Air Compressor Suggestions

I had a junky 12 V air compressor that died a couple of years ago, and so far I’ve been lucky enough to borrow others a couple of times out on the trails. Most of the time I haven’t needed to air down. I haven’t used anything that I’d call good, though. Does anyone use a portable compressor that they can call great? The high end Viair ones?

 

I have a DeWalt 20V Max DCC0201B I purchased on Amazon for $99. Works great.

 

ARB has worked great for me

 

Fan of the

$200 Viair 400P - 40043 Portable Compressor Kit. Tire Pump, Truck/SUV Tire Inflator, For Up to 35" Tires

Viair 400P.

Airs quickly, locking chuck lets you walk away. Coiled hose. Anti vibration feet. Carrying case. Owned since 2016, airs up all four 35" tires on our Jeep from 14 to 30 lbs. in 15 minutes +/-.

Wait for Amazon Prime day in a week or so (if member) or Friday/Monday after Thanksgiving for better pricing.

 

I went with the Smittybuilt at 2.56 cfm. It is crazy fast when airing up! Got mine on Ebay for 90 bucks

 

I recently picked up a Viair 300P. I'm very happy with it. I think it is more than sufficient for 33's or smaller. It seems very well built, and sounds like it is, too (if that makes sense ).

 

I’ll second the VIAIR 300P. Has worked great for me so far. Also have ARB onboard air as a backup, but the VIAIR has been working great for the past 2 years.

 

I use Smittybuilts. I’ve used it about 20 times now, last trip it was over 100 degrees (Fahrenheit) and I filled up my tires (295/70/17) from 20 to 40 psi, and filled up two more rigs tires (275/70/17) from 20 to 40 psi. It took about 15 minutes, and the compressor did awesome in the heat.

Smittybilt 2781 5.65 CFM Universal Air Compressor

$189 SmittyBilt AIR COMPRESSOR 5.65CFM - SB2781

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004K25GMG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_K24FFbD6ZG4ZQ

 

Another user of the VIair 300P, used a handful of times so far and works great. Put in a range bag with other tire repair goodies for a kit type throw and go. Not much room under the hood in my 2nd Gen so this made the most sense for me.

 

That's what I have and worth every penny. Can air up to 35" tires

 

I probably need to buy a big shop air compressor.
I also have a Viair 300P and find myself using it almost weekly.

My JD riding mower has a leaky front tire. Every time I want to mow, I need to air up the tire.

My 2006 Nissan Frontier - got kicked out of the garage when I bought my 4Runner. The wide, hot to cold, temperature swings we have here, require me to add air to the tires frequently.

I bought cheap knockoff air down tool off Amazon and attempted to use it at that Off Road park I was at a couple weeks ago.
Couldn't get an accurate reading out of it. Used my Viair hose to air down instead.

 

This. I love mine, especially paired with my quad-inflator. Quick and easy just upgrade the fittings!

 

When I was researching, it boiled down to Smittybuilt or VIAIR. I don’t think you can go wrong with either choice. I went VIAIR only because more people in my little circle of friends have them.

 

I opted for the ARB Twin Air Compressor about 18 months ago. It's performed great for me for simple air-ups after off-roading. I've included a photo below...note the extra intake cover in the middle of the compressor (circular plastic cover with "ARB" written on it). That's actually where I mounted the manifold end of my rear differential breather when I installed the ARB rear diff breather kit recently. Looks almost like it was meant to be there, and given all the other features I have stuffed under the hood (aux battery, SwitchPro, etc), it made for a convenient mounting point.

 

Nice installation!

 

Now you need the matching Arb accessory...

Front air locker.

 

Haha! $$$ I think I’ll pass on the front diff locker. I like being able to steer, and with the crawl control and multi-terrain select I’ve been able to handle every situation I’ve been in this far. Now, after having said that I’ll probably get stuck up to my bumpers next week.

 

In the old days a front locking diff was your only choice, but modern technology has made the need for one obsolete. I agree, TrailT, steering is more important than a locker on the front diff in this day and age.

 

Do you mind sharing what mounts/brackets you used to get the aux battery, switchpro, and compressor under the hood? Thanks in advance!

 

I've owned and used a number of ACs including an ARB Twin which was the best. I needed it for my TJ on 35s that I would air down and up quite often and those are big tires. I let it go when I sold the TJ.

I currently have an ARB Single portable and I love it. It is plenty fast for the 33s on my Runner and most folks do not install anything larger. Additionally, the case/box that it comes in is large enough to hold the air hose, tire gauge, deflater, gloves, plug kit and extra valve stems. Being portable, if a trail buddy needs to air up I can just hand them the box, I don't need to park next to them. It has also come in handy at home when a friend or family member woke up to a flat tire, easy to grab it and go be the hero.

 

I saw this video a long time ago. Seems like it would be handy for more than just tires.

 

Boonedoggle, I don't mind a bit. For the aux battery, I used the Off-Grid Engineering "2010-Current 4Runner/ 2010-2014 FJ Cruiser Complete Dual Battery System". (https://www.**************/collecti...-2014-fj-cruiser-complete-dual-battery-system) It comes with the following:

• Passenger side mount aux battery tray (machined aluminum) - fits Group 35. I have an Odyssey 35-PC1400 in there.
• Driver side battery tray (for existing starter battery plus relay mount)
• Blue Sea 7622 ML-ACR 500 amp, dual voltage sensing relay
• In-Cab Management Switch
• Cabling
• Cooper Bussman Marine Rated Battery Fuse System

Pairing this system with the Switch-Pro SP 9100 works really well for me. (https://store.switchpros.com/sp-9100-switch-panel-power-system/) I just mounted the SP9100 directly to the passenger side wall in front of the air intake filter using industrial strength velcro with industrial strength adhesive. After about 18 months it feels as solid as the day I installed it.

Back to the driver side, for the ARB dual air compressor I used the Slee ARB Compressor Mount (https://sleeoffroad.com/products/sok0027/). It fit like a glove with no wasted space just behind the fuse box.

I've had no problems with any of these mods to-date (knock on wood), although I do plan to tidy up the wiring a bit near the Switch Pro.

Hope that helps, and here are some photos...