Poor Performing Compressor?

woodworkbykirk

last year i upgraded finish guns, i was using the porter cable guns that come with teh compressor, switched to paslode. the paslode gun performs much better than the pc one. one thing i was noticing was only 50% of my nails were set the others were either flush or proud oddly enough same thing when pluggin into other pc compressors. at first i was thining it was the gun, i asked around and guys said it could be the drive pin. however as of late i have been leaving my compressor at home and plugging into a eagle or a makita, both twin tanks. almost every nail proper depth other than the odd one here or there.

my question is has anyone else noticed this with porter cable pancakes or is it a sign the compressor is worn out? just curious as im looking into a hitachi set framing gun and 5 gallong for $529 or the 16 gauge and 5 gallong for $400

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putting down subfloor with glue and screws, well i saw dr. smith and the robot too , i had a martian burger and a sonic shake

samthedog

At what psi is your compressor topping up? Mine shot poorly until I changed it too kepp the tank close to optimum at all times. It used to drop to about 65psi and at that pressure the nailing looked like crap.
Mine is not a PC compressor but it might be a similar issue.

samthedog

woodworkbykirk

even with dialing up the pressure to 115 the depth stays the same only makes the gun kickback

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putting down subfloor with glue and screws, well i saw dr. smith and the robot too , i had a martian burger and a sonic shake

BCConstruction

what type of hose are you using? Sounds like a volume problem if it's not hitting them in at 115psi. We have a porter cable pancake here and it does the same thing with my nailgun and aint worth a crap on a job with more than 5-6 nails a min. It's a combination of bad compressor and crappy airhose.

samthedog

There you have it. Go buy some toys!!

samthedog.

woodworkbykirk

cool, new compressor it is, just after i do a few projects on my own place first, cash flow is a biggy

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putting down subfloor with glue and screws, well i saw dr. smith and the robot too , i had a martian burger and a sonic shake

mikeswoods

When you buy any compressor, find out what the regulator is set to turn on and off.

Many of the smaller/cheap ones will not kick on until the tank pressure is 85psi-this will leave the last few nails proud of the surface.

You may have to dig up that info on your own as it is seldom printed on the box.

I've owned and killed 6 Campbel Hausfield compressors over the years,not a bad value. Rigid is built for the Depot by the same company,

Have fun shopping. MIKE

mikeswoods

If anyone knows of a quality mini compressor ==Please let me know. My back is killing me.

BCConstruction

I use the Makita 2400 compressor and i will tel you now that it's the best compressor this size i have ever used. Never heard such a quite compressor. Check it out. You should be able to find plenty of reviews.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0001Q2VPK

woodworkbykirk

yes, that makita is pretty sweet. a guy on our crew has it and we use it regularly when we have all guns blazing, usually 4 or 5 going on one site.

good thing about it is it keeps up no problem, and is super quite compared to most. it will prob be my first choice if i dont go for the hitachi framer combo

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putting down subfloor with glue and screws, well i saw dr. smith and the robot too , i had a martian burger and a sonic shake

mikeswoods

Looks good ,fair price, Will it push a framing gun?

woodworkbykirk

yup, weve run 2 hitachis off it, one stick one coil

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putting down subfloor with glue and screws, well i saw dr. smith and the robot too , i had a martian burger and a sonic shake

BCConstruction

I have used mine on everything from my Bostich flooring staplers, finish nailers to my frameing nailer and it has functioned flawlessly. It's got some omphhh for such a small compressor. I have run 2 frameing nail guns from it before and it had zero problems with them also. You can find them reconditioned for a lot less also if ya dont mind reconditioned. There's zero problems with them and normally more relaible than new tools because they are tested before shipping. Keep an eye on http://www.tylertool.com/mac2400makita.html for one if ya dont mind the recon model. I wouldnt think twice about it.

woodworkbykirk

good call!

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putting down subfloor with glue and screws, well i saw dr. smith and the robot too , i had a martian burger and a sonic shake

cbfx3

there may be some adjustment in the the switch box .. look for a screw/spring type thing to adjust what pressure it kicks in.. otherwise get a better compressor. I picked up a used "bull" by rolair and am very impressed with it for a small compressor

woodworkbykirk

sold the porter cable today, getting either the makita mentioned above or the ridgid aluminum tank model, just a matter of how many $$$ i have left in the account after the big bills at the start of the month

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putting down subfloor with glue and screws, well i saw dr. smith and the robot too , i had a martian burger and a sonic shake

J.C.

You might want to check out a Jenny compressor Jennyproductsinc.com They were a big supplier for Emglo before DeWalt bought Emglo out and moved the operation to Mexico.

Emglo=Another once good tool company DeWalt decided to buy and ruin.

woodworkbykirk

no arguments there, i love how dewalt advertises that their smallest compressor is the quitest model on the market, yet it is ear piercing and the makita im looking at is hardly noticeable if your in the next room

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putting down subfloor with glue and screws, well i saw dr. smith and the robot too , i had a martian burger and a sonic shake

BCConstruction

The makita is very quite. Hard to explain how quite until you hear it in person.

tccoggs

You could just have a plugged or poor flowing regulator. You might want to try removing it and testing your gun again, just don't exceed the max pressure of the gun and DO NOT leave the regulator off.