Hello All,

I have an Industrial Air Machine unit that is beginning to fail. It is
taking about five times as long to recover as it did just a few weeks
ago. The specifications a

5 HP 230V
200 PSI 2 stage
60 gal tank
18 to 20 years old

Everything sounds good, just not producing much air.

My questions a

Is it probable that the compressor needs rebuilding?

And if so, are there rebuild kits available or does one have to
purchase individual parts?

Are there instruction manuals available that would assist in
performing the task?

What source(s) would you suggest for the parts needed?

Any suggestions or information offered would be appreciated.

Ted

On Sat, 28 Jun 2008 09:48:11 -0700 (PDT), with neither quill nor
qualm, bear quickly quoth:

Hello All,

I have an Industrial Air Machine unit that is beginning to fail. It is
taking about five times as long to recover as it did just a few weeks
ago. The specifications a

5 HP 230V
200 PSI 2 stage
60 gal tank
18 to 20 years old

Everything sounds good, just not producing much air.

My questions a

Is it probable that the compressor needs rebuilding?

And if so, are there rebuild kits available or does one have to
purchase individual parts?

Are there instruction manuals available that would assist in
performing the task?

What source(s) would you suggest for the parts needed?

Any suggestions or information offered would be appreciated.

As Tawm was mentioning earlier this week, carbon does build up on the
reeds until it defeats the compressor. Pop the heads and see what you
have. Reed valves crack, too. It could be a chunk of carbon holding
the reed open, damaged rings, hole in the piston, etc.

With no sound change, it's likely carbon. Then again, I haven't had
the head off a compressor in 30 years.

--
Deep doubts, deep wisdom; small doubts, little wisdom.
--Chinese Proverb
----

"bear" wrote in message
...
Hello All,

I have an Industrial Air Machine unit that is beginning to fail. It is
taking about five times as long to recover as it did just a few weeks
ago. The specifications a

5 HP 230V
200 PSI 2 stage
60 gal tank
18 to 20 years old

Everything sounds good, just not producing much air.

My questions a

Is it probable that the compressor needs rebuilding?

And if so, are there rebuild kits available or does one have to
purchase individual parts?

Are there instruction manuals available that would assist in
performing the task?

What source(s) would you suggest for the parts needed?

Any suggestions or information offered would be appreciated.

Ted

I'll second Larry's diagnosis. The valves are probably mucked up. They might
be accessibly without pulling the head. They might be reed valves or
spring-loaded disk valves. You'll see. Check the oil.

If you spin the pulley by hand, does the compressor make farting
sounds? Do you sense any strange unevenness?

i

bear writes:

Is it probable that the compressor needs rebuilding?

Sometimes it can be something simple and easy to fix. Like the connection
from the cylinder to the unloader being loose and leaking, which is hard to
hear when it is running.

bear wrote:

I have an Industrial Air Machine unit that is beginning to fail. It is
taking about five times as long to recover as it did just a few weeks
ago. The specifications a

5 HP 230V
200 PSI 2 stage
60 gal tank
18 to 20 years old

Check the valves. Where I used ot work, monitoring intercooler pressure was a tip off
that the valves between stage one and two had failed.

I'm thinking this is sudden. Sudden points to valving.

Wes
--
"Additionally as a security officer, I carry a gun to protect
government officials but my life isn't worth protecting at home
in their eyes." Dick Anthony Heller

On Sat, 28 Jun 2008 14:53:32 -0500, with neither quill nor qualm,
Ignoramus14972 quickly quoth:

If you spin the pulley by hand, does the compressor make farting
sounds? Do you sense any strange unevenness?

That's an accurate, if not technically pristine, definition, Ig.

--
Such is the irresistible nature of truth that all it asks, and all it wants,
is the liberty of appearing. -- Thomas Paine

On 2008-06-29, Larry Jaques novalidaddress@di wrote:
On Sat, 28 Jun 2008 14:53:32 -0500, with neither quill nor qualm,
Ignoramus14972 quickly quoth:

If you spin the pulley by hand, does the compressor make farting
sounds? Do you sense any strange unevenness?

That's an accurate, if not technically pristine, definition, Ig.


