On Board Air

[WanderingTs]

So for those of you who have followed and contributed to the thread I started on Air Down vs. Not, thanks for your input. Here is the followup -

One of the other reasons I haven't been airing down is that my most common wheeling areas are far from a nice air compressor. My little Wally World $19 air compressor takes all day to air back up one tire (great for emergency, not so great for regular use).

What do you have for on board air? How well do you like it? I am especially interested in those of you who do not have on board air integrated with your winch (Knappster, I love your setup, but I already have a winch). Anyone have a compressor that plugs into the winches power supply but is not part of the winch?

[NeilSmith]

There are good compressors at Harbor freight and such that will run you a couple hundred bucks for a nice one. If you wheel on a regular basis i would think it would be a good investment. They just hook up to the battery terminals. you can drive for a little bit to get to a station with air and be ok. Of course the quicker the better. I only went down to 22 psi, if you go on down to 15 or so, just drive a little slower on curvy roads so not to roll the tire and break the bead. I had to drive about 40 minutes on the asphalt to get to air when I left Flagpole Knob, but Im not doing that on a regular basis neither.

[LWM]

Hueypilot purchased several at Harbor Freight a few years back and I gave one of those away at Camp Commander 2009, They were small and worked well. Maybe someone who has one will share their experiences with it.

[HueyPilotVN]

The Harbor freight compressors were on sale and were only about 50 or 60 bucks each. I also got an aluminum case and an air down tool. Here are some pictures.

[El Cid]

I have the same kind of air compressor Huey shows -- though without the kickass case. Mine's a T-Max, but it's the same design. There are probably dozens of similar single-cylinder compressors. Can it air up as fast as the Conoco in Silverton? No. But it gets the job done.

I was keeping mine under the hood beside the Hemi until this summer. Moved it out and have been working on an underbody mount for it.

[Rocky Mountain Canary]

I also have the same I pump carry in back mostly for the chance that my wife comes out after work to disscover that a tire has gone flat she could air up and get to a service station or home so that i could take care of the problem she can get grumpy if she is stranded.

The pump seems to work fine and was about $60.00

A CO2 tank would be better but expencive

[cico7]

I was at Walmart last night and saw this refillable Co2 tank for paint ball guns. I wondered if you could use Co2 to fill with.
How big of tank and how to regulate the pressure.

[Doc in AZ]

see my post above for some of the info, but here's some more.

the common sizes of co2 are sold by weight - #5, 10 & 20 - although i'm not sure of the tank pressure, it's probably around 2,000 or so. you can get two types of regulators, i had a 150 psi fixed regulator it had no adjustment or gauge, or you can get an adjustable that reads cylinder pressure and output pressure. the adjustable regulator will flow faster and is suitable for running air tools like an impact, the fixed regulator is really only good for airing things up like tires or beach floaties.

here is a chart from powertank's site - it should help you get an idea of the volume necessary. as i said before each tank fill will cost $15-20

[WanderingTs]

I read about the Vair elsewhere too, but it seemed people were happier with Puma, mainly for the speed. My normal time to use this would be after a day of hard hunting with a long drive home and the last thing I want to do is delay laying my head on the pillow waiting for a compressor to catch up.

Physically, what size of tank are you talking about for the #20 CO2. I am guessing the size of a welding tank which would make size/weight and issue.

The Warn Power Plant sounds like a great choice.......but to much $$$$ to justify.

[Doc in AZ]

XRC10HD Winch by Smittybilt $750 i can have these drop-shipped to your door for about $650 depending on zip code

Rated Line Pull: 10000LBS/ 4536KG, Single Line
Max Pressure or Air Compressor: 150PSI
Air Flow: 72L/Min
Length of PU coil air hose: 8m
Winch Motor: 5.5hp/4.0kw 12V
Control: Handheld remote switch
12ft/3.7m lead
Gear train: 3-Stage Planetary
Gear Reduction Ratio: 148.2:1
Clutch: Sliding Ring Gear

The new Smittybilt XRC 10 HD is a 10,000 lb thoroughbred that has the looks and performance to handle any situation you get into. It is really the total package! We start off with one of the largest motors in its class - 5.5 State-of-the-Art Series Wound Motor and equip it with 3-stage planetary gear system with a 148.2:1 gear ratio that delivers lightning fast line speed. The all new HD comes standard with built in 150 PSI Air Compressor with a 2.5 gallon reservoir tank that can be mounted anywhere. The compressor/tank combo will provide more than enough on board air to inflate your tires after a nice day of wheeling or run air tools like an impact gun when a change is necessary. The XRC 10 HD is the next generation in winching technology!