Air Compressor Explanation, Repair and Hack

[@kevinkanne1261]

Ok I just love this Guy. Having spent years in an EE Classroom with theory running out my ears its soooo nice to find some one who can give you the useful information with a dash of theory but get your hand in the work and get your project DONE. Good On Ya Mate! KSK

[@MontaCodeProductions]

I'm from Sheboygan. Thomas was a air compressor company but they have gone out of business and the building has been retrofitted.

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

+Forest Bartz Well I certainly sad to hear that they do no longer exist. But it's great to finally hear from someone who is from Sheboygan and who knew the company.

[@zx8401ztv]

Please check the pressure relief valve between the tank and compressor output, it can malfunction and make it difficult for the compressor to start against the tank pressure. Your hand drawn diagrams are excellent and pleasing to look at :-)

[@darrenwright1040]

Great Video I believe the problem you may be experiencing with that is related to the way the compressor starts and stops. I could see that there were no extra non return valves in the air line coming out of the head only the one in the head itself. This can cause a problem if the pressure is to high on the top of the piston and it stalls when the compressor starts especialy if the valve in the head is leaking and the piston is pressurised and returns to the bottom of it's stroke. The cylinder the piston runs in is filled with pressurised air before it can be compressed and stalls out the pump. The no cost fix would be to (If the discharge valve in the head is not leaking) would be to increase the differential on the pressure switch. Lower start pressure. If on your travels you come across another non return valve that could be plumbed into the discharge line from the head to the tank and you could introduce a small air leak in there to ensure the pump is starting with only atmospheric pressure here. This is done on most positive displacement air compressors. Most compressor switches will have a small valve inside that is opened when they shut off this can be plumbed to the leak to ensure it allways starts without pressure on top of the piston. Cheers

[@GeneralSpecifiK]

Greetings from Wisconsin! I happen to live near the Capitol of Wisconsin - Madison. Sheboygan does indeed have a unique name, but if you look at a map of the rest of the state, you will find there are many other curious names! For example, I used to live in a town called "Menomonee Falls". (It is always fun to listen to someone try and pronounce the names of towns in Wisconsin.) As for made in the United States, I do not think that your comment offended anyone. It is true that we do still manufacture things here in the United States, and much of it is high-quality; as another poster mentioned, though I think most of it stays inside the borders of the US. For example, consider the Sub-Zero and Wolf appliances. They are both made in Madison, however I do not know how much of them leaves the United States. I enjoy watching your videos, and cannot wait to see what you come up with next!

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Nice to see, that someone from Wisconsin watches my videos :D I really love the idea that a compressor build in the 1970s can build a link between people of two different countries in 2014. I also found out that Wisconsin ( and especially Sheboygan) has a lot of people with German ancestry: An old film on KZbin calls it "The Bratwurst Capital of the World" :D. I guess I simply have to visit that place some day !

[@a1k0n]

The Post Apocalyptic Inventor I'm sure quite a few of us Wisconsinites watch your video! I have even been to Sheboygan many times. :) And indeed, like many people from the Milwaukee area, I am also mostly of German heritage. However, I have never heard of Thomas JN Inc either. FWIW, Kohler, WI is adjacent to Sheboygan and is where they make Kohler faucets, which are sold all over the world (if perhaps not in Germany).

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Andy Sloane It's great to hear even more about your region. The Milwaukee area has a lot of manufacturing going on right ? "Kohler faucets" are actually sold in Germany as well :D I simply didn't know that they are from the US. "Kohler" simply didn't sound very American to me and it turns out that the place was named after an Austrian immigrant who was the founder of the Kohler Company. But anyway, thanks for the additional information and greetings from Germany :)

[@a1k0n]

Indeed, there are quite a few notable companies which manufacture stuff based in Milwaukee, e.g. Milwaukee Electric Tool (obviously), Harley Davidson, Briggs & Stratton, and of course lots of beer is "manufactured" there too, Miller being the biggest remaining brewery. Though these days, it's fair to say that a lot of the actual manufacturing is probably outsourced to China; I have no idea how much remains in-house.

