Best Offroad Air Compressor Mods! This Thing Is FAST!!!
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- These air compressor mods are getting out of hand! Tinkering in the shop is one of my favorite way to express a little creative problem solving. Modifying this Napa Maxitrac air compressor has been a great way to do that. In today's video, we destroy the heads, redesign an area between the cylinders and do a speed test against other compressors. Enjoy the video!
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Due to factors out of the control of Dirt Lifestyle, we cannot guarantee against improper use or unauthorized modifications of this information. Dirt Lifestyle assumes no liability or responsibility for property damages or injury incurred as a result of any information contained in this video. Use this information at your own risk. Dirt Lifestyle recommends safe practices when working on vehicles and/or with tools seen in this video. Any injury, damage, or loss that may result from improper use of these tools, equipment, or from the information contained in this video is the sole responsibility of the user and not Dirt Lifestyle. Be safe!
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I FREAKING LOVE THIS SERIES!!!! Please do keep modding. I have wondered for years if I disassembled contractors' air compressor. Remote placed the tank with a different shape to fit the vehicle and of course, an inverter / remote battery power supply would be a better option. NOW I'm thinking to do all that but also incorporating your mod ideas.PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, list links or acquisition options for the reeds and more not-so-usual items. THANK YOU Hand
I used a contractors compressor in the back of my cherokee for quite a while it was almost an accident that I got the idea or started using it. I had my inverter in the back at the time and loaded a little compressor in the back and when I looked at my inverter the idea just clicked lol and that compressor lived there for a few years. Anyway it was similar to one of those pancake compressors but it had 2 small tanks on top of each other I think it was still like 2 or 3 gallons but it fit nicely behind the seat with the hose wrapped around it the only mod I did was I put nice heavy rubber feet on it, not really even a mod.
Nowadays I have co2 and a dual viair system with a 2 gallon tank more integrated into the jeep.
Awesome! I'm glad you are digging it! As far as links I could definitely be better about that lol. These reeds are from Amazon I think I searched air compressor reeds 👍
There are some tine 1 gallon jobsite compressors out there now that I feel would be perfect for this! If you could find a similar spec'd 12v motor and replaced the ac motor with it, you could even forego the inverter which would be nice.
Thank you for the reed info and other advice/info gentlemen
I replaced a pressure switch on a 4 gal contractor compressor. I noticed extremely small holes in the distribution 4way in the bottom of switch. I drilled all 4 out to 3/8" for better flow. They're seriously like maybe 3/16" dia hole...tiny. now I can run airtools off it like an impact gun...it just wouldn't do it before. Not enough flow.
I'm here for all the air compressor mods! One of my favorite recent series you've done.
Thank you!
I love stuff like this! It doesn’t always have to be hardcore fabrication and wheeling. These kinds of projects are perfect for winter.
Yes please. Definitely should do another video on the compressors. Super interesting.
I think there is a lot of improvement that can be done with off road air compressors. These compressors are currently designed for a maximum piston backpressure of 100+ psi at 100 amps or so. If you instead designed a system that pulled 100 amps at 35psi you could incorporate a cylinder head with far more volume per stroke. This would maximize the motor name plate power level at lower tire pressures which is where we need it.
Not sure I follow you. I made a vid showing the power draw 0-120psi. The highest draw is at start then lowers as it goes up. CFM is highest at a lower psi then as psi goes up the CFM goes down.
This is very cool Nate, my vote is to keep going down the rabbit hole 🐰🕳️! This series got me to try modding an older air compressor so now I can turn a diverter valve and fill the tank to run off, or run direct from the compressor. 👍🇨🇦
Also something to consider, is having an air tank plumbed in line. I have the same compressor, without mods, plumbed into an air tank. with one quick release chuck in the front bumper, and one chuck in the rear. So might have to test inflating two tires then airing up all 4 at once. My compressor works with my SwitchPros unit, and has a regulator set to 100psi. Which is what the tank is rated to.
From testing I've done nope a tank really doesn't change much
Can confirm qual inflate is faster on the Napa. From my armchair research, I’ve found that the limitation is the Schrader valve at the tire, being that it really can only flow something like 2-3 CFM. Running 4 I can see a drastic reduction in back pressure. Inflator would register ~30 psi over the actual in the tire filling a single tire. Filling 4 the back pressure is around 5 PSI, which to me means that not only are we using more of the available CFM of the compressor, we are also running the compressor at a lower PSI, which is more efficient and more CFM from the compressor.
