The Best Air Compressor For Expeditionary Travel - Maxingout

[maxingout]

I was planning on grabbing one of those 'el cheapo' MV50 units, as I figured as long as it works, even if it takes 20 minutes, the tires will get full. Plus, you can get them for like 80$ on Amazon. What does a 'good' compressor run these days? Maybe not as awesome as that ARB, but a step up from the MV50.

One of the cheap units will do the job, but it will take a long time, and the compressor will not last very long. It will wear out because it is not designed for the duty cycle that you have in frequent expeditionary travel. Our single ARB units lasted two years when we pumped our tires nearly every week end. If you pump your friends tires, the compressor lasts for an even shorter period. You get what you pay for. If you are going to be using a compressor frequently, then it's worth getting one that does the job well, and it will likely cost several hundred dollars.

 

[maxingout]

What is this 'dust' thing you speak of?

Awesome dust photos. If you turn on a fan in your vehicle, you can make your own dust storm.

I like to get the dust out of the vehicle so that photographic gear doesn't have to fight the dust. Also, I don't like breathing the stuff in, especially in a place like the valley in Phoenix where you can get valley fever. The valley fever bug gets aerosolized in the dust storms, and the lung infections peak after the dust storms.

We always ran with our windows down in the Arabian desert unless we were in a column of cars or were in a dust storm. But we never achieved the level of dust that you have attained in your photos. Good on you mate. You probably set some dust record.

 

[maxingout]

Dave, what gauge wire did you install this with?
I have a BlueSea aux box wired to my battery with 6 gauge wire.
I called up ARB a bit ago, and they said 6 was not enough, and they used thick stereo amp cable for the installation in the 5th gen 4Runner they built last year.

I am going to have to stop down there and test fit this, and see what all is involved with installing it.
I also have left over a 100 amp switch from my old 4Runner stereo install, I bet I could utilize it up by the battery for the hot cable.
That is 4 gauge wire in the photo I believe that powered a Rockford 500a2 and 200a4 amps.

The compressor comes with a harness that is about six feet long, and the wires to the compressors with inline 40 amp fuses are included in the harness kit. It is truly a plug and play installation. I think the wire was 6 gauge in the harness. The longer the run, the bigger the voltage drop, and the thicker the wire needs to be. But if you only use their harness without lengthening the wire, you don't have to worry about the gauge. Simply use the harness.

Remember that you are running two compressors on this ARB unit so you have two wires carrying current. If you have a single motor supplied by one wire, then the wire diameter would need to be significantly greater.

 

[ipgregory]

Awesome dust photos. If you turn on a fan in your vehicle, you can make your own dust storm.

Surprisingly in the front shot, probably not. Would you believe that shot was taken AFTER the truck had already been blown out with my shop compressor and vacuumed with a fairly powerful shop vac and a crevice attachment? Since I was working on the truck I had removed the worst of it prior to starting work. The only way to get rid of the rest is to use a wet cloth and wipe everything down. In the shot of the rear, I am in the midst of packing the truck and hadn’t vacuumed or blown it out prior to loading. What is left in there is typical of the dust level after just 1 trip. A photo after the trip would show everything in there looking the same as the floor (including me).

I run all over AZ and while after a rain or on some of the trails its not as bad it’s pretty typical to come back looking like that. I used to try and keep it out by keeping the windows in and closed and the vents shut. In a Defender (especially a soft top) that’s a waste of time. Then I would come back and spend hours cleaning the truck and trying to get it all out only to have it look like that or worse 5 mins into the next outing. Now, I just blow it out and vacuum it once in a while and live with it. It’s a cost of getting off the highway here in an open vehicle.

As a backup I run the older ARB CKMA12 compressor that is the predecessor to yours and I have given up trying to use it to get rid of dust. Now I typically just use up the residual pressure left in my PowerTank after airing up and shutting the regulator off to blow some of the worst of it out of the cab prior to the run home.

Attached pics show what it looks like when its clean and also an example of how it can get like that. Luckily those discos have a recirculate function and closed windows.... :sombrero:

 

[maxingout]

The D90 cleans up great.

When we lived in Arabia, we turned our trucks over to a garage that cleaned the inside and the outside of the vehicle after each trail run. Four workers would get on the job, and within an hour the Defender was detailed inside and out. They used air compressors and lots of scrubbing to get everything looking good. It only cost about 15 dollars to get the full job done. It was worth every penny.

 

[tacr2man]

I have found that no longer get dust in my 110 ,if I run with windows shut and aircon on freshair (filtered thru donaldson) and on level 3 pressurises the interior .

 

[maxingout]

I have found that no longer get dust in my 110 ,if I run with windows shut and aircon on freshair (filtered thru donaldson) and on level 3 pressurises the interior .

That is the way it seems to work for us. The problem is that we enjoy having the windows down so much when driving offroad.

 

[ipgregory]

I run a soft top 90 with a seperate internally recirculating A/C system and removable door tops. So its not an option for me.

 

[Frostymug]

"sometimes you need to repair a tire in a remote location, and a compressor that can reseat a bead comes in handy".

How much air compressor capacity (CFM / PSI) is needed to reseat a typical 33” tire bead?

 

[maxingout]

How much air compressor capacity (CFM / PSI) is needed to reseat a typical 33” tire bead?

I don't know that there is a specific CFM capacity to do the job. It helps to have a ratchet strap compressing the circumference of the tire. I do know that a single ARB compressor could not do the job on a sand tire in the Empty Quarter of Arabia. Perhaps there is someone out there who has specific numbers for CFM capacity to do the job.

The dual ARB compressor is rated at 5.30 CFM under no load and 4.62 CFM under load at 29 PSI.

 

[ipgregory]

There is a way to do this without needing a compressor for setting the bead.

Google 'WD40 Tire Inflation'.... :yikes:

Not suggesting anybody try it of course.

 

[maxingout]

There is a way to do this without needing a compressor for setting the bead.

Google 'WD40 Tire Inflation'.... :yikes:

Not suggesting anybody try it of course.

If you are going to do WD 40 Tire Inflation/Reseating The Bead, you need some essential safety gear that includes:

Kevlar vest.
Helmet.
Safety glasses.
Hockey Face Mask.
Inflable splints for broken limbs.
1 Can of WD-40

 

[ipgregory]

Maybe throw in a Fire Extinguisher!!

 

[Corey]

I will be looking for a vendor here who sells ARB gear, and more than likely I will will call it down at ARB by work to pick it up.
I will have to extend the wiring though, it will not reach from the back up to the engine bay.

 

[Corey]

Dave, another question.
I know the hose is extra for the ARB unit, but will it work with a standard hose like from Powertank or a shop compressor?
My Powertank hose has the male end on it which slips into the female end coupling on my Powertank.

If the ARB is setup with a female coupling, I can just use my Powertank hose.

I talked again with ARB today, and they used stereo amp wire for the power, and I think I will use a amp distribution block with 4 gauge in, and two 8 gauge out, one 8 gauge to each power wire for the compressors.
I think that should work?
It would be this old distribution block I have laying around.
It is the bigger of the two in the photo.