[@OldLordSpeedy]

If somebody use Wikipedia do you can learn that at this part many german settler lived at this place. Sure the first generations talks german, so they use her old german name same Mosel, Seebeugen, etc. The english talking people can't talk german names so they transcript into "Shebeygen"? Sure it is curios - they renamed some parts of Germany too, but not all! So Schleswig, Berlin, Frankfurt, etc. you can found in USA too! Here in Country Schleswig-Holstein, north part of Germany do you can found England, Brasilien, Kalifornien, Bali, Russland, etc.

[@Bettinasisrg]

Wie Geht's! Hello from America:-) I took German in school, but I am not proficient. Wonderful videos, and thank you for posting them. I got a Husky brand (cheap made in China, sold at big box store here called Home depot) from a Police sale (which is when the cops sell the stuff they get from arresting people) and I am trying to get it working and this has helped a lot. Thanks again, sorry for the long explanation, guten tag:-)

[@navy9398]

Yet another excellent training video. Anxiously waiting for the next SMPS video. Thank you for all of your hard work.

[@RaycoRedFox]

Schematics drawn by hand! Damn I love that channel!

[@tannerjenkins9923]

You explain things very well sir. Nothing superfluous and everything pertinent!

[@tomj528]

Greetings from Wisconsin...I don't live in Sheboygan but near Madison, the capital. Here in the USA it's hard to find any decent tools anymore...they're all made in China junk with very few exceptions. The ones that are still made here are of pretty good quality but nothing like the heyday of American manufacturing. Luckily for me I can still buy a lot of great power tools in good shape that were built to last. They're now used, relatively inexpensive and ready to continue working. I particularly like older Milwaukee brand tools. In the past 6 months I've picked up a hammer drill, circular saw, angle grinder and just yesterday an electric chainsaw from the late 60's/early 70's. The difference between these workhorses and the plastic garbage sold today is astounding. The electric chainsaw needs a good cleaning and a new cord, but other than that it works flawlessly. All aluminum casing, heavy duty motor and a manual chain oiler that still works and shouldn't clog like so many automatic oilers. Keep up the great videos, they're great.

[@Jacksonkellyfreak]

+tomj528 didn't Craftsman tools have a factory in Milwaukee? china junk now.

[@tomj528]

+Jacksonkellyfreak I believe the company that made the tools for Sears did...many years ago now. I wouldn't buy ANYTHING from Sears these days.

[@Jacksonkellyfreak]

tomj528 I bought Craftsman line wrenches because they were the best I could find without going Snap On or Mac, and they're decent but a whole lot better than the thin cast crap HF or the parts stores sell. BUT a lot of the stuff I've seen in the last few years has been iffy at best.

[@ryanjames170]

it blows my mind you can draw that good sir

[@bborkzilla]

"Made in America" is getting rare here in America too. It seems these days I have to scrounge around in flea markets and yard sales for old tools in order to find that label.

[@colt4547]

Thanks for another great video. I've enjoyed each one. Thomas has been around for quite a while. From their site it seems they make many different types. The only units I've come across in the wild seem to be similar diaphragm pumps. Some include dual cylinders and seem to last forever. I know you can buy rebuild/repair kits. They are typically known for continuous operation for many years. Nearly all of the units I've had experience with are low PSI/BAR types (~10-30 PSI). Thanks again.

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Cool. Thank you for the information ! I never heard of Sheboygan before, but I informed myself about it yesterday evening. A weird name, but a very interesting place ( at least back in the 1950s as a film on youtube shows): Situated at the western shore of lake michigan, home of many factories and workshops. I hope that some of that industry still exists today. Do you know if Thomas still manufactures in the US ?

