Portable air compressor

[JBinKC]

Anyone have experience with the VIAIR 400P-RV portable air compressor? It has wonderful features but it's pricey! Best wishes, John

[craftsman]

Funny you should mention that. FedX delivered mine yesterday. Great build quality. Nice accessories and storage bag. I'm going to try it out today on the 20" tires that I just had installed on my F350. Expensive but I think it's a good purchase

[Bluto]

I've been looking at it too, but have not pulled the trigger yet and purchased.
Craftsman, Look forward to your update!

[Sav'h Steve]

The Viar looks like it is much more compressor, but.....

I bought this from Amazon for $60 and it does the job nicely. Inflates my F250 tires fine. Had a cheaper one which didn't have the oomph...

The key is to get one that has the direct battery connects instead of the plug in cig lighter kind. The reason is because of the amps the stronger ones draw and the cig lighter can't handle it. Both of these are battery connects. I did a fair amount of research before getting the MV50 - the price point was very much part of my decision.

Steve in Savannah

[craftsman]

O.K. Here's my evaluation. I topped off 4 twenty inch tires, from a low of 52psi to 62psi pretty quickly. Unlike most other Viair models this compressor shuts off when your not actually putting air in the tires. Which means it stays a bit cooler. Also filled the bicycle tires and they were about flat. Does it super quick. The down side: the air tools supplied seemed a bit cheap to me considering the overall quality of the actual compressor and I didn't trust the large round gauge. I used a digital tire pressure gauge to check that the pressures were accurate. They're usable, but I would just like something better so I'll look for a replacement. All in all I think it's worth the investment.

[RLS]

Ive been using the MV50 for the past 2 yrs. and has worked good inflating to 65 lbs. The one you are asking about I'm sure is a better one, but is it needed? That price is way up there.

[goutes]

Used mine today for the first time, worked great.

[halimer]

Looks exactly like my Warn SPC. Paid $200.00 for mine. Great compressor.

Mark

[craftsman]

Originally Posted by RLS

Ive been using the MV50 for the past 2 yrs. and has worked good inflating to 65 lbs. The one you are asking about I'm sure is a better one, but is it needed? That price is way up there.

It's probably overkill but it seems like I've been buying tools of one kind or another most of my life and I'd rather buy a little to much quality and power than just enough.

[moosetags]

I have been looking for a small air compressor for a while now. I have had a couple of cheapies, but the y just don't last. This thread got me shopping around on-line.

I shopped the both the Viair and the Warn on Ebay and found them comparably priced around $200. Then I went to the Warn Company Website (Warn Industries - Winches, Mounting Systems, Accessories, Hubs, Air Compressors, Flares, Lights, Body Amor) and low and behold, they had the Warn SPC (77495) for $130 plus $25 shipping. It was $50 less than I had been able to find it anywhere else.

I ordered one today.

Brian

[halimer]

Brian,

WOW! That is a great price. i go mine in Nov 09 . I was looking all over for a better price. You hit the mother load.

Mark

[Ag&Au]

Originally Posted by moosetags

I have been looking for a small air compressor for a while now. I have had a couple of cheapies, but the y just don't last. This thread got me shopping around on-line.

I shopped the both the Viair and the Warn on Ebay and found them comparably priced around $200. Then I went to the Warn Company Website (Warn Industries - Winches, Mounting Systems, Accessories, Hubs, Air Compressors, Flares, Lights, Body Amor) and low and behold, they had the Warn SPC (77495) for $130 plus $25 shipping. It was $50 less than I had been able to find it anywhere else.

I ordered one today.

Brian

I think I may order the WARN also.

Checking the specs that I can find, The VIAIR 400P-RV delivers 1.4 CFM @ 90 PSI, while the WARN delivers 1.0 CFM @ 90 PSI. I can't envision needing more that 90 PSI. I think I would rather wait 30% longer to fill something than pay twice as much. Before I act, does anyone see anything wrong with my train of thought? (did it jump the track?)
Regards,

Ken

[craftsman]

The Warn looks like a great little compressor for the money. It wouldn't surprise me if the Warn and Viar were made in the same factory.

