portable air compressors for tires

alsmith

100 kW
Joined
Dec 3, 2010
Messages
1,182
Location
Northumberland, UK
There are lots of cheap portable 12V portable compressors for lowing up tires, and there are even a few for 48V - 60V. What's the difference that makes them suitable for the higher voltage- is it just a series resistor? Reason is I generally run at 36V so would like to convert a 12V to run on a 36V battery. I'm guessing that a 48V would struggle/stall on 36V here ut since the prices aren't a very big jump from the 12V ones they can't be adding or changing much internally.
 
Like other motors, it depends on teh motor winding (or if it has an internal speed controller or voltage converter that runs a 12v motor on a higher voltage). Most likely they're simply using a motor wound for the voltage they sell it for.

If you run a lower voltage motor on a higher voltage it'll spin faster, but if it has enough of a load on it (like a compressor might) it'll have a lot more current flowing thru it, and heat up a lot faster, so the motor could overheat and burn out.

The higher speed could break mechanical bits of the compressor, too. (lots of these things are plastic or cheap die-cast potmetal).



There's a number of threads about various compressors and projects that may help you

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/search.php?keywords=compressor*&terms=all&author=&sc=1&sf=titleonly&sr=topics&sk=t&sd=d&st=0&ch=300&t=0&submit=Search

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/search.php?keywords=air+pump*&terms=all&author=&sc=1&sf=titleonly&sr=topics&sk=t&sd=d&st=0&ch=300&t=0&submit=Search

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/search.php?keywords=tire+pump*&terms=all&author=&sc=1&sf=titleonly&sr=topics&sk=t&sd=d&st=0&ch=300&t=0&submit=Search

There's probably more, but those were quick easy searches. ;)
 
or you could just choose the compressor you want and use a voltage converter:
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=90369

The advantage of a 12 Volt is that you can steal power from a four wheeler in needed :D
 
just so you dont have to try... a 12v automotive compressor connected to 36v will burn up before your tire is full. :lol:
 
product-pumps-floor-pumps-joeblow-sport2-jowblow-sport2-f37e54af045a7b2e87206830ec97c6cd.jpg

Not everything needs e-assist.
[youtube]RtrI53k4WZM[/youtube]
 
https://www.ebay.com/i/253237165814?chn=ps

This is the one I'm in love with. NOT cheap, but at the black Friday sale it can be. Useless of course, if you don't already have the Ryobi drill, and have the battery and charger.

A bit bulky to carry, but when you know you are heading out with a leaker, and need to keep pumping despite the slime, it sure beats a tiny hand pump. Easier to carry than a large hand pump, but it still fills a pannier or rack bag, so not that convenient in size.

CO2 rig for small size and ease.
 
I have a 48v compressor that works great off my 52v bike battery. It's just like the 12v versions but the motor is wound with way more turns of skinnier wire to make it 48v. It draws less than 2A running.

Img_0322.jpg
 
Chalo said:
Not everything needs e-assist.
[youtube]RtrI53k4WZM[/youtube]

Completely agree. Part of the reason for riding is the exercise. Even my short stroke mini frame pump lets me pump up a 26x2 tire in just a couple minutes. It weighs almost nothing and deploys quickly. And because it mounts to the frame, it leaves room in my backpack for my electric scissors. :p
 
Bear in mind I'm handicapped. Its not just because I'm lazy that I want an electric pump with me when I know the tire is a leaker. By the time I get a tire hand pumped I'm trashed. Chronic fatigue syndrome is no joke.

But on a daily basis, not riding a bike known to go flat in a few miles, I just carry a tiny hand pump. Double slime and thick tubes usually do me ok until you hit a big nail or screw. But sometimes that works good enough that I put off replacing a tube with a bit too big a hole in it for slime, and just want to go to the store or whatever. Then I carry the Ryobi. I take it on any kind of car road trip too.

At home, I have a regular compressor, that I use to keep the 30 or more pneumatic tires on my property full. But that Ryobi, its nice to pump up a wheelbarrow or bike where it is, vs rolling it on a flat to the garage to fill it.


Cool 48v mini compressor. One of those would be great for e bikes.
 
When I got my fat bike, I quickly figured out that if I got a flat on the trail and only had a little hand pump, I'd be there for an hour pumping the thing up.

I took my compressor and cut away part of the housing to make it small enough to easily fit in my bike bag (along with the tire levers, patches and basic tools).

48V air compressor.jpg
 
dogman dan said:
Bear in mind I'm handicapped. Its not just because I'm lazy that I want an electric pump with me when I know the tire is a leaker. By the time I get a tire hand pumped I'm trashed. Chronic fatigue syndrome is no joke.

