Hmm, got hold of a Coleman compressor for (more or less) beer money last
year that had a failed regulator on it.

I finally got around to taking it apart, and the nut which presses down
on the spring inside had come off the end of the threaded shaft and then
the threads on the nut had got all chewed up (the shaft's OK)

Potentially* I could fix it... except that it's a left-hand thread, so I
probably don't have anything suitable in the junk pile. Is that common
for compressors - and if so, is there a good reason why? I've used a few
compressors in the past, but really don't recall which way the regulator
needed to be turned - but I don't think I naturally expect it to go one
way or the other.

* I might still be able to do something with a bit of RH threaded rod,
nut with RH threads, and a different handle. That's assuming I can't just
buy a replacement regulator (none of the ones in the local sheds are
suitable, but I've not tried online yet)

cheers

Jules