Looking for a new air compressor.....Rotary to be precise.

david n · Jul 27, 2010

Thought I'd post this here in the CNC arena too. The old two stager is running fine, but she sure runs a lot and I really don't care for the noise. It's a 5 HP 15 CFM unit. I'd really like to move up to a rotary unit in the 20- 35 CFM range. If I go up to a bigger unit, that means I'll need a larger dryer too. Can I get this done under $7-$8K? Kaesers? Atlas Copco? Are the IR's and Chicago Pneumatics even worth looking at? Or are they Chinese junk with no real duty cyle? What are my options?

JP Machining · Jul 27, 2010

I looked into this earlier this year and the best bang for the buck that I found (for a 7.5 hp) was a Atlas Copco GX5-AFF which is their full feature with tank and dryer all in one. Puts out 21CFM at 150 psi so it should be right in the neighborhood of what you want at a lower say 125 psi (specify max press when ordering)

The CP was about the same price wise, but the Atlas seems to be higher quality. The Kaesers were much more money, same with the IR's

The Atlas seemed to have one of the better warranties and the oil cost/change frequency was one of the better as well. For $7k you could step up to an Atlas GA model with variable speed drive.

I have some literature and pricing for them as well if you want me to email them to you. I'm still saving up to buy one for my shop, the 4 cyl single stage is driving me nuts.

No way affiliated with, just seemed the best choice from the research I did. I only looked into Rotary units. Hydrovanes may be an option as well, don't know much about them.

JP

Laurentian · Jul 27, 2010

We run a small Compair Hydrovane equivalent to 5 HP
Tough as nails, made in England
Size of a small fridge, I hung it up from the ceiling
on a semi suspended cantilevered platform.
CompAir Compressors | Air Compressors and Gas Systems | Buy an Air Compressor

WILLEO6709 · Jul 27, 2010

I have a 25 HP 92cfm?( have to look at it again) IR SSR EP25SE rotary with about 35k hours on it sitting idle... no tank, but a quiet, compact 25hp, capable of constant on or cycling operation. I plain outgrew it... would not run the shop at normal demand, I went to a sullair 3000p variable freq/ variable displacement alongside the SSR ep60 ingersoll backup compressor. Minnesota is not that far... pm me if interested. It will be cheaper than a new one by a lot. Always a good compressor but just too small for where I am running.

Stuart Caruk · Jul 27, 2010

I've been using a Chicago Pneumatic 7.5 HP 5.5Kw Rotary Screw Compressor Model QRS 7.5 with a drier that I bought from Northern Tool 3+ years ago. It runs almost non-stop 14 hours a day. Couldn't be happier with it.

SteveinAZ · Jul 27, 2010

David, do not go with any of the Chinese junk out there...you just cannot afford any down time - without air, you might as well be without power. If you think Willie's IR has a lot of hours on it...think again, our Kaeser has well over 60k hours and has only had the motor rebuilt (mainly due to it being a loaner wired at 460V when it is really a 208V, but it probably needed bearings anyway). One downside to over sizing your compressor system is that the compressor may not run enough to keep the moisture out of it, but that also depends on the design.

I would replace the Kaeser with a Boge VFD model if it were ever to go down (kinda wishful that it would...it's a noisy one as it was built in the late '80's). Once again, service may play a roll in what you buy.

Steve

Techguy · Jul 27, 2010

I have a unit I bought on ebay from a local company. Their prices are really good on Ebay, and they sell at a huge discount from the web site to add incrimental sales volume. I have had one for 2 years and am very happy with it. The internals seem top notch as far as I can tell. The prices seem almost too good, but I really like mine. They have been a pleasure to work with.

Here is a link to one similar to mine.

US AIR COMPRESSOR 46cfm Screw Ingersoll Rand 10 HP 10HP: eBay Motors (item 200072093570 end time Aug-05-10 08:56:36 PDT)

I have no affiliation with them, I was surprised when I found out they were only 30 miles away.

Best wishes.

WILLEO6709 · Jul 27, 2010

to put it in perspective on hours - the recommended interval for service of rotaries is 6000-8000 hours dependent on oil type and type of service. My ssr ep60 ( still my backup compressor) has about 110,000 hours on it showing. My "new" sullair, delivered feb 2009 has about 9,000 hours on it( plus about 50-100 on the ssr ep60 in that period). I used to run 2 stages, at one time had 3 of them ganged up... no comparison,,, replaced them all with an old joy twistair 20 hp rotary, and was hooked from there. If you do any blasting you can't beat the consistent delivery of a screw compressor. Screws, especially good one, run many more hours than piston pushers....and run cheaper in the long run.

wrustle · Jul 27, 2010

Techguy said:
I have a unit I bought on ebay from a local company. Their prices are really good on Ebay, and they sell at a huge discount from the web site to add incrimental sales volume. I have had one for 2 years and am very happy with it. The internals seem top notch as far as I can tell. The prices seem almost too good, but I really like mine. They have been a pleasure to work with.

Here is a link to one similar to mine.