[@hankus253]

The Post Apocalyptic Inventor The USA Thomas Division is still in Sheboygan, Wisconsin as a division of Gardner Denver. Thomas Division Headquarters, is near Munich, Germany. They have manufacturing facilities in Memmingen, Germany, Monroe,LA USA and Wuxi, China, according to the Gardner Denver - Thomas web site.

[@chawkzero]

YES! I'm so happy there's a new video :D This really makes me want an air compressor now...

[@robertdart5562]

I used to live in Sheboygan. I believe Thomas was part of Gardner Denver and moved to Louisiana. My late uncle that lived there had that same compressor or one like it. I remember thinking it was part of a vacuum cleaner because he said he cleaned off his workbench with it, and I said he should use a snow blower instead. I think they are still in business though not in Sheboygan.

[@grjr]

I don't know if anyone has answered your question in the comments yet but the air brush compressor you have looks like it was made by Badger. The one you have looks very similar to one I have made in the 90's only quite a bit older :)

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Hey. Sorry I didn't answer any earlier. I simply forgot to. I did some research myself and it seems to me that all air brush compressors have very similar looks. Do you know if the Badger Company has / had any manufacturing plants in the Milwaukee area ?

[@AmyAndrewAdventures]

Thanks for the new video! Quality work as always.

[@turboslag]

For information, eccentric axle = crankshaft in English.

[@honest8bob]

Love the variable speed idea. I would gladly trade some time for less noise. I'm guessing a regular light switch dimmer would do the same thing?

[@Yanko_13]

Cool! At the old compressor, you can simply add or make a tank, and there you have it. An other great compressor!

[@trymstheshit25]

You are amazing sir.

[@billysgeo]

Just now I realized that the multimeter stand you have on you bench was made from an old LCD monitor... NICE!!!

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

BIll Georgoulakis Yes that is right. And indeed you are the first viewer to ever make that comment :D

[@jonsanford0]

Timely- we are thinking about getting one.

[@BrianBallardmasalaicno]

Thanks for the video.

[@ShaunDobbie]

Same as that work zone compressor from Aldi. I was disappointed to find that it had no induction motor.

[@MrClickbang357]

Thanks for making this video. . I have watched other videos of yours and just subscribed. Keep up the great videos! One question: does the phase 5 circuit work on split phase motors?

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

MrClickbang357 It is called "phase fired" and not "phase 5", sorry if I didn't pronounce that well enough :D Phase fired controllers only work with universal motors and Dc motors. Induction motors ( like the split phase motor) don't like the chopped off wave form generated by the phase fired controller. You can watch my video about "isolation transformers", where I demonstrate that with a shaded pole induction motor.

[@Nolanyoyo]

ya Wisconsin! I also have one of those compressors.

[@JustinAlexanderBell]

Another great video, thank you!

[@jimsimpson8663]

hi there , the problem with this compressor is it starts under load. the motor pulley slips a bit and wears the belt out. l plan to fit a valve on mine open to atmosphere till motor is up to speed. I was thinking a washing machine solenoid valve may work, with a timer of a few seconds. I have not had time to try this out. let me know if it would work.

[@lifepaz2335]

man found good stud, good machine

[@whysguy3]

Hello from Wisconsin! just took out a motor from an older HVAC unit not sure what I'm goin to do with it.

[@Drewzir]

Greetings from Cudahy, Wisconsin!

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Jake Drew Hey :) Greetings back. Cool to know that I have so many viewers in Wisconsin !

[@fernandez0jorge]

bravo on the capture of the Midwestern accent. very convincing..you a packer fan by any chance..?

[@williammahoney2400]

I spent 5 years of my youth in Oshkosh WI, only a hour away from Sheboygan. It's cool that compressor found its way to Germany! Did any Oshkosh B'gosh overalls make it out there?

