z31maniac
z31maniac MegaDork
9/14/23 3:57 p.m.

I saw an ad on BookFace for these earlier and they have great reviews on Amazon. I don't have a compressor at the house and don't plan on buying one just to fill up tires. 

Does anybody have one? Used one? Are they worth the $80? More and more gas stations seem to either not have air available or the ones that do, they either don't work or have been vandalized. Thought this would good to put one in my car and the fiance's car. 

Thoughts?

 

David S. Wallens
David S. Wallens Editorial Director
9/14/23 4:06 p.m.

Hey, I’m getting those ads, too. 

WillG80
WillG80 GRM+ Memberand HalfDork
9/14/23 4:11 p.m.

My initial thought: Battery powered might not be best for "just in case" use since the battery will probably be dead when you need it. Or does it use the cars battery?

ChrisTropea
ChrisTropea Associate Editor
9/14/23 4:11 p.m.

Here is a review of a much smaller self contained tire inflator on a bike channel I watch. Not the same product but similar idea. 

I have a Ryobi inflator that I keep in the truck that way I know I can easily charge the battery and it has enough power to inflate a few tires. 

trucke
trucke SuperDork
9/14/23 4:32 p.m.

I got one of these ViAir compressors for autocross.  Not as versatile as the battery powered Ryobi, but also very effective.  It uses the car battery so it will always have power and it pumps way faster than those 12v outlet jobs.  About $100 on Amazon when you add the Schrader clamp to it.

Viair car battery air compressor

procainestart
procainestart SuperDork
9/14/23 5:08 p.m.

In reply to trucke :

I have a ViAir, too (88P model). It does ~1.5 CFM. After using it, I wouldn't consider anything that does less than that. 

dj06482 (Forum Supporter)
dj06482 (Forum Supporter) GRM+ Memberand UberDork
9/14/23 5:31 p.m.

I use the Milwaukee M12 inflator in our cars, and am considering the M18 version for the garage.  They work well, and I'm already invested in the battery ecosystem, so it made sense.  The battery remaining display on the M12 version is always pessimistic (lasts forever, even when it's down to 2 bars), but that's about my biggest complaint.  I also purchased an extension with a regular chuck, as it was a pain to screw the attachment on each valve stem.

rob_lewis
rob_lewis UberDork
9/14/23 5:35 p.m.

I've never used one, but I kinda take ads on FB like door to door salespeople.  Might be something I want/need, but chances are I can find it a lot cheaper elsewhere. 

Looks like Amazon has similar ones for as cheap as $30
The hammer store has two that run off of the car battery (so you don't have to worry about the inflator not being charged).  They're not as compact as the one you pointed out, but one's $40 and the other is $10.  (search inflator)
-Rob

codrus (Forum Supporter)
codrus (Forum Supporter) GRM+ Memberand PowerDork
9/14/23 7:35 p.m.
dj06482 (Forum Supporter) said:

I use the Milwaukee M12 inflator in our cars, and am considering the M18 version for the garage.  They work well, and I'm already invested in the battery ecosystem, so it made sense.  The battery remaining display on the M12 version is always pessimistic (lasts forever, even when it's down to 2 bars), but that's about my biggest complaint.  I also purchased an extension with a regular chuck, as it was a pain to screw the attachment on each valve stem.

I have a Milwaukee M12 for the track, it's super useful for adding a few pounds to race car tires.  It will (eventually) bring a trailer tire up to 60 psi all the way from 0, but there's not much left in the battery after that. :)

I also have one of these in the trailer, but don't use it much.  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00VNIB7CI/

 

EvanB
EvanB GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
9/14/23 7:38 p.m.

I have an Amazon jump pack/inflator. I use the jump pack function mostly but it works fine for inflating tires.

GameboyRMH
GameboyRMH GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
9/14/23 7:53 p.m.
trucke said:

I got one of these ViAir compressors for autocross.  Not as versatile as the battery powered Ryobi, but also very effective.  It uses the car battery so it will always have power and it pumps way faster than those 12v outlet jobs.  About $100 on Amazon when you add the Schrader clamp to it.

Viair car battery air compressor

These are really nice, probably the best serious compressor you can get for cheap.

As for the best seriously cheap compressor, I got one of these as a gift, it works fine and doesn't feel as cheap as it is, also very tiny. The fake heatsink made of plastic is always good for a chuckle too:


https://www.amazon.ca/AstroAI-Portable-Compressor-Inflator-Protection/dp/B07KT11VBL

VolvoHeretic
VolvoHeretic GRM+ Memberand Dork
9/14/23 11:38 p.m.

My folks had a 68 Firebird that had a port on the intake manifold into which plugged in a vacuum powered air compressor for the deflated space saver spare tire sitting flat in the trunk. Too bad I can't find anything about it on the web.

z31maniac
z31maniac MegaDork
9/15/23 9:12 a.m.
trucke said:

I got one of these ViAir compressors for autocross.  Not as versatile as the battery powered Ryobi, but also very effective.  It uses the car battery so it will always have power and it pumps way faster than those 12v outlet jobs.  About $100 on Amazon when you add the Schrader clamp to it.

Viair car battery air compressor

This might be a better idea for me, but I think the fiance would like not having to pop the hood and hook it up to the battery.

93gsxturbo
93gsxturbo UltraDork
9/15/23 9:14 a.m.

If you have cordless tools buy the inflator that is in their ecosystem.  

jfryjfry
jfryjfry SuperDork
9/15/23 9:24 a.m.
z31maniac said:
trucke said:

I got one of these ViAir compressors for autocross.  Not as versatile as the battery powered Ryobi, but also very effective.  It uses the car battery so it will always have power and it pumps way faster than those 12v outlet jobs.  About $100 on Amazon when you add the Schrader clamp to it.

Viair car battery air compressor

This might be a better idea for me, but I think the fiance would like not having to pop the hood and hook it up to the battery.

They make them that plug into cigarette lighters but they don't pull much juice and are going to be slow.  But they'd work. I had one. It was small and slow but useful in an emergency

z31maniac
z31maniac MegaDork
9/15/23 9:49 a.m.
93gsxturbo said:

If you have cordless tools buy the inflator that is in their ecosystem.  

We have a cheapy battery powered (40V) mower and trimmer from Walmart, but that's it. I sold my Kobalt 80v powered stuff years ago and we just started paying someone to do the yard. But when the fiance was laid off in Janaury, we figured it didn't make financial sense to keep paying $200+/month to have the yard taken care of.

Spitsix
Spitsix HalfDork
9/15/23 2:21 p.m.

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