BajaNomad - TIRE INFLATION QUESTION

TIRE INFLATION QUESTION

Marc - 12-11-2012 at 07:02 PM

Would a 20 LB CO2 bottle be good for inflating tires? If so how far will one go? My yellow Harington battery-compressor just does not hack it!

dizzyspots - 12-11-2012 at 07:33 PM

google the little mv 50 compressor....7 trips and unk number of air downs and fill ups...about $80

David K - 12-11-2012 at 07:50 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by dizzyspots
google the little mv 50 compressor....7 trips and unk number of air downs and fill ups...about $80

This one or the one from Harbor Freight... clips onto the battery and 3 times faster than a cigarette lighter connected air pump (ie. 5-6 psi per minute vs. 2 psi).

[Edited on 12-12-2012 by David K]

philodog - 12-11-2012 at 07:52 PM

Don`t know about the CO2 bottle. I use a standard size aluminum SCUBA tank with a regulator attached to an air hose. It can be filled to 3000 psi and for my Toyota truck tires (275/65/18) it takes about 10 psi out of the tank to get 1 psi into the tires. So if I air down to 15 psi it takes 150 psi out of the tank to air up to 30. That`s at least 4 complete air ups on all tires out of 1 tank. It can be filled for $5 at any SCUBA place. The air comes out faster than any compressor at a gas station.

CortezBlue - 12-11-2012 at 07:53 PM

I bought an air tank, but I have a harbor freight unit that was very reasonable, maybe 30 bucks. It looks just like the picture above. It hooks up directly to the battery and works great

philodog - 12-11-2012 at 07:54 PM

ps Also works great for air tools when no power is available.

Maderita - 12-11-2012 at 09:41 PM

Yes, a CO2 tank is a great source for filling tires. Many off-roaders use a CO2 system. Because CO2 is liquid in the tank, it will fill many more tires than a compressed air or SCUBA tank. IRC, most offroad tanks are 10 lb size.

You will need a pressure regulator if you don't already have one. CO2 straight off the tank exceeds 800 psi, a dangerous pressure to work with.
A non adjustable regulator can be purchased for around $50; an adjustable regulator is more expensive.

There are ready made systems: PowerTank (powertank.com), QuickAir, Offroad Air Systems "HyperFlo" among them. You might read what they have to say and copy their simple setup. Many people start with a welding CO2 tank and add the necessary parts for less than 1/2 the cost of one of these "store bought" systems.

I've used paintball CO2 tanks, up to 20 oz. tanks, combined with an attached "fill valve" and modifying an air chuck to free-flow. That little tank will air up at least two offroad tires (from 12 psi to 30 psi). So a 20 lb. tank should theoretically fill at least 32 tires. That is assuming that the 20 oz. tank is measured in dry weight ounces, not fluid ounces. Not sure how it's measured. You might contact Powertank for their data.

Personally, I prefer a high quality 12V portable compressor. My current one is a Viair 350C mounted inside a "fat 50" ammo can. Takes up much less space and never needs refilling. However, a CO2 tank has the advantage of faster filling times.

Bajaboy - 12-11-2012 at 10:19 PM

I'll put my Quick Air pump up to anything....you get what you pay for....

David K - 12-12-2012 at 05:15 PM

Zac, have you actually timed how many minutes to fill up your tires with the Quick Air? Amo Pescar had one (in 2001) and the fill hose fitting failed the first time it was used (at Cielito Lindo, BBBB-1).

I first bought the Harbor Freight unit after both Neal Johns and BajaLou recommended it here ... $49 on sale.

The Tsunami red pump was given to me a couple years ago, and it is just a tad slower, but more compact for packing than the Harbor Freight unit... 5 psi per minute instead of 6. More time for a Pacifico!

Viair Extreme!

Ken Cooke - 12-12-2012 at 08:23 PM

Powers air tools, airs up tires nice and fast.

brewer - 12-12-2012 at 09:13 PM

Viair model 400 something. Filled up 2 trucks up from 25 psi. to 55 psi in about 20 minutes.

Satisfied so far.

Bajaboy - 12-12-2012 at 09:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
Zac, have you actually timed how many minutes to fill up your tires with the Quick Air? Amo Pescar had one (in 2001) and the fill hose fitting failed the first time it was used (at Cielito Lindo, BBBB-1).

I first bought the Harbor Freight unit after both Neal Johns and BajaLou recommended it here ... $49 on sale.

The Tsunami red pump was given to me a couple years ago, and it is just a tad slower, but more compact for packing than the Harbor Freight unit... 5 psi per minute instead of 6. More time for a Pacifico!

I've had it since 1997...think I paid about $300 for it. I'm kind of guessing that we might have different models or maybe you are confused with the brands. I can air up in a Tecate or so :lol:

Ken Cooke - 12-12-2012 at 09:26 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Bajaboy

I've had it since 1997...think I paid about $300 for it. I'm kind of guessing that we might have different models or maybe you are confused with the brands. I can air up in a Tecate or so :lol:

I paid 5 1/2 for my set-up.

David K - 12-13-2012 at 10:27 AM

Ken: 5 1/2 what?

Zac: "Quick Air" was the brand... I am thinking it was a Quick Air II? It was 11 years ago, and Amo's for the 4WD Viva Baja Van.

Barry A. - 12-13-2012 at 10:56 AM

I have had my 12v "Quick Air II" mounted in it's own steel box for many years and it always performs flawlessly, but it is expensive (about $300 I think). To bring my four 285 x 16's up from 15 lbs to 35 lbs takes about 15 to 20 mins. as I recall. Very happy with it, and I use it all the time for lots of things that need "inflating".

Barry

hazard fraught tools

willardguy - 12-13-2012 at 11:22 AM

:lol:

http://www.flutterby.com/images/2012/10/01/hf_tool_sale.pdf

rts551 - 12-13-2012 at 11:27 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by willardguy
:lol:

http://www.flutterby.com/images/2012/10/01/hf_tool_sale.pdf

good one ..I didn't know that any thing from HF lasted more than a few minutes

jbcoug - 12-13-2012 at 12:28 PM

I have nearly everything in the ad, I just can't pass up a sale.
I especially like the slide whistle, my recitals always get tremendous reviews.

John

Ken Cooke - 12-14-2012 at 06:19 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
Ken: 5 1/2 what?

5 1/2 Benjamins :light:

Marc - 12-15-2012 at 09:00 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by willardguy
:lol:

http://www.flutterby.com/images/2012/10/01/hf_tool_sale.pdf

captkw - 12-15-2012 at 09:06 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by willardguy
:lol:

http://www.flutterby.com/images/2012/10/01/hf_tool_sale.pdf

{KW quote} you get what you pay for !! my self dont buy much from HF any more..JUNK stuff that you do not want to bank on IMO..I have a few HF tool storeys I can tell about HF crap !!PS..thanks Willardguy...thats a good one!!!

[Edited on 12-15-2012 by captkw]