[@ovidiuovidiu5966]

You have nice instrucable videos. I want to come with a remark related to speed controller. On 100% power you have full torque but if you decrease voltage you will decrease also torque and on this underdimensioned compressor i think the motor is calculated to be under the max torque needed for cost reasons. To extend life i sugest to decrease output pressure limit to decrease motor load

[@sneugler]

Another amazing quality video! Once you get another, more capable compressor, I could take that one off yer hands. ;)

[@DavidHogendoorn]

can phase fired controllers be damaging to motors since they're not being operated optimally?

[@rpicinic]

Would love to see you covert this compressor to a silent type by repurposing a refrigerator compressor and replacing the current loud compressor

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Yeah I was actually thinking about playing around with some refrigerator compressors. In my basement there is a huge freezer from the 1950s /60s. It's so big that I will have to take it apart to get it out there. ( Which is the reason why it's still there :D ) I would like to open it, but I want to be sure that I won't poison myself. So I guess I will have to do some research about possible dangers first.

[@bohelsted7093]

The Post Apocalyptic Inventor My dad made a compressor with a Danfoss silent compressor from a refrigirator + an old oxygen tank + a Danfoss pressure switch. It worked ok, but it could stall at some point. It would not restart before you let most of the pressure out - far below the threshold point of the switch. A one way valve between the comp. and the tank cured the problem partly, but surely these types of compressors weren't ment to work against a tank. Also the airflow wasn't very high, my guess is under 100 l/min. Even pumping a car tire put it under stress, but for a blowgun or an airbrush it was fine. Even at night...

[@CondoreComputing]

The speed controll idea would be great for an old 20 gallon air compressor i have that is quite noisy, especially since i live in a duplex and my garage is right below my neighbors side.

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

The same thing with the red compressor in the video: when run with full speed it's incredibly loud !

[@rafikimusic]

You used different colors for the schematics :) :D good video!!

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Yes I used your advice on the colors ( It was you right ? ). I guess it was a very good idea !

[@rafikimusic]

The Post Apocalyptic Inventor yes it was :) glad i helped!

[@MrKsreenivas]

very nice ,

[@aserta]

Really nice and comprehensive explanation and a really nice fix/mod. Good video. Question: is the US built compressor made out of cast iron?

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

I'm not exactly sure about the material. I guess it's an aluminium based alloy.

[@aserta]

The Post Apocalyptic Inventor Thanks for answering.

[@YoutubeAdministrator]

but when you slow down the motor doesn't that effect the cooling fans in a negative way?

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Lars Bo Rasmussen Well. When I first added the phase fired controller I had that concern as well. But it turns out, that it solved the problem. I have used the compressor many times and didn't have any more issues with it.

[@YoutubeAdministrator]

Ok cool 😎

[@peteh46]

Thank you!

[@digitART30]

Hey, nice 😊. Just a question, the variable speed control circuit is a classic dimmer circuit with diac, triac, or something more complex? Zero cross detection, microcontroller or something. I'm thinking to make one for my Jbc solder but I don't know how can react. Thanks a lot for your videos

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Hey it's a simple classic dimmer circuit with diac + triac + RC circuit. Such a circuit can be improved by adding a few resistors and capacitors here and there, though no microcontroller is necessary for this kind of job. I don't know the details of your soldering iron, but if it's just based an old fashioned heating element, I don't see any danger in using a classic dimmer circuit.

[@ShaunDobbie]

My compressor has a hole on each side of the cylinder near the bottom which air seems to escape from. Why are they there?

[@elboa8]

Very informative. Where did you learn your English? It's much better than my French, and I've lived here (France) for 14 years!! Thanks.

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

elboa8 I watched all episodes of "Married with Children" and "All in the Family". That's how I learned English :D No seriously: My mother told me a few words of English when I was just a child and I guess that helped a big deal in getting used to the typical sounds and the overall "character" of that language. Later in school I learned a little more and I discovered that I really enjoyed reading books in English as well as watching American movies and listening to the British Forces Broadcasting Service on the radio. And I have been learning a little bit of English every day ever since. Making my videos gives the whole thing a new dimension, since I'm now the one who is actively using the language rather than just listening to someone else's voice. I also made a lot of international contacts through youtube and I'm now actually talking to native speakers on a daily basis and that's good training as well. I never lived in an English speaking country though.