US AIR COMPRESSOR 46cfm Screw Ingersoll Rand 10 HP 10HP: eBay Motors (item 200072093570 end time Aug-05-10 08:56:36 PDT)

I have no affiliation with them, I was surprised when I found out they were only 30 miles away.

Best wishes.

That seems to be a pretty slick piece of equipment there for the price.....thanks for the lead!

Later,
Russ

HYPERTUNE · Jul 27, 2010

Further to JP's post, I've had a GX4FF for over 5 years now and it has run almost non stop without any issues. (And no maintenance for that matter

)

So, +1 for Atlas Copco.

JonP · Jul 27, 2010

We started out with a 7.5 hp Quincy piston comp in the 70's worked ok, in 90's we got a I R SSREP25 screw comp it has been a great machine zero problems or downtime. They make a lot of heat witch = moisture so a dryer is a must. Another thing they draw about 50% of the loaded amperage even when they are unloaded so we have ours programed to completly power off if it doesn't load in 15 minutes, witch very seldom happens. One thing to keep in mind if you get a new compressor it will be much more energy efficient than a 10 or 15 year old one, there are many good brands, good luck

M Owens · Jul 27, 2010

I own a Kaeser SM10 aircenter it was about $7800 shipped and hooked up. I am extremely happy with my purchase as it is very quiet. A good friend of mine soon bought a Chicago Pneumatic 5HP rotary compressor with air chiller for about 5K and the school where I work as an instructor bought a 7.5HP IR with air chiller for about $6400. The biggest difference that I notice between the different air compressors is that my kaeser is more quiet. The other two have more of a higher pitched noise, although you can carry on a conversation with someone while standing next to the compressors. I have my air compressor within my shop next to the machines so this is why I went with a rotary. The reason I went with the Kaeser was because of my dealer support. When you live in the middle of knowhere, dealer support is important as well as being self-sufficient.

Edster · Jul 28, 2010

I setup a new air system last year. I went with two smaller kaeser screw compressors.

Link to thread:

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/cnc-machining/new-compressed-air-system-194372/

After about a year I've had zero problems. The Kaesers are awesome. Very quiet and they don't produce as much heat as my old Ingersol Rand UP series screw. The cooling air flow through the compressors is also much better than the IR. Kaeser is claims to have the most efficient setup and I believe it. I can touch the compressed air outlet on the back of the compressor when it's running and it's only slightly warm. They also provide some nice touches like the ability to adjust pressures etc from a kepad and lcd display on the front of the compressor instead of fiddling around with pressure switches. The drain hose for changing oil is also a bonus.

Their eco drain is also an awesome piece. It only discharges water when it opens. No compressed air is lost, this make it much quieter and easier to deal with the condensate because it's not in mist form.

Kaeser also has a new air tower for standalone installations.

http://us.kaeser.com/Products_and_S...ssors/complete_package/airtower/default.asp#0

david n · Jul 28, 2010

Edster,
I remember that thread. Nice setup.

Joe788 · Jul 28, 2010

M Owens said:
I own a Kaeser SM10 aircenter it was about $7800 shipped and hooked up. I am extremely happy with my purchase as it is very quiet. A good friend of mine soon bought a Chicago Pneumatic 5HP rotary compressor with air chiller for about 5K and the school where I work as an instructor bought a 7.5HP IR with air chiller for about $6400. The biggest difference that I notice between the different air compressors is that my kaeser is more quiet. The other two have more of a higher pitched noise, although you can carry on a conversation with someone while standing next to the compressors. I have my air compressor within my shop next to the machines so this is why I went with a rotary. The reason I went with the Kaeser was because of my dealer support. When you live in the middle of knowhere, dealer support is important as well as being self-sufficient.

Owens, where did you get that price on the Kaeser? I remember the local jackass quoting me $12,000 for the same thing, which pretty much ended my Kaeser shopping.

Just a few months ago I took possession of a beautiful, 2 year old, 15hp (or 20?) Ingersoll variable speed "air on demand" unit from a customer that owes me a whole bunch of money. It's pretty awesome. When you're not using any air, it's just off. When you use a tiny bit of air, you hear the motor spin slowly to build up that tiny bit of air, and then it stops again. :cheers:

M Owens · Jul 28, 2010

I purchased the compressor from Ralph Klug & Sons in Omaha NE. I also purchased quite a bit of Transaire pipe and fittings so that may have helped with the pricing. Ralph came out and installed the compressor and I installed the piping as I didn't have the machines set yet. I may be a little off on my pricing as this was two years ago but the compressor cost was about $8000 and the piping was a little over $2500. I paid right around 10K for everything.
Hope this helps.

Seekins · Jul 28, 2010

I purchased a new Atlas with dryer for about 5k. I have 1000 hours on it now. It ran too often i blew the motor on it during the first year. (350 ish hours) Atlas told me to not run it so often and replaced the motor free of charge. I got another 80 gallon tank and it runs about every 15min or so. At least i think it does, i dont ever hear it

I would buy another Atlas

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Looking for a new air compressor.....Rotary to be precise.

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