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Tire Inflation Compressor

5K views 33 replies 12 participants last post by  Blue Sky 
#1 ·
I searched but did not see a thread on this yet so here it goes.

For the guys that go wheelin' in sandy places, what do you use to inflate your tires back to normal after you get back to the pavement?

I was thinking about this one: http://www.viaircorp.com/88P.html Seems to have favorable reviews.

What are you guys using?
 
#2 ·
if you plan on offroading a lot i would just get onboard air. A little more expensive but not that bad. I plan on getting a viair constant duty kit as one of my next mods.

100% duty cycle compressor 2.5 gallon tank 35' hose and a bunch of other things with the kit. $399 before tax. Its good for up to 37" tires so unless you ever plan on going that big you could get a smaller and cheaper one.

with the onboard air you could also add train horns and other air powered mods
 
#6 ·
I'll also throw a vote out for the Viair 450P. While the 100% duty cycle is a bit misleading, just the cool down moving from tire to tire is usually enough. I calculated blowing up my truck tire from 20psi to 80psi then tested it. Was within a few seconds of the calculated time and didn't get that hot.

Leave it portable so I can use it between vehicles. Have used it few times for family flat tires. The cheaper ones do fine in most situations, but when you need it to get back on the road, the expense for a higher grade compressor is worth the money.
 
#7 ·
Apparently, the absolute last word in on-board air systems is to go out and get an AC pump from a Volvo (Can't remember the year range). You replace the pulley with one that can be driven by your serpentine belt, work up an engine mount, and get some fittings to adapt to your air reservoir. Rather than pumping refrigerant through your AC system, you pump air to your air tank.

I don't have the figures, but these are supposed to have much higher pressure, flow rate, and service life as they're intended to function for the life of the vehicle.

The catch is getting the right compressor. The one you get needs to have a separate lubrication system. Most current systems use the refrigerant in the system to lubricate the pump.

Something to look into anyways.

Haven't done this myself, and probably won't as I don't air down that often. Currently, I have two 12V 120 psi Husky inflators. It takes about 20 minutes to air up all 4, but for the one time I use them a year, they have worked fine.

Eventually I'll probably get the ARB dual compressor with the larger viair tank and mount it up under the hood. They may be billed as waterproof, but I never trust the waterproof claim. Also, wouldn't get as much voltage drop through the cables as it would be close to the battery. Though for you 3-4 Gen guys, there might not be room under the hood.
 
#8 ·
Apparently, the absolute last word in on-board air systems is to go out and get an AC pump from a Volvo (Can't remember the year range). You replace the pulley with one that can be driven by your serpentine belt, work up an engine mount, and get some fittings to adapt to your air reservoir. Rather than pumping refrigerant through your AC system, you pump air to your air tank.

I don't have the figures, but these are supposed to have much higher pressure, flow rate, and service life as they're intended to function for the life of the vehicle.

The catch is getting the right compressor. The one you get needs to have a separate lubrication system. Most current systems use the refrigerant in the system to lubricate the pump.

Something to look into anyways.

Haven't done this myself, and probably won't as I don't air down that often. Currently, I have two 12V 120 psi Husky inflators. It takes about 20 minutes to air up all 4, but for the one time I use them a year, they have worked fine.

Eventually I'll probably get the ARB dual compressor with the larger viair tank and mount it up under the hood. They may be billed as waterproof, but I never trust the waterproof claim. Also, wouldn't get as much voltage drop through the cables as it would be close to the battery. Though for you 3-4 Gen guys, there might not be room under the hood.
What he said. http://www.onboardair.com/compressors.htm

I have no experience with the website or company in the link, but did have an FJ40 with a York 210 that worked flawlessly for airing up 35s from 4 to 30 psi, lickity split. Another couple of sites to check out for how-tos are ih8mud.com and pirate 4x4.com.
 
#10 ·
#12 ·
I don't deflate either, I just have a small compressor that rides in my rear under seat storage and plugs into a dash outlet to keep my tires aired up. Y'all have some pretty fancy setups I gotta say.
 
#13 · (Edited)
For what it's worth. If you want the best, arguably, electric OBA, then you might take a look at Oasis. Pricey buggers. http://aircompressors.oasismfg.com/...000-continuous-duty-air-compressors/item-1052

A note about the Viair systems. The in-line check valve will usually leak in relatively short order. When that happens, air from your tank, bags, whatever, will leak back through the compressor. It can (did), drive you nuts trying to find the leak. You can plumb in a single SMC check valve. Good to do right out of the box to prevent your pumps from running too much (on our former rig, they would kick on twice a day due to the crappy Viair in-line check valves leaking - ran those Viair hoses (without removing their check valves) into a tee and into a single SMC AK4000 and that took care of it (an AK3000 would work too) ).

If you can swing it, the best system, in my opinion, is a York pump system. I can't go that route as I have dual alts, but I would love it in my current rig.
 
#14 ·
I'm curious, if I don't really need a compressor for airing down but would like one to assist in recovery situations or roadside assistance what is a good one that I can mount to the crossmember under my hood? Doesn't need a tank or anything but does need to be waterproof. Preferably under 200$ would be nice.
 
#19 ·
On that same rig, I had two compressors in an enclosure. Those never failed in 7 years (other than the inline valves). They were getting tired though. As far as the other, exposed one, I was on my third when I sold the rig. They served different purposes and the exposed one did see more use, so probably not a fair comparison. However, if you can enclose them, I think it's the smart play. Anyway, Striker, I think the Viair portable is the ticket for you. Oddly, there are a lto of folks that like Puma compressors. They are super cheap, portable, Chinese (of course), but some folks really like them. Only on eHell as far as I can tell. I may even snag one for an upcoming trip as I won't have an OBA system set up in time.
 
#21 ·
If it were me, for what you're talkinga bout, I'd get the biggest 12v portable they sell. I've never owned one of those, but borrowed a buddy's at the track and it seemed to work just fine. Can't remember the size and we are talking dirt bike tires, so that's probably of zero help for you. Looks like their biggest is a 450P. Horn Blasters (online) often has decent prices I've found.
 
#33 ·
Adding a Tank to the air system will help with the Duty cycle of your compressor.you can mount a quick connect to the front of your truck and one in the back or one on each side of the frame.depending on where you mount the tank.
I'm still up in the air as to the route i want to take,I like my Power Tank a lot.my do both setups.
 
#34 ·
The 88P seems to be working out real well on the stock tires. I had to deflate for some rock gardens and then reflated all tires back up to 45 psi without any problems. What I really like about the 88P is that I can hook it up to the battery directly and the air hose is long enough to reach all 4 tires easily.
 
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