Yes...but from shop air at 175psi I was able to fill the same tire in like 1 min....so if the valve is restrictive...doesn't make sense
I believe you (Joshua Manning) would be correct based on the subjective research done by another Australian, (ua-cam.com/video/YI8yJRdkiEg/v-deo.html), although credit where credit is due "Dirt Lifestyle" has done a great job limiting the restriction points within the compressor itself, however, has missed probably the biggest restriction of them all. The tyre valve! In conjunction to some currently unknown extent, the handpiece would create some restriction in flow as well. There are a few ways to combat this, either using the product in the video linked above, or by simply linking tyres together and reducing the flow through each valve. The only way to properly test these would to utilise a flow bench with a full mock-up system including valve stems to have empirical evidence on what works and what does not.
You should keep it up on those slower down days man, it's a cool project and fun to watch the progression
@DirtLifestyle, Nate, ABSOLUTELY should do another vid and take it to the next level.
This is real-world application testing that shows the reality of a compressor’s full functionality.
I'm sick as hell right now too, the wife yelled at me because I was working on the truck the other day. Get better soon brother.
Had the same thing for 3 weeks 😮💨
@@stevebratten6592 it's going around! It's not fun!
I had it late September earlier than most people 😂 less than 2 weeks and I was back to normal
You too man!
I love this series and getting anxious to do a onboard air system on my own rig but I’m also very anxious about the Suzuki cannot wait to see a update build plan video keep up the great work Nate 😂
Do more for sure. Also be cool to see if a 1 or 2 gal holding tank would help for on-board air style set up
Don't bother with tanks for airing up tires. They make very little difference. You can try that with a home air compressor with a giant tank, empty and full, and the difference isn't significant. With a tiny 1-2 gal tank it'll be even more insignificant.
@@vitaminb4869 This is true. The size of tank that would be needed to make any sort of noticeable difference is just not worth the space it would take up.
yes continue down the rabbit hole in modifying the compressors, getting the most out of the design & doing the 4 tire refill test
Well dang it seems I am not alone. I started feeling a little off Thursday afternoon. By Friday afternoon I knew I was into some sort of new challenge. A trip to urgent care and Bang. I tested positive for the first time ever with Covid, and was told I have pneumonia to top it off. So I am joining the crowd of under the weather. Thankful for good UA-cam channels like this to get through the down time because regular tv absolutely wortless now. God bless and hope everyone out there under the weather gets well soon. Prayers to you all.
To be 100% honest Nate, I'm just here to watch you do cool stuff in your shop. The compressor series, off-road trailer, disco build, doesn't matter. We're just happy to see you chasing your dream and sharing it with us along the way 🤘
This is pretty cool nate,its like hot rodding an engine but its a air compressor (kinda similar)
i wonder if you could safely feed it some more voltage along with all the high flow fittings,different heads,reeds and all the other goodies add some lucas oil stabilizer mixed with some low weight oil
who knows,the sky is the limit especially if what your modding is a cheap product,wont hurt as much compared to something more expensive :D
Typical valve plates are ground dead flat. The oring is going to pop out and jamb up. Start with a flat block of aluminum so that the valve is flat so that it self seals.
Great series! Love watching you work through this process.
When you said you messed up I got all excited and figured you would build a head
Definitely do more on the compressor and other hacks on equipment/gear. These are the things that help us increase reliability when in the middle of nowhere, and helps to think differently about how things are or can be used.
Keep going. There’s so much more to learn and I haven’t seen anyone explore the limits. One issue you mentioned and I can’t get to work is filling multiple tires at once. I always seem to get really lop sided filling with almost all the air to one tire. I’m down to open 5/16 line with nothing in between aside from tire Chuck with the center stripped open so it’s full flow.
Very interesting! I didn't know this was an issue until I shot this video. Now I want to dig in more and figure out how far off the 4 way filling system is when I use it during a trip.
@@DirtLifestyle I built my own system for only 2 tires on my big smittybuilt for the extra speed like you mentioned. But I’m not getting it because of the one tire fill first plus my compressor isn’t that quick to compensate.
How about a block to control flow? Make sure even flow to all points (2, 3, 4, 12, etc). Hose leangths should be equal too. Think of air as you would fluid... once it finds the easiest path..... etc
@@Toyotajunkie I agree but I’m very limited on space. I don’t have room for extra line or much other rigging. I’m tempted to try and make a small receiver from 2-3” pipe and put the fitting in that to try and balance the flow as you were describing with the block idea.
unless your weight distribution is perfect, it won't until you regulate the supply, just do both fronts and both rears.
