air compressor maintenance

[Soundguy]

While working outside yesterday finishing up my batwing refurb project, i decided to service my air compressor. it's a 5 hp 27g unit I bought from TSC last year. It's had a couple major workouts.. Painting my ford 5000, and painting my batwing.. pluss some other smaller paint projects and tire airing.. etc.

While draining the water.. i notifed the oil inthe sightglasss was awfull dark.

As most units are.. it's easy to see that it is a chinese unit. It also came with it's own bottle of compressor oil. I probably should have just put cambell hausfeld compressor oil in it .. but figured i should use the oem oil... Well.. after draing the water, i changed the oil too. I'm not sure what the chinese use for their compressor oil.. but I'm wondering if it is merly a 'break in' oil, menat to be changed at low hours to catch and flush all the assembly junk they leave in the oil sump?

I know from haunting the chinese tractor sub, that owners there pretty much immediatly change out the chinese fluids after a few hours and put in 'better' stuff. Seems like their oils they see from china are also.. odd.. dark or thick.. and usually contain a few metal chips or other break in debri.. so I'm not too worried. It pumps great and makes no odd noises.

I flushed the sump with a cheapy bottle of 30wND oil I keep on hand for doing the same when i do my lawnmower oil changes.

I then put int he CH compressor oil.. Nice clear stuff.

So far oil has stayed clear after a little bit of use. So as a reminder.. if you havn't serviced your compressor water traps and oil sump lately.. get out there and do it.

Anyone else experience this?

thanks

Soundguy

 

[grizer]

I commend you on servicing your compressor, most suffer from a lot of use and little care. The oil in my unit usually gets a little milky due to condensation. I keep up with maintenence by using calender for year ahead, ( AC filter, motorhome, golf cart and mower batteries, ones not sealed), and cross them off when completed. I use Deltran Brand battery tenders on lawn mowers and motorcycles year round, batteries are about five years old and still ready to go when my wife wants to mow, yep she likes to mow lawn. May be because I mowed up something accidently on purpose years ago, (heh-heh).
I enjoyed pics of your toys, you are serious about mowing with that batwing, is it 540 or 1000 PTO speed?

 

[Soundguy]

I commend you on servicing your compressor, most suffer from a lot of use and little care. The oil in my unit usually gets a little milky due to condensation. I keep up with maintenence by using calender for year ahead, ( AC filter, motorhome, golf cart and mower batteries, ones not sealed), and cross them off when completed. I use Deltran Brand battery tenders on lawn mowers and motorcycles year round, batteries are about five years old and still ready to go when my wife wants to mow, yep she likes to mow lawn. May be because I mowed up something accidently on purpose years ago, (heh-heh).
I enjoyed pics of your toys, you are serious about mowing with that batwing, is it 540 or 1000 PTO speed?

540 rpm.. and it mows great. My tractor is capable of taking a 1000 rpm conversion shaft that takes about 5 minuted to change.. just pull a retainer ring and swap shafts.. however I'm currently too cheap to pony up the 300$ to do it.. and also don't need it..

Soundguy

 

[grizer]

A neighbor had about a 18 foot batwing that ran 1000, a mean and scary sounding machine. I did'nt ever get close to it, a broken PTO shaft could wipe out anything close to it.

 

[Soundguy]

I think the key is to not break driveshafts... thus the use of a shear key of the correct hardness, or a torque limiter.. ( prefered ) .. etc..

I've noticed that 540 rpm drive batwings are much rare-er than the 1000 rpm variaty. So i counted myself lucky...

Soundguy