New used "Wayne" air compressor

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Tue May 12, 2009 8:06 am

Bought a new to me compressor off of craigslist this weekend and I have lots of questions. I should immediately state I paid the measly sum of $100, so let the truth come forth with whether I bought scrap metal and a pump. I have been looking for a vertical compressor for a while and this seemed like a fine deal.

As we are loading it the guy says, "what are these worth new, like $400 or $500? I dodged that answer, but closer inspection has made this less of a deal.

I had not heard of Wayne, ad all of my internet research shows they stopped building things in the 50's. This is way newer than that and seems to be an ingersol branded compressor- mentions it under the wayne sticker. The compressor has an ingersol dresser two stage pump is three phase with a 7.5 hp motor. My best guess is about 23 CFM.

The tank is 80 gallons, and here is where my issue comes in. It is nice and newish except for a rusty spot on top. I didn't inspect this spot when I was buying, figured it was under a leak or something. Well, closer inspection at home (not that close needed) reveals a nasty weld where the mounting plate broke and was rewelded to the tank- most likely by auto mechanic with torch. The weld is a nasty one and way overkill. My concern is that it compromises the tank. Thoughts?

My shop runs via a three phase converter and having a 3Ø compressor is less than ideal for a number of reasons. I am considering replacing the 7.5hp motor with a 1Ø 5hp motor with a slightly smaller pulley. Any thoughts here would be great. I am thinking 5hp instead of 7.5 because they are half the price.

My air usage is not currently that great, but I believe that is partially due to never having a great compressor.

The last curious item that come with the compressor is what seems to be a vacuum gage of sorts. I have no idea what this is.

Also, Having never owned a compressor of this size I am not even sure it is complete. Is the small pressure switch on the side all that is required to start it, or should it control a magnetic starter?

I have been unable to find any compressor schematics on the web, so any links towards this end would be helpful.

OK, here are the pics

It was apart when I got it, made loading a whole lot easier

The pump

The ugly weld

the weird Vacuum thingy

Another useless photo of the vacuum thingy

pressure switch

Packard V8 · Post by **Packard V8** » Wed May 13, 2009 11:57 am

That was an excellent unit in its' day.

No "vacuum thingie" evident in the pictures. Are you perchance looking at the air cooling fins on the u-shaped line?

While $100 for that size working compressor and motor is a steal, however, the weld on the tank would cause it to fail any commercial inspection. Has the weld weakened the tank sufficiently to cause it to explode and kill everyone in the building? Care to find out? I know most testing facilities will not even test a tank showing a repair weld unless it has a signed work order from an ASME certified welder. If it were mine, I'd get another tank. Recently, on craigslist, I saw an 80-gal going for $60.

As always, your life, your project, your decision.

thnx, jack vines

Toolslinger · Post by **Toolslinger** » Wed May 13, 2009 9:51 pm

Likely a decent head if nothing is fatal internally... I'm running a 40's vintage Westinghouse that is whisper quiet, and very happy at my house, so you might be just fine with the head you've got...

The tank would scare me to no end with that weld...

I've got a good size vertical tank (60, or 80 gallons, don't recall) from a Saylor Beall that is hanging around taking up space I'd be more than happy to part with if you can figure out how to get it from central Jersey to you...

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Sat May 23, 2009 10:18 pm

OK, Due to a near perfect chain of events, I have purchased and retrieved Tim's tank at a generous price. Thanks Tim, I really enjoyed meeting you and taking the shop tour.

So now, we are back on the way to safety. The "new" tank is 10 years older than my compressor (1977 vs 1987), but seems sound and Tim said the company who previously owned it was required to do frequent pressure tests. It is an 80 gallon tank, just like the original

Here is the new beast

Upon further review, the vacuum switch is most likely the pressure switch, The gage on it is configured for both in IN HG and PSI, but the PSI label is shifted out of view, so I only saw the vacuum.

I will be moving forward on putting this badboy together as soon as a few of my other projects slow down.

Pete

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Fri Jun 19, 2009 9:41 pm

I was spraying some gray paint on my gang drill press tonight (see gang drill thread in the rebuilding section) and I couldn't resist hitting the tank from toolslinger while I had the gun fired up. I took it to the carwash and powerwashed it earlier in the week and gave it a quick chemical rub-down after that.
It looks quite a bit better now, although not quite as good as it does in this pic, ahh the miracles of flash photography and wet paint.

Also, My amazing Luck has continued with this project in that a single phase 7.5hp New-in-Box Baldor motor showed up on craigslist for $300, I quickly picked it up and will be using it to drive the beast.

My current debate is whether to attach the motor and pump directly to the tank, or to put them on a shelf directly above the tank. My research has found that the weak point of the vertical tank compressor is the vibration caused by having the motor so high up. I do like the ease and compactness of having it as one unit, but after seeing the blue tank, perhaps I am a bit understanding of the argument to keep them separate. Thoughts?