That evolution miter Saw is sweet like how big the base is
I think the tougher test that shows the inflators when working harder is from 15 to 30, or 30 to 65 psi. That’s when my inflators have struggled more. The better quality ones always do much better at the higher pressures. The deltas are much closer between inflators that I’ve used, when pressures are lower. Just my thoughts.
YES!! Mod that compressor until you feel like you’ve taken everything you can from it. Hope you feel better soon. Your videos are always a great break from my own shop on Sundays. Keep it up
I'm down for another installment. I just like watching Nate build shit. It's inspired so many of my own projects.
It's funny that you are making it better with hand tools. Imagine if the manufacturer cared as much as you do.
Maybe one giant 1/4" check valve with a light spring directly attached to the intake port would be an idea to increase flow and get rid of the two intake reads all together.
I would love to see more fiddling around with these compressors.
Maybe you could team up with some other UA-camrs to even build a new cylinder with cooling fins in itself to get rid of the sleeve.
Also lighter pistons and more stroke create more displacement could be an option.
I could imagine if you would max this out this will be pretty much fun to watch.
A more efficient check valve could help as long as the "head volume" isn't increased too much. IMO
@@jonathancorbett5917 100 percent. The reason the reeds are so close to the piston is to reduce dead volume in the head, which is a huge efficiency crusher. A spring+ball check valve inherently has way more dead volume than reeds.
For sure you should do another video on the little compressor…love it dude
Do more vidoes in this series! I'm moding an air compressor I bought from harbor frieght because of you and your ideas are really good.
Yes, make your own heads. That’s an awesome escalation.
On my 2 stroke dirt bike, I was able to get some fiberglass reeds that replaced the factory steel ones. I wonder if that would improve any efficiency?
I agree with comments below. KEEP GOING NATE! Rock on with the series!!!
I am down for more R&D on this air compressor, awesome seeing how it’s evolved
Nate, I love this series! I built a modded "shittybuilt" years ago and have been using it ever since but it's now starting to fail 😪 I'm thinking of getting a napa compressor and doing the same as you've done, maybe a bit more...? I love seeing people's ways to improve things, I find it fascinating!
one other idea I've been thinking of is finally following my dreams of releasing my own product to market... one idea I've had is a specific offroad air compressor. super-fast inflation for BIG tires but still runs off 12 volts. if I end up doing this, to say thanks for the years of entertainment and inspiration, I'll send you one for free. hopefully it will outperform everything you have tested previous lol 😁
I really enjoy watching your videos Nate! this is one of the best channels on UA-cam by far!
I really love this series please keep it going on board air is so important to me and this is extremely educational
I’d like to see what you can make if you had a small CNC like a Tormach 440. This would be a great learning project to teach yourself CAD, CAM, and machine tool technology in general.
I definitely want a plasma table. Eventually I will get there 👍
I want to see another video! I love these technical videos on things we tend to not think about!
You are officially a compressor NERD!🤣I think you should definitely do another one! I never would have even thought to do something like this. Very interesting and fun to watch which means I’m a compressor nerd too!
I've been enjoying all your videos for a long time...they are great...Yes...I'm interested in see how far you think you can improve on the compressors functionality.
Part 4??? I'm curious as heck to check the longevity use of this compressor and how well it still performs for you!! Thanks for all the content you provide it's very useful stuff!
Air compressor upgrades are as important and as interesting as other things. Let's see another video on it.
This series has been awesome. I'd love to see it continue! Maybe even take it to the next level and connect two compressors together. I've always wanted to figure out how to double my output this way. I'd imagine it would require some sort of valving system to make it work. I'd love to see how to do this.
Being a machinist my vote is yes,keep modding the compressor.
Fantastic video Nate, I just bought my 1st compressor VAIR, a portable model for my Tacoma
I enjoy all your videos how ever I would enjoy seeing how you would build your own head for the compressor
Lord help the off-road world If Nate ever gets a proper mill and lathe! Keep up the stellar work!
I'm ready for another episode already lol
For sure more of this. Love stuff like this
Don't forget to modify your fitting. AVE has a video on how to file compressor fittings to get maximized air flow.
Keep this series going I have the Klein air horns Jeep on board air system with twin compressors and a tank. To me this is very interesting content.
Really diggin' on this series Nate, if you don't mind commiting the time & resources, I'd definitely like to see more.
Thanks for all you do.
