are mostly made of metal.
• They can be expensive but don’t need to be.
• They are not in the first tier because they’re the fastest. They’re in tier 1 because they are the most reliable.

The king of on-board air compressors is the Oasis. 100% continuous duty cycle. Enough output to run air tools. Stupidly expensive. Only an insane person would consider it. Truly the elephant in the room.

In my experience, none of these portable compressors is 100% dependable. I’ve had an ARB twin that failed. Also in my experience, none of these compressors is as fast as they say they are.

I have a

$241 Viair 400P - 40043 Portable Compressor Kit. Tire Pump, Truck/SUV Tire Inflator, For Up to 35" Tires

Viair 400P. I would consider the 88p to be equally reliable, and small enough to carry in the vehicle all the time. So why shoulder the extra expense of the 400P? Duty cycle. The 400p can air up more than 1 vehicle without maxing out its duty cycle.

I consider the 400p (and accoutrements) to be too big to carry all the time. I’m considering the Noco Boost Air AX65 combination compressor and boost box. It’s new, so I’ll wait for more reviews, but I like the idea.

 

Eff it. I had like $140 in Amazon gift cards. Went ahead and ordered the Viar 400P-A EF. Item 40145.

Thanks @Thatbassguy for the push. Now I don't have to dread airing up my tires!

 

Good analysis!

I've heard a lot of praise for the Milwaukee M18 compressor, but haven't seen it in action yet.

The Viair 300P definitely takes up some space. I keep it in a Husky bag along with the custom hose I assembled. I'm able to tuck it into my platform out of the way, so it's not a nuisance.

You're welcome! I'm always happy to help folks get rid of their extra money.

 

You shoulda said EF it...

Let us know how it works.

 

I use the same one as well and love it. https://www.top4runners.com/ja/2007/air.html. Though this may be discontinued now, I think its being sold under the Buffalo Tools Black Bull AC150 name now.

 

I purchased a VIAIR air compressor...it works fine.

 

I’m sorry I didn’t see this sooner, but check Home Depot. They were having a sale on them.

 

I appreciate the tip, thanks. No sale currently at Home Depot I could find, it's $179 + tax there. I found it in Amazonia for $137.50 with free 2-day shipping, and no tax. It'll be here Monday.

Thanks again. Any review of the M18 inflator you'd like to share?

 

Nothing beats a tank. Especially if you don't use it a ton.
And i use my tanks weekly.

 

Is this the same compressor?

$94 Buffalo Tools AC150 Air Compressor 150 Psi - Auto,Red

https://www.amazon.com/Volt-Air-Compressor-Portable-Pump/dp/B07QLND35M

 

Yes I think so.

 

I have used a Viair 60P for years. It has been reliable and powerful for its smallish size. It’s also well packaged, making it easy to move to another vehicle. It is powered by a 12v source. This gets used in our sedan and our Sidecar outfit for long trips and the suv for refilling aired down tires off-road.

 

It's all about CFM's - this one is super fast airing up all 4 tires at the same time. I mounted this one with a C4 second battery tray under my hood, so I always have air available.

 

I’d say CFMs take a back seat to duty cycle. The inflation time savings are small compared to the off-time waiting for your compressor to cool down.

 

Have never had to wait for mine to cool down.

 

You're so right, I dont have the best one and it takes forever to air back up. So painful

the project farm guy is amazing. Ive bought several products based only on his recommendations

 

Duty cycle is only a concern for the puny compressors. A high-flow compressor like the EZ Flate Moab linked earlier is ~50 sec per tire, so less than 4 minutes of total run time. You can go through an entire wheeling season and run the compressor just half an hour per year lol.

 

This^. The 6.35CFM compressor airs up all 4 tires at the same time so quickly it never has a chance to overheat. I can air up my car and then a 2nd car immediately after with no issues.

 

Update the on VIAIR 400P automatic shutoff.

It’s a hell of a lot faster than my old 88p and I’m happy to have it. It is quite a bit bigger but for the amount of time it saves I’ll take it.

One problem though. Unlike the 88p I have to hold the trigger on the air gun to air up each tire. The 88p would allow me to plug it in, turn it on and walk away if needed. I’d come back in 5-7 minutes, adjust pressure and move on to the next tire. It was slow, but I wouldn’t have to stand over the compressor and babysit the thing…

I reached out to VIAIR about this and they suggested one of two things.
1. Purchase the non automatic shut off inflator for $70. This would work similarly to my old 88p. Only hang up being it would be slower to adjust pressure. Not a huge concern since I would typically overinflate slightly then go back and adjust pressure as necessary. https://viaircorp.com/products/5-in-1-inflator-deflator-coil-hose?variant=43790069203105

2. I could put a bungee/ rubber band over the trigger and let it fill automatically (VIAIR said they wouldn’t officially recommend this for safety but many people do it)


Since I don’t love either of these solutions I asked about using this compressor with some sort of four hose system such as the Morrflate quad. They said it should work with that but they also have a similar kit coming to market soon…

I’ll likely move forward with some sort of quad hose system and find a way to carry the compressor and hose kit in a more space efficient way. Bummer that I opted for the Automatic shutoff inflator thinking it would save me time! Oh well, live and learn. It’s still very fast to air up my 34s. Once I get a quad hose kit it should be even more time efficient.

 

It’s perhaps interesting that I went the other way. I started out with a 400P Automatic, but I wanted to have a compressor in the car all the time and felt that the 400p was too big. So I got the Digital 88P, which fits in the side cubby in the back (along with a tire repair kit and Noco jump starter.) No babysitting required with the didital 88p. You enter your desired pressure, press start, and it shuts off at the desired pressure. It airs up a 265/70R17 tire from 15 to 32 psi in a minute and 45 seconds. I was very surprised. The 400p is faster. But 1:45 isn’t bad.