Larry, thank you. That's how I test all pumps and compressors that are
offered to me.
--
Due to extreme spam originating from Google Groups, and their inattention
to spammers, I and many others block all articles originating
from Google Groups. If you want your postings to be seen by
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posting on Usenet.
http://improve-usenet.org/

On Jun 29, 8:43*am, Ignoramus28029 ignoramus28...@NOSPAM.
28029.invalid wrote:
On 2008-06-29, Larry Jaques novalidaddress@di wrote:

On Sat, 28 Jun 2008 14:53:32 -0500, with neither quill nor qualm,
Ignoramus14972 quickly quoth:

If you spin the pulley by hand, does the compressor make farting
sounds? Do you sense any strange unevenness?

That's an accurate, if not technically pristine, definition, Ig.

Larry, thank you. That's how I test all pumps and compressors that are
offered to me.
--
* *Due to extreme spam originating from Google Groups, and their inattention
* * * to spammers, I and many others block all articles originating
* * * *from Google Groups. If you want your postings to be seen by
* * * * *more readers you will need to find a different means of
* * * * * * * * * * * *posting on Usenet.
* * * * * * * * * *http://improve-usenet.org/

Thanks to everyone for your input, I really appreciate it.

As for the “farting” sounds, if you mean something like, pheeeeeeeese,
then yes it does but it does not sound anything like my farts.

There are no unusual noises when the wheel is turned by hand and it
seems to be very smooth. I pulled the head and there is some carbon
build up, which I cleaned, but there is a small (3/4 inch) piece of
gasket missing between the two reeds (?) of the small cylinder. I
would not think this is good. The cylinder walls are very smooth with
no roughness or scratches anywhere that I can see. I have not removed
the pistons at this point.

One concern that I failed to mention in my original post is there
seems to be evidence when draining the tank of some oil contamination.
I have never noticed a change in the level in the crankcase however.
Any comments on this issue?

Also, does anyone have any recommendations as to where to get parts
for this unit? The pump is model number B4900 if that helps. Sanborn
say they normally stock them but are out of stock at present for the
rebuild kit.

Again, thanks to all for your help and comments.

Ted

On Jul 1, 12:29*pm, bear wrote:
On Jun 29, 8:43*am, Ignoramus28029 ignoramus28...@NOSPAM.





28029.invalid wrote:
On 2008-06-29, Larry Jaques novalidaddress@di wrote:

On Sat, 28 Jun 2008 14:53:32 -0500, with neither quill nor qualm,
Ignoramus14972 quickly quoth:

If you spin the pulley by hand, does the compressor make farting
sounds? Do you sense any strange unevenness?

That's an accurate, if not technically pristine, definition, Ig.

Larry, thank you. That's how I test all pumps and compressors that are
offered to me.
--
* *Due to extreme spam originating from Google Groups, and their inattention
* * * to spammers, I and many others block all articles originating
* * * *from Google Groups. If you want your postings to be seen by
* * * * *more readers you will need to find a different means of
* * * * * * * * * * * *posting on Usenet.
* * * * * * * * * *http://improve-usenet.org/

Thanks to everyone for your input, I really appreciate it.

As for the “farting” sounds, if you mean something like, pheeeeeeeese,
then yes it does but it does not sound anything like my farts.

There are no unusual noises when the wheel is turned by hand and it
seems to be very smooth. I pulled the head and there is some carbon
build up, which I cleaned, but there is a small (3/4 inch) piece of
gasket missing between the two reeds (?) of the small cylinder. I
would not think this is good. The cylinder walls are very smooth with
no roughness or scratches anywhere that I can see. I have not removed
the pistons at this point.

One concern that I failed to mention in my original post is there
seems to be evidence when draining the tank of some oil contamination.
I have never noticed a change in the level in the crankcase however.
Any comments on this issue?

Also, does anyone have any recommendations as to where to get parts
for this unit? The pump is model number B4900 if that helps. Sanborn
say they normally stock them but are out of stock at present for the
rebuild kit.

Again, thanks to all for your help and comments.

Ted- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Hello again,

I removed the pistons and checked every thing closely and to my eyes
all looks good with one exception. There are some minute scratches in
the large cylinder wall. Hardly noticeable but they are there. Is this
something I should be concerned about and if so would 400 or 600 wet/
dry paper be an accepted practice to remove the scratches? It would
only require a few light passes to remove them I feel certain.

Oh, and please keep in mind that I don’t have a clue as to the
workings of a compressor. The more basic and detailed your
suggestions, the better.

Thanks again.

Ted