Soooo... I'm just doing some research to find out about getting an air compressor to make box building a bit easier.

Obviously I'll need something that can do brad nailing.

I've done a search on Princessauto.com and CT.com, but they obviously don't tell me much about what I need.

Can someone offer me a bit of help on what sort of things I should look for. What things are 100% necessary, and what things would be a "bonus" to have?

cast iron compressors are quieter an can live longer than oil-less compressors,if properly maintained.
most oil-less compressors draw more than 15amps, and will throw the circuit breaker when kicking on with a partially full tank.
tank size an cfm are dependant upon the tools you'll be running.
air drills,sanders,and blasters use huge air(cfm)
tank size will buffer the duty cycle.
Utimate compressor is "screw",it's quiet,big cfm . Just Very Expen$ive. :cool:
220 volt is also another option,for those that have an extra welding outlet.

Purchasing a compressor really depends on the tools your going to use with it, ie..light duty low cfm tools require a light duty compressor, and so on.
I'd suggest something in the mid line that will do light use with ease, and some heavy duty use as well. Another thing to consider is, do you want a portable unit that can be easaily moved around, or a stationary unit?
Once thats figured out then the decision becomes a tad easier. ;)

Here's one that I purchased awhile ago, it serves me well. :D

http://www.devap.com/products/view.asp?i=EXLC7060V

Look around that site, theres lots of info there.
Costco sells the Devilbiss line also thats where I got mine from. [img]smile.gif[/img]

yeah... it'll mostly be light duty I guess.

Like I said... just for using brad nails to put boxes together and maybe a bit of sanding.

Jordy I used to own a Coleman 5hp portable model on wheels. I bought it from Walmart a few years ago, it worked great, until it blew up because of too much stress. :eek: lol
I do Autobody it couldn't keep up with me or the tools. :(
It was a great compressor for smaller jobs though, like nailing, sanding, staining the fence etc etc.

I bet if I never used it in such a brutal manner, it would still be around today.

Go oiled, less noise

I have a Campbell Hausfeld 13 gallon 5 hp oiless, its noisy but serves me well, its around 5.5 scfm

If i could do it again i would go oiless for sure, the noise makes it hard to work sometimes when its on alot.

For brad nailing youd really just need a small pancake, no need to go overboard with that

I bought one of these porter cable pancake's

it works good with a brad nailer

click here

Yeah, I don't think the noise will bother me too much because I don't see myself using it for long periods of time.

If I do, I could just wear hearing protection.

So it looks like I just need one of those small pancake dealies.

Excellent.. thanks for the help guys! [img]graemlins/thumb.gif[/img]

Same one I have, I also use it for blowing out my underground sprinklers, and the lines are LONG. It's a loud mofo, but it was cheap(on sale like $300), and i'm happy. Picked it up @ Canadian Tire.

I have a Coleman 5hp oilless. Got it at Wallymart for $399 with a bunch of stuff.
I specifically chose the Coleman cuz it delivered the most air for under $500. So far it has worked like a champ.

Speaking of Wallymart - they have a 2hp 5gallon Coleman for $79. Perfect for nailers and such. In the future if you want more CFM you just buy another and pipe them together. ;)