Please do a custom head video. That sounds like an awesome experiment.
Hi Nate, if you decide to make your own heads, wouldn't it be better to do away with the reed valves altogether and use ball valves instead. A ball in a tube with a coil spring [or gravity] and an O-ring can make a very good sealing valve. You could use a ball bearing, or possibly aluminium balls if you can find them. The other limiting factor can also be the internal diameter of your hose/fittings as well as the length of the hose. Keep up the good work.
Definitely would like to see you continue with these mods, I'm interested in applying some myself so keep them coming!
Thanks for this Compressor Series, I have 2 of these Compressors and I been moding them after you show how lol thanks for all the Info!
Nice! I hope you are having fun digging into these! I'm having a blast playing around with these different ideas
@@DirtLifestyle I got one modified and other one is stock, mods do make a bit difference. keep up the great work with cool little tinker ideas,
NAPA Has these compressors in stock again now
Kinda curious to see an update on this and how well the compressor has held up. Even if it were just a short blurb in another video!
Sir,
I too really like this series of mods for that little twin cylinder Napa 12v air compressor. I myself have never been overly satisfied with the performance of 12V air compressors. ALL of them are slow. For years on all my earlier Jeeps, I set up the engine driving compressors that are converted A/C compressors. Talk about fast! Anyway, On our present Jeep, I cannot build that system so, I'm using a CO2 system as a primary air supply for my tires. But, CO2 runs out eventually. And when that happens, and we're airing up from a trail run, I need a back up system.
So, I had a Viair 400P that bit the dust and I recently purchased a twin cylinder 12V compressor that's identical to the one you're modifying. I plan on doing many of the same mods as you've done. I want better efficiency which means less time when airing up. So some of your mods I think will accomplish this.
One thing we all know is, these little compressors, no matter which one or who makes it, GET HOT when compressing air. Sooooo, I'm in the process of installing two 70mm x 15mm computer cooling fans to my compressor. I don't have them done just yet so, no pics. But, I'd be glad to show them when done. I know this mod is not the most important but, never the less, cooling those two cylinders in my opinion, is important. Thanks for taking the time to make videos of important mods to these little guys. Way cool.
Scott
I vote to keep going with it and see where it goes!!!
I’d like to see a video of you going to your friends factory there for moreflate and having them show you why they do what they do with theirs and talking shop with an expert bout it!
I love these videos. If you want to go really crazy with the air intakes, you could consider making a larger head cover an d then using the space above the head to install a valve on a spring like you'd have in a cylinder head of a motor instead of a simple reed. A valve with a light spring might do a better job of opening and closing to improve the airflow.... if you could figure out how to fit that on a small compressor head.
MORRFLATE is an incredible product and a great company. Love my 4 tire inflator.
I for one love this series. But at this point I think you should try fabbing the ultimate compressor. Maybe under hood / belt driven?? Colab with a cnc channel and open source the plans?
Keep them coming brother 💯! We love the videos u put out !! U do a great job explaining I can understand please do some more !!
I wish they were still available!! Out of stock everywhere. Nate pull some strings haha
Try a 2 stoke carbon fiber reed for a intake valve, as this is basically a 2 stroke engine. Get high tension ones. You should be able to make a slotted port between the existing holes. Find the clearance between the head and piston and just run a piece of metal shim between the existing screws to support the reed.
If your forcing air thru your stock schrader valve at the tire, that is your choke point. I use standard compressor air fitting at each wheel with 90 valve for 20 second air down and faster air ups. Use stock valve stem for air gauge only.
You're demonstrating a wide range of techniques in these videos, which is useful, even if the improvements are marginal, and hey it's the competition and "make number better" that's fun. Nobody makes a battle-bot for actual warfighting (well, except maybe Raytheon etc). We need to redirect these powers for good though...What if you got a more complicated off-road platform, like a Gen 1 Porsche Cayenne...which can be retrofitted with the factory rear locker and an Eaton front diff, had available air suspension that can be improved and made more reliable (I have ideas) but is missing a long-travel option, and can be had with fun stuff like a 400hp V8, manual transmission, and hydraulic active disconnectable roll bars (PDCC)...might be worth it just for how irritated the Toyota and Jeep boys would get 😂
You definitely get this series 🙌. I'm not doing this to save money or to prove anything to anyone, I'm just having fun! Applying weird ideas to a practical application is my idea of a good time. As far as the Porsche... never say never lol. No vehicle is off the table for a build series.
