i'm preparing for body work. no dents, just lots of rust and paint grinding and bondo application. i've never done body work before, so my question to you all is what size air compressor do you recommend i use? can i get away with using a smaller unit (like 2hp, 5 cfm at 90 psi) instead of some big expensive unit? I know the angle grinder and die grinder I use will have minimum air requirements...so as long as I meet those, will it just take me longer to use a less powerful unit than some professional grade unit i can't afford? or, will it jeopardize the quality of my work? will the tank be recharging all the time to the point it makes you nuts?

let me stress: i have time, but not time to sit around, and i want to do a quality job.

thanks for any opinions on the matter.

 

You will need a larger compressor for body work. How large is the tank? Anything under 5hp/60gal is pretty much useless to be effective when using air tools, especially something like a D/A sander or straightline sander. My 2hp has about the same rating as yours, and I delegated it to tire inflation duties and dusting stuff off. I would be more worried about water vapor than the inconvenience of the noise. The more it has to run, the more water you will get in your tank and lines. I have a low cfm rated die grinder, and my compressor will only run it at full power for a couple of seconds before the compressor cycles.

 

thanks for the feedback man. good advice.

 

You also have the possibility of connecting two compressors together if you can borrow or rent another small compressor. Then again, if you were to rent one, it might as well be a larger one. I just went though this whole ordeal in the last couple of weeks trying to get my car ready for paint. I ended up buying a Dewalt electric random orbital sander to do most of the grunt work for sanding. It works excellnt, and is swirl-free.

 

i do need to check on rental pricing. that's probably the route I'll have to take because like most third gen owners, i'm not exactly made of money and any money i do have goes into the dang car.

thanks again for the feedback.

 

What kinda of deal did you get on the Dewalt and where did you get it at? I think Im going to electric..

 

I second that question. the more i look at this the better electric is looking.

did you use a 4.5" or 7" grinder?

 

Just wanna lend a word of advise.. DO NOT buy the 60gal twin cylinder aluminum pump craftman has on sale frequently for 499 or whatever. That compressor is a peice of ****. I blew three up in under a year.(blowing oil out the intake due to the read valves ****ing up) Just running air tools and trying to shoot primer. You never know when the unit will fail. I would buy a 2 stage cast iron 60 gal or bigger compressor. just wanted to let you know so you don't make the same mistake I did.

 

worthy advice, boilermaker! thanks for the warning.

 

I also bought that SEARS model mistakenly thinking it was a 2-stage air compressor. Nope, two cylinder, not two-stage. It wouldn't keep up with my sand blast cabinet, I'd run out of air after roughly 3-4 minutes. Then I'd have to wait about seven minutes or so for it to catch up and shut down. Rather than beat it up I sold it a year later with 100 hours on it (I'd installed an hour meter for maintenance intervals) and upgraded to an 80 gallon Eaton compressor. If you're not using the compressor that frequently for high air usage jobs, then that SEARS unit will be fine.

Take the air tool recommendations on the compressor with a grain of salt. Otherwise, just recognize that you'll have plenty of time for smoke breaks while the compressor recharges. I don't smoke and grew frustrated waiting on the compressor, so I upgraded. Something else to consider is your available power. The larger units will require 220v.

Lon

 

160gl, 6hp, 2-stage, I never wait for air! And yes, the Dewalt 7" random orbital sander is quite the tool. Had mine for 8 years now. Good luck with your car.

 

I bought my Dewalt at Rona. The sander was 98 bux cdn, but they had a special right from dewalt, the 5" orbital and a quarter sheet sander for 76 dollars. So I actually saved 22 dollars buy buying the twin pack over the orbital alone (and yes, it was the exact same model, before anyone asks, lol). I use 6" velcro-backed D/A paper on it all the time, it leaves a nice feathered edge.