Speedaire compressor ? Safe pressure...

by Drew Malbica
(Vancouver, Washington)

I picked up a speedaire Air compressor from a friend of mine and I really don't understand to much about it.

It's model number is 3Z406.

It does not have an on/off switch.

All it has is a plug and and then it starts pumping. It is suppose to shut off at 150 and restart at 125psi. I have yet to pump it up that high because it seems to get hot and start to smell like an oil smell. It needed to be topped off with oil so I did that. Is it safe pump it up to 150 and see if it shuts off then use one of my air tools to see if it kicks back on again? How much pressure can the tank safely hold. Thanks for your time.

__________________
Bill says...

Hello Drew. The Speedaire compressor will be engineered to safely have the pressure reach the normal cut out pressure setting. If yours is 150 PSI, then it's OK to let it run up to that level.

Read about the PRV linked from the site map to understand this safety feature on your, and all, compressors.

If you leave it running until the pressure gets to the normal cut out level, and it shuts off, good stuff. Run your air tool, and when the pressure drops to the normal cut in level, the compressor should restart.

As to the smell, can't really comment on whether that's normal or not, as I don't know your compressor. All DIY compressors (and most industrial ones too) run quite hot.

Try it. If it doesn't make 150 PSI and craps out, hope you didn't give your friend too much money for it.

Good luck. Keep us posted as a comment here, K?

Cheers,

Bill




Comments for
Speedaire compressor ? Safe pressure...

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May 11, 2012
 yeah but...
by: Anonymous

Yours may be shutting off at 160 psi like mine is. I don't know if my compressor is supposed to shut off at 150 psi or 160 but 10 lbs is not too bad a discrepency. Tanks are supposed to be rated at a much higher capacity for safty reasons. Mine is a model 3Z406. I tried to find the info about mine but couldn't. Can you tell me where you found the info on yours?

Anyway, what I'm suggesting to you is let it fill just a bit longer to see if your switch is shutting working at 160 psi. Maybe you got lucky like I did and it's operating at that.

I don't know if there is an adjustment on these like on my Craftsman. I can set the dial on my Craftsman to turn off at any presure within a dertain range. I just keep it at around 150. Most of my tools are rated and below that. I have one old floor sander that requires high preasure and high volume so I have cranked my craftsman to shut off at 175. I can also adjust the cut-in on the Craftsman. So I guess I have another question, Do these Speedaire compressors have this kind of adjustment?
May 11, 2012
 I have one too.
by: ARTIZAN

Hi, I just wanted to let you know that I have one of those Speedaire compressors too. I got mine with all the stuff my dad left me and my brother. I already had a Craftsman portable and I know that my brother had left this Speedaire with my dad and when my dad passed, my brouther wasn't interested in this old thing. I had an opportunity to trade it for a small very dirty travel trailer, so I decided to take a closer look at it.

First thing I noticed is that it has a two cyl pump, I liked that right off the bat. I tried plugging it in and it tripped the breakers. It did run and complress then it started straining and tripped the breakers so I tried turning it by hand and it seemed fine but there was a bit of resustance. I noticed the oil filler and decided to add some oil and try it again. It fired right up and pump nice and fast. I watched the guage and it stopped at 160 psi. I am very happy with this compressor and I don't think I will be trading it.

Can anyone tell me how much a compressor like this is worth?

Thanks.
Jul 21, 2011
 Pressure switch
by: Drew

My speedaire compressor as listed in topic pumps up to 150 but does not shut off it just keeps going to max the gauge at 160 so I unplugged it. How do you tell if the pressure switch is bad or not?

___________________

If it normally shuts off at 150 PSI and now just goes on past that point then you can be pretty sure that the pressure switch is at fault.

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