In my earlier years, I was an Air Compressor technician. I personally have never seen a o-ring reed valve head. Probably due to heat of compression. What I have seen is a slight bend in the reed to force the valve to seat properly. just my 2 cents, good luck.
Instead of messing with orings that would likely fall out anyways. Preload the Reed petal with something resembling a wedge washer that will hold it closed. Or you could possible preload the Reed itself by putting it through a slip roll. Just ideas.
Just do it ! It will be fun.
Mod all the things! Yah diy stuff is why I am here
I got the morrflate 5.6 cuz I wanted to use this system on 4×4 jeep and the entire fleet of vehicles at the house (motorcycles, motorhome, cars and pickup trucks) the largest pump says "Don't use on one tire you'll brake the pump prematurely "
I also am using the 4 tire kit with this pump.
This aired up the jeep with 33's from 15psi to 32psi with the 4 way hose kit in 7.5 minutes.
The pump didn't even get a chance to get hot to the touch.
It also aired the rv, 2 tires at a time to 75psi without issue.
Cool stuff! Didn't know there would be so much stuff to modify on an air compressor. It would be a fair bit of work but it would be good to see testing on how effective each mod is and what mods are actually worthwhile doing
I would at least like to see the reed issue addressed by itself and results. Great video!
You are like Tim the tool man Taylor when it comes to making stuff better....but it actually works. I have an old compressor. Its a little tiny red one that works great, maybe its worth messing with
Go for it brother..................
I love watching this series! Iv also played around with these compressors alot trying to max out them. In Australia these are still very easy to get. Like I mentioned last video I ended up joining 2 of these together with all the mods that you have done, with impressive results. I can pump all 4 35" tyres (0-35psi) up at the same time in less then 2 1/2 minutes. The one down fall is that it is heavy! One thing I find interesting in this video is that on the ones we get here the intake valves already have o-rings installed.
i am in England and for my Gen 2 Pajero i want to do 2 or 3 together, got lots of old cheap ones laying around and some spare time...
It would be interesting to see what could be done with a junk compressor.
But that is a lot of time put into a low quality product. Buying a quality compressor and not having to worry about it for a few years is priceless
More! Love this series!
Do the pistons push in parallel or alternate? If alternating, then the T style outlet pipe would allow the air to bounce back toward the other head before going out. That could cause some loss in efficiency. May not be much advantage changing to a V connection. Also, my big compressor keeps the same diameter pipe as the reed hole all the way up until it enters the tank. I could see there being some flow issues with the larger diameter pipe to smaller passages in the distro block. Just speculating some arm chair hydrodynamics....
Hell yeah I love this idea. But I wonder if it could be done on big compressor system. And totally need to see you do the full mod on the compressor
enjoyed the series so far keep it gping
I want to see more videos like this. 👍🏼
id be great if you could do a series on different quick disconnect electrical connectors and how to use smaller wires with some of them this is the problem i have now is using big connectors for the main use of jumper cables between diesel trucks but still wanting to use that connection as a power point for smaller stuff but not wanting the cost of the larger wires
F-it! Go all the way!!! It's all until you reach your goal or the thing blows out!!! I wanna see how far you can take it.🤙
Ive always wanted the napa compressor
You GOTTA do more videos dude!
Also, you should use flush mount screws if you can find them.
I guess for volume the 2 in parallel is probably better but a 2 stage setup seems like it would be worth trying
I have one already and very interested in upgrades to make it better!
More on the China diesel heaters!
Wonder if he'll mod that too! haha
What if you add a small air tank to the system? IDK if that would help especially for the space/weight it takes up. I was thinking a 5gal tank or a repurposed propane tank.
I am enjoying this. I want to see the next video and mods.
I would love to see you try to mod some of the other compressors, maybe starting with one that is built a bit better like a viair 88p and seeing what it can do with mods.
You need to edit the title of all 3 videos as 1, 2, 3 and make this in a playlist.
What I want to know is how well that diesel heater works in your shop?
Quad air Inflation would show a ton faster time when airing down or airing up all 4 tires vs 1 tire at a time. exactly @14:24
I loved this series, it would be awesome if you found a more available budget air compressor and modded it (so we can do the same)
I’ve been in touch with my Napa field sales agent, he says this was a one off purchase for Napa and there is no availability nor are they going to purchase more from China in the foreseeable future. I really do wish there was the same product under another brand name available
yep, i'm interested in the Napa Compressor mod . keep it coming 👍
Maybe try adding a thin layer of silicone to the underside of the reed?