[JBinKC]

Friends: I bought the Warn SPC and it's a good compressor -- quiet, powerful and convenient. I can easily reach the trailer tires from the trailer battery, allowing me to adjust tire pressures when the tires are stone cold. The tire gauge included is not impressive and it's 5 pounds off from my Accu-Gage tire pressure gauge. So how do you get tire pressure gauges calibrated? Do serious tire dealers have accurate gauges to use as a standard? Best wishes, John

[Gene]

Between the TPMS pressure reading (the lowest by about 3 lbs.) and the gauge on my compressor (the highest) and my Accugage gauge (almost as high a reading as the compressor), who knows what's right? Take an average or the lowest reading—you'll have higher pressure which is better than lower. In tire shops a lot of guys use the cheapo gauge with the stick that pops out—those never looked accurate to me—but they can stick them in their pockets like a pen.

I bought a compressor at Costco more than a year ago for about $65. Attaches to the battery and pumps quickly. Quality appears good. I don't know if they sell it anymore and the brand is a mystery one to me (partly because I forget the name).

Gene

[Ag&Au]

Originally Posted by JBinKC

Friends: I bought the Warn SPC and it's a good compressor -- quiet, powerful and convenient. I can easily reach the trailer tires from the trailer battery, allowing me to adjust tire pressures when the tires are stone cold. The tire gauge included is not impressive and it's 5 pounds off from my Accu-Gage tire pressure gauge. So how do you get tire pressure gauges calibrated? Do serious tire dealers have accurate gauges to use as a standard? Best wishes, John

John,

I also purchased the WARN SPC. I have not used it to inflate the trailer tires yet. I was surprised that the best price I found was the WARN website.

I had not thought of trying to use the trailer batteries.

I was going to use the truck batteries with jumper cables as an extension if necessary. (sort of Rube Goldberg). My trailer batteries are such a tight squeeze in the compartments, that I am sure I could not reach the negative post without pulling the battery out onto the door. . Since our trailers are the same model (different years), I am wondering how you handle that problem if your battery setup is the same.

I have a Accu-Gage EZ-air with a round digital gage. I also have a Brookstone guage with the same type of round digital guage. I am guessing that the Brookstone guage was made by Accu-gage because of their similar construction They both always agree within a fraction of a pound.

I also have a HawksHead TMPS, that all sensors are in agreement with the gauges within a fraction of a pound. HawksHead says they have very accurate equipment that they calibrate each sensor with.

Maybe I lucked out and coincidentally everything is wrong by the same amount.


Regards,

Ken

[pwhittle]

The Warn pump looks very similar to the previous generation of pumps that HarborFreight sold under part number 93186. It has since been superceded with a similar looking nmodel with similar specs.

The replacement has similar specs on special right now for $59.99 shipped:

12 Volt, 150 PSI High Volume Air Compressor

I found a comparison between the Warn and the original HF unit:

Superflow MV-50 vs Harbor Freight's 93186 "12V High Volume Compressor" test results - JeepForum.com

The Viair product line is avalable from here:

HornBlasters Air Horn Products Catalog! Find The Perfect Train Air Horn For Your Car Or Truck!

If you call them you can often get a discount and free shipping on some items. I got a $199 Viair 444C shipped for $175.

I had the original HF 93186 on my motorhome as a fixed installation which lasted 3 years, but I was not treating it too well. It was tasked with keeping a 6.5 gallon tank at 120 psi. The thing that finally killed it was when I added train horns. You can see some posts in the Classic Motorhomes forum.

I would not hesitate to use one for keeping tires full. Can't beat the price of the HF unit.

Paul

[jsfranchek]

Does anyone have an update on recommended portable air compressors for trailer tires that will be kept at 65 psi? The last posts are in 2010 and I suspect that the technology has progressed some since then. Thanks.

[Caffeinated]

For the past three years I have used a Viair, I forget the model but it's a bit smaller than the 400 series. It works well, and if it went belly up I'd get another one.

Mike

[Mollysdad]

I sprung for the Viair package that delivers more CFM, but does not run continuously. (400P). I find I never run it 20 minutes anyway.
It's very well made, came with a screw-on trigger with a gauge, and assorted nice accessories, including two hose extensions.
I did wonder why the two hoses are different. One is Hose #1, and the other is an extension. They are not interchangeable. It's because one has the same fittings on both ends, but???
Pricey but worked like a champ. It only let me down by not being able to pop the bead on a rim. But it's designed to add air, not mount tires.