Of course. If someone isn't able to operate a hand pump effectively, then it isn't a reasonable option. I'm betting there are some disabled folks out there who consider electric scissors to be just short of a godsend as well.
 
dogman dan said:
https://www.ebay.com/i/253237165814?chn=ps

This is the one I'm in love with. NOT cheap, but at the black Friday sale it can be. Useless of course, if you don't already have the Ryobi drill, and have the battery and charger.

A bit bulky to carry, but when you know you are heading out with a leaker, and need to keep pumping despite the slime, it sure beats a tiny hand pump. Easier to carry than a large hand pump, but it still fills a pannier or rack bag, so not that convenient in size.

CO2 rig for small size and ease.


Ah yes, saw that and since I have a Ryobi drill and 2 18V batteries I went ahead and ordered one $29.00 free shipping on Amazon. Bought a 12V one at St. Vinnies a while back for $7.00 which turned out to not work and getting tired of mooching fill ups for my air tank from my neighbor across the street off his compressor. Thanks for posting that, it ought to be good for keeping the tires on the 15 two wheeled vehicles in my garage pumped up (wife pointed that number out a few days ago). Hand/foot pumps work fine but aren't as much fun.
 
Black and Decker have an inflator also for their "multi tools" (basically a 20 volt lithium drill) for about $25. Prolly not quite as good as the Ryobi but similar and cheaper, particularly if you use their tools anyway.
otherDoc.
 
B&D is good too I'm sure. I just went Ryobi for my drills and stuff a few years back, when they discontinued the 24v B&D NiCad stuff.

All I can say is the Ryobi lasted me a year before my garage burned. Used it a lot. Got another about 9 months ago, and its still fine even after doing quite a bit of car tires before I got a new big compressor.

CO2 rig still the best for small size though. I just found the cans a bit pricy, for riding around through as many thorns as I do on the dirt bikes. If I can make it back to home or car, I get to skip the pumping with the tiny pump.
 
I have high hopes for the Ryobi, obviously it's going to be too big to carry in panniers but for home use it ought to be useful. Wife got me the drill/2 battery set a couple years ago, it's proved to be a pretty good tool, I've put it through hell, built a small house with it, a lot of use building guitar speaker cabinets and other assorted uses, liked it so well I ended up buying a Ryobi chop saw when my Makita finally became so sloppy it was basically unusable.

Gonna have to get a few C02 cartridges before spring when I start Mountain Biking more again, I have a couple of the little cheaply Bell handpumps I've been carrying for years along with spare tubes but they really take a lot of effort to get much pressure in a tire.
 
dogman dan said:
https://www.ebay.com/i/253237165814?chn=ps

This is the one I'm in love with. NOT cheap, but at the black Friday sale it can be. Useless of course, if you don't already have the Ryobi drill, and have the battery and charger.

A bit bulky to carry, but when you know you are heading out with a leaker, and need to keep pumping despite the slime, it sure beats a tiny hand pump. Easier to carry than a large hand pump, but it still fills a pannier or rack bag, so not that convenient in size.

CO2 rig for small size and ease.

As is happens I have a ryobi drill and two of the batteries, I'd already looked at this unit but with UK duty and shipping its a bit expensive. Next big lottery win though...
And really it was something I could carry on the bike for emergencies I wanted, not frequent use. I got one of those (cheaper) drill shaped rechargeable air pumps for home use and it's over 5 years old now. It has nicd batteries though and they have been replaced once as the originals started leaking. The ebay supply sent NiMH not the NiCd's I'd ordered and I ended up using them. Not as good as the NiCds but then I'm using the NiCd charger and it was only ever meant as a short term answer.
 
alsmith said:
if anyone is interested there's a 48 - 60V portable compressor at banggood- 8.44 UK pounds delivered so that must be under $12. There's only a few left so if you're interested move fast. (I've looked at banggood a few times but not previously bought from them).

That looks pretty similar to the one I got. I've been real impressed with mine so far. Since I have a fat bike, it beats carrying a dozen CO2 cartridges.
 
I’m big on Banggood and generally pleased with their stuff. At $11.34USD I don’t expect it’ll take much of a beating but I seldom need a pump. I’m taking a flyer and going for one, last one i 5ook from the case, and cleaned up wiring and made it an even smaller package.

I have never ordered from them during this major holiday...I’d expect unusually long delays, typical was 2 weeks during non holiday periods.


ARGH! Under restocking. It will be available soon.

I went with the 48v black on Banggood from a 99.9% rated seller on eBay. $27.
Hooping it’s like this picture for case stripping.
 

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dilkes said:
I ordered one.
When you "cut down the case" or did "case stripping", what did you put the guts into?
I store mine in a nylon bag.
 
fechter said:
Here's what mine looked like inside before I cut down the case:

Tire Pump insides.jpg

Thanks, how much case did you remove? Any chance of a picture? Always up for one of your project photos! THANKS!
 
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