Friday, Mar 27, 2009 at 17:37
Can't see what point exactly your trying to make - is it, that your better off without a tank/receiver, than with one?
I seem to recall something like 20 minutes per tyre without a receiver from 9 psi back up to 45 psi.
Thats pretty slow without the receiver tank (a mandatory 1 hour 20 minute stop to re inflate after beach work)?.
Compared to what? a total of 16 minutes to inflate your 4 tyres using the 18 liter Arlec tank & ARB compressor?
For me it wasn't that hard or expensive to convert a near new 5 liter fire exteinguisher into a air receiver, albeit not as big as your Arlec receiver @ 22 liters.
It's really very simple to do, in that the fire extinguisher comes with it's mounting bracket making the install quick & easey.
Activated the extinguisher into a big garbage plasic bag to catch all the white powder and disposed of it in the trash.
Removed the handle and delivery pipe by unthreading it at
the neck.
Blew out the bottle with compressed air until clean.
Activated the handle and blew the delivery pipe and handle with compressed air until clean.
Took a drill and drilled a hole in top wall of extinguisher sufficient to take a tubeless tyre valve stem. Added silicone to the base groove of the tubless tyre valve stem. Used a tyre valve stem tool to
seat the new tubeless valve stem from inside the bottle - pulling it out into position so that the wet silicone got a chance to dry in the tubeless valve stem groove and too the steel wall of the extinguisher to create and air tght seal.
Fitted the valve.
Re inserted the handle and pickup tube and tightened using thread tape for an air tight seal.
Test inflated the extinguisher to 85 psi - which using the gauge on top of the extinguisher shows it to be below the normal full operating capacity of the extinguisher when loaded with powder and propellent gas. The full capacity appears to be closer to 120 psi = so 85 psi seems like a safe operating load & co-incides with the automatic cut out switch on the arb compressor anyway.
Plumbed the outlet rubber pipe with compressed air snaplock fittings etc and ran too snaplocks on front and back roo bar and bumper for tyre filling duties.
It's not at all difficult to make a receiver for the arb air compressors system indeed even to add an arlec 18 liter receiver as you describe.
I guess the "advantage" of having one in a practical sense is that:-
e.g. While exiting a beach etc - you can activate the compressor and store up a volume of air ready to inflate tyres when you reach hard ground / hard top road.
Any time saved out of the 80 minutes to re inflate tyres - when it's hot outside and your tired and want to go
home is welcome time saved.
You save time for example as the compressor stores air while your coupling and uncoupling from each tyre and from front or rear snaplocks during the tyre filling process.
When you think about it - even a long air hose stores a little more air (but not much) so you can use the ARB compressor without a reciever quite effectively, IF your patient and havent got to be anywhere ina hurry!
Different story if you have say 4 employees in a 4wd spending an hour 20 minutes twice a day re inflating tyres on and off a beach (5 hours 20 mins at what 60 bucks an hour)?
Time is money as they say.
I see that in the USA where they do seem to like to have air horns (train type) in the SUV's - it is not at all uncommon to have 2 or 4 arb type air compressores installed in a box in the back of their trucks, with a large receiver - and use air
tools etc to work on their vehicles
Perhaps our use of these arb type compressors - i a little less develloped than the yanks (understandable givenour costs to buy the compressors!).
I would think - if talking multiple arb type compressors - maybe it would be cheaper - more effective to use an old vane type air conditioning compressor run off the engine.
All come back to just how much aor do you want and hhow quickly?
Different users needs will vary.
There are still times I wish I had more!
Cheers
AnswerID:
356614
Follow Up By: Wayne's 60 - Saturday, Mar 28, 2009 at 00:16
Saturday, Mar 28, 2009 at 00:16
Hi Fly,
Yes, that is my question, am I better with a tank or without.
On an initial
test, may need a more indepth study, it appears that inflation times are slower and the compressor is nearing the recommended cycle time. I did some testing
here and the compressor will fill my tyres from 10 psi to 40 psi in 2.5 minutes.
With regareds to your fire extinguisher tank, I'm thinking that the cost may be a moot point, there would've been a cost involved with the set up. However if you are happy with it then all is good.
BTW, nice bit of work you have done there.
An endless air unit is supposed to be a very good set up, I'm still hankering for a turbo and apparently this makes the fitting just that little more difficult.
There are some VERY hi flo US units on the market, as seen on e-bay, unfortunately they cost a lot, money that could be put to diesel for touring :-)
Thanks for your reply.
Cheers,
Wayne.
FollowupID:
624739
Follow Up By: Member - Roachie (SA) - Saturday, Mar 28, 2009 at 10:48
Saturday, Mar 28, 2009 at 10:48
A nominal size air tank (say 20 litres) will be good for an initial blast of air to
seat a bead or blow dust out of a air filter of bugs out of your radiator. It might even have enough capacity for some light-duty air tools. BUT, anybody who thinks it's going to speed up their air-up times is dreaming. Once the air pressure stored in the tank is depleted, the compressor is going to be working harder because it's going to be trying to pump up the tyre AS
WELL AS the tank.
Ideally, you'd have a tank hooked up to the compressor with a tap that allowed you shut off the supply line to the tank, and direct the compressor's flow directly to the airing-up hose.
I have a Grand Boss compressor hooked up to a GME 16 litre air re-charge tank, all hard-mounted in the Patrol. I don't worry about doing what I said in the previous paragraph, I just have the tank always in the "loop". I use mine to operate air horns, front ARB locker as
well as Ryco outlets front and back for tyre inflation and to use my blower gun.
Works for me!! I keep the tank pressurised all the time whenever I'm driving. It has a ARB 80 to 100 psi switch as
well as a governing switch in the cab and another switch at the compressor in the cargo box.
Roachie
FollowupID:
624787
Follow Up By: Wayne's 60 - Saturday, Mar 28, 2009 at 15:21
Saturday, Mar 28, 2009 at 15:21
G'day Roachie,
The reason I dragged the tank out was to see if it WOULD assist and now I know ........... that it doesn't and thanks for adding the reason that it won't.
A long story on how I ended up with three compressors, though before this happened I did look at the continuous rated units like the Grand Boss etc and unfortunately didn't have the dollars at the time. Maybe when the turbo and lockers are fitted, a serious upgrade to a similar system will happen.
Thanks for your reply.
Cheers,
Wayne.
FollowupID:
624815