[@elboa8]

The Post Apocalyptic Inventor Thanks for the quick reply. Yes there is definitely a sprinkling of American in your speech . Thanks again.

[@AnanthuAchary01]

In the case of the second compressor without having a storage tank how it maintaining constnt flow of air...

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Ananthu Achary Well it doesn't deliver a constant flow of air. The pressured air leaves the compressor in regular "bursts". For the purpose it was made for ( airbrushing ) that's enough.

[@sheep1ewe]

I am not sure, but I think it has some slightly owercapacity compared to the tool used and the airbrush has it´s own regulation controlled by the operators hand continously (at least those i tryed had). I Was also a bit suspisious to those small storagetank free compressors when i first saw one... Good video btw!

[@2aminitials]

No air filter on the first compressor?

[@davidperry4013]

I would prefer a ingersoll rand 220v 40 gal oiled compressor.

[@1233-j4x]

bravo

[@Alexander470815]

Schönes Video! Mir ist nie in den Sinn gekomemn das Kompressoren auch schon mit Universal Motoren gebaut werden. Dacht immer das wären normale Kondensator Motoren. Das 1,5 Atü 2,5bar stimmt nicht unbedingt. Die Frage ist eher nach bar absolut oder bar gauge. Auf Manometern kann man eigentlich immer nur bar gauge ablesen das entspricht auch in etwa Atü. Bar absolut sollte ja klar sein. Wenn du planst einen Kompressor selber zu bauen hätte ich hier noch einen HS1-40/70 Luftpresser der ist über. Grüße aus Hessen

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Alexander470815 Ja du liegst natürlich völlig richtig! Kleiner Denkfehler von mir als ich die Anmerkung in das Video geschrieben habe. Die Angaben die die Leute interessieren sind natürlich alle in "bar gauge" also quasi in bar "über atmospherischem Druck" bzw "über Bezugsniveau" also muss quasi nurnoch der Umrechnungsfaktor zwischen at und bar beachtet werden. ( Der ja sehr nahe bei 1 liegt ...) Damit würde der Druck bei etwa 1,5 bar liegen. Das scheint mir auch realistischer, wenn man sich diesen Kompressor anschaut. Ich werde die Anmerkung korrigieren. Danke für das Angebot :) Aber ich muss leider momentan sehr darauf achten, dass ich nicht noch mehr Projekete anfange :D Hier steht schon alles voll ... Was den Universalmotor angeht: Ja es war auch für mich eine Überraschung. Es handelt sich meiner Einschätzung nach aber wohl eher um eine Billiglösung, die sich im professionellen Bereich eher nicht durchsetzen wird.

[@carslover3509]

great

[@webersoffroad]

im from Wisconsin!!

[@PJL1281]

I grew up in Wisconsin but I, unfortunately, cannot give any information about the company you mentioned :(.

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

I was very curious about that town of "Sheboygan" ( what a name :D ). I found that there is a five part video on youtube called "the sheboygan story" from 1958. It seems it was a very industrious place back then with many factories and workshops.

[@PatrykDarasz]

Ich glaube du kriegst nen Sub von mir.

[@specialks1953]

I am a proud American and it is not your fault that Made in U.S.A doesn't mean much anymore. I don't like it but it is the truth more often than not. People that griped about you pointing out that sad fact, are just pissed off that it's changed like it has.