Pete

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 7:13 am

I am sure that there are good arguments either way. Before I weigh in i would like to know how you drain moisture from the tank? My little compressor benefits from being tilted while being drained. If the big boy need the same tricks then having the head separate would be helpful.

N

afuege · Post by **afuege** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 8:50 am

Pete,
I've got my vertical compressor on wheels. It's actually mounted inside a mobile cage. I sometimes use it with my spray foam rig (this makes it alot easier to get it on the truck). Vibration has never been a problem. This is a newer 7.5 HP IR. As far as the drain goes, I've got a valve with a hose on the bottom of the tank. I can drain the tank without moving it. I don't have any photos handy right now, but if you're interested, I can take some.

-Arthur

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:54 am

Nektai, The drain on a vertical tank is much more logical- it drains from the very bottom of the sphere that forms the bottom of the tank.

Arthur it seems you are voting for making it a on piece compressor- that is what I want to hear. Any one else to the contrary?

Peet

Toolslinger · Post by **Toolslinger** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 10:11 am

Well as I know the tank you're dealing with...
That thing was a mother to move around when the head and motor were on top... Now, if you've no plans to move it, then make it as one...
I had a timed drain setup on it... It shot a burst of air out the drain for 2 second every 45 minutes... The timer/valve came from a seller on Ebay for something in the $40 range... I have found a timed drain to be better than the float drains I've used in the past as the floats eventually get gummed up and stop working. On the other hand, the valve and hose work just fine if you remember to drain it frequently....

And yes, that tank is looking much improved!

Cheers

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 10:33 am

Toolslinger,

I am curious about your timed drain. It sounds like a good solution for dealing with moisture in the tank. my fear would be if the unit malfunctioned. Do you feel confident enough to leave the compressor and drain switch on all the time?

EDIT: I forgot to place my vote for a one piece install. It sounds much easier.

afuege · Post by **afuege** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 11:12 am

Those timed expellers work very well. You'll definitely want a stationary setup for this option. You can use a small piece of tubing run outside. The opening is pretty small, and they are reliable. Not much of a chance of it causing any real harm or making the compressor run continuously if it failed to close.

-Arthur

Toolslinger · Post by **Toolslinger** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 1:43 pm

I haven't had a failure of mine yet, and I do leave the system on all the time. That said, I only installed mine a little less than a year ago, so time will tell... If it stuck open, worst case is an overheat, and the motor starter kicks in...

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Sat Jun 20, 2009 6:26 pm

Tim, I am curious as to the noise level of the valve? Being a one man Zen like shop, I am not to sure if I want to listen to a loud blast of air every 45 minutes or whatever. The compressor will live in my furnace closet, which should buffer some of the noise, so what are your thoughts?

I saw this one on eBay which looks pretty fancy:
http://cgi.ebay.com/DRAINMASTER-Timed-D ... 0342820685

Pete

Toolslinger · Post by **Toolslinger** » Sun Jun 21, 2009 8:43 am

You'd have to pull the spec on that one. I only see a single time setting on that, so it probably has a fixed discharge time. Mine is similar to this one. With a discharge time, and a repeat time.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0350573347

My compressor is buried in an insulated room that was supposed to be a bathroom, in my warehouse, so the shot of air doesn't carry to the shop... I also pushed the drain tube through the floor drain trap, so it shoots in to the sewer line.... My ideal would be to have it shoot a couple times a day, but I wasn't able to come up with that for a reasonable price. I'd say most of us don't run a compressor enough to need a 45 minute cycle to keep the tank clear, but that seems to be the popular control box on the cheaper side of the equation.

As to the loss of zen quiet... Yes, it would probably be a bit annoying... A prior shop I had used a float type auto drain, and it scared the hell out of me every time it fired as it was completely unpredictable, and the unit was in the middle of the shop, so you couldn't get away from it... You can muffle it a bit by running tubing from the discharge, and then shooting in to a big piece of foam rubber that is strapped around the tube... I've never tried it for a compressor drain, but it has worked well on vent air from pneumatic cylinders I've installed in stage scenery.

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Sun Jun 21, 2009 9:49 am

I like that drain valve. If I had a real compressor I would be interested in it.

Crzy- It seems like the right solution for your set up. I did not look at the completed auctions but if you can get it for $25 why not give it a try. You could shoot right into your sewer line or route out of the building. If it is noisy it would be very easy to muffle the noise with a bit of sound board.

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Sun Jun 21, 2009 10:01 am

Nektai, I think I am going to make a play at the more expensive one that I linked to. I checked the specs and it is set to discharge for three seconds with a potential output of 1 gallon in that time. I can set it to the 24hour setting and have it fire first thing in the morning- a bit before I get into the shop. That way I will not hear it blast, but if it happened to get stuck open I would show up to fix the issue without having the compressor run through the night.

I will plumb it to a drain

Pete

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Sun Jun 21, 2009 3:39 pm

strong move. Things are shaping up very nicely.