[@smbrob]

Lowering the power to the motor might make it stall before the pressure switch cuts out, and may damage the motor :-/

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

smbrob Well, by now I had some time to test the compressor with reduced speed and it's working ok. Even at only half the voltage across the motor, the compressor manages to build up the 8 bars to activate the pressure switch. It seems to be better to run the motor at around 70 percent of the line voltage though. The motor also has a thermoswitch attached to it which should disconnect the motor from the grid, before catastrophic failure can occur. If new problems should turn up later on, then I fear that there is no future for this compressor. Buying new belts constantly would exceed the costs for a new compressor ( in this price class) pretty fast.

[@griffgriffo9746]

Won't slowing the motor also slow the speed of the motors cooling fan,,,

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Yes. That's true. Only time will show if driving the compressor at slower speeds will solve the problem. Until now it works well though. I have used the compressor a lot during the last weeks ( since the repair) and the belt doesn't get very hot now. It could still be possible that the universal motor becomes hotter than usual, but the temperature switch that is attached to the stator winding should prevent catastrophic failure, even if that would be the case.

[@TheMetalButcher]

No screw compressors explained? Good video, either way.

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

I don't own any kind of screw compressor at this time. That's why I didn't mention them. But I will make a video about that should I ever come to own one !

[@KX36]

"Made in USA really meant something back in the day"... It was fair enough when you said it about "Made in England" in a previous video. We British are sensible realistic people and we know that England all but stopped manufacturing because labour was expensive and quality went through the floor in the '70s, but you're probably going to irritate some proud americans as they do still hold "made in USA" with the absolute highest regard in terms of quality. America still does manufacture a lot for its domestic market, it just doesn't export much. Of course take emotion out of the picture and we know nothing beats "made in Germany". :)

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

KX36 Yeah you're right, there is a chance that some Americans might be offended by that statement. (Actually I wanted to make a compliment there :D ) And I want to apologize for that. I'm sure that there are still a lot of quality manufacturers in the US. I might simply not know them because ( as you said) only few American tools and machines are imported into Germany. I have so much stuff coming into the workshop, but rarely anything "Made in USA".

[@Ehcorde]

The Post Apocalyptic Inventor Actually most stuff made in America is absolute (Pardon my language) shit nowadays. While I do enjoy anything made in my home country(Rare as it may be), mostly things made past 2010 - to either be equal or sometimes(80% of the time) lacking. But there are still some quality US made products. Like: ... ...Uhh.. Well Nicholson Rasps were made in the US until last year or something like that, so I guess that counts. Stihl. But they're kind of prestigious. Crayola Crayons! Yes, that's the one. The build quality of those crayons are substantial. But in all seriousness, The price of factories in China is raising, I guess they're over half of the US minimum wage(Probably not true), so perhaps America will do its thing. That or everything will be made in Taiwan and India. Also you guys in Germany probably have more US made equipment than the US itself. I'm pretty sure most US made items are exported, rarely any of it remains in the US. Oh, and great video. I enjoy your positive outlook towards the whereabouts of item manufacturing. Also I've never once in my life found a physical item made in England. But yeah, quality of US products tanked.

[@ThePostApocalypticInventor]

Ehcorde Well Germany is very lucky that her "real economy" was not entirely replaced by the "financial economy" that (for example) many British politicians had so much trust in. I guess it becomes more and more apparent that we need manufacturing and have to create "real values" to maintain a healthy economy. And I can only hope that the process of "outsourcing" will be stopped or even reversed both in the US, the UK and in Germany. Other than that it came to my mind, that my lawn mower was "Made in USA" by the Toro Company in Bloomington, Minnesota. It's really a very high quality product and that company actually has a very good reputation in Germany. But then again it's +20 years old and I don't know if they ( Toro) still manufacture in the US nowadays. About "Made in England": My father is a professional wood carver and he is proud to own several wood carving sets made by Henry Taylor in Sheffield, England. Even in Germany ( which has or used to have a huge knife making industry of her own) these tools are known to be among the best (if not the best) in the world. It's just a small company, but it seems that they have survived for 2 centuries, simply because they make high quality products.

[@blendergomo2354]

your story like anime movies (: