Tire Inflator I’m using

[HaulingAss]

Whoa, touchy touchy. Didn’t know you were so vested in that Chinese POS.
It’s not my silly statement, it’s the manufacturer’s.

I might be misreading that, but I’ve seen many reviews where these cheapies can’t bring up a truck tire. The MFr’s point out the issues with those little jobbies. Also, MF has been specially modified to handle the 4 tire inflation use case with enhanced heat management for a reason.

My experience is that you’ll get a couple solid uses out of that unit. The McGraw is crap, but it inflated my tire from 40 psi to 50 psi in under a minute. That’s my use case. 50 to 65 took about the same. Tank takes a couple minutes to fill, but it’s a crappy $59 garage unit. Never meant for this.

BTW, the CT air compressor for height adjustment also has a tank. Hmm, I wonder why?. Tankless means smaller, not better, unless space is your primary concern.

I'm not touchy, it's just that you made silly claims with no basis in reality, and now you are defending them without knowing what you're talking about.

The specs you posted have nothing to do with not being able to bring a tire from 36 psi up to pressure. It could bring a tire up from zero psi, as long as the bead was seated. The 45-130 psi is the pressure setting for the shut-off, if it has zero pressure it will still start inflating until it gets to whatever shutoff pressure you have set. Just like any compressor I've ever used. I really have no idea how you could misunderstand this and then talk about it as if you knew what you were saying.

Inflators do not benefit from a separate air tank as the tires act like the tank. Compressing the air in the tank to over the inflation pressure is inefficient. Sure, it still works but it's not necessary and makes the compressor work harder than it needs to. The manufacturer of your compressor recommends draining the tank of pressure daily, and not transporting it while pressurized.

I suspect the inflation times you posted for the tank unit you are using assumes the tank is already pressurized at the start of your test and ends with the tank at a much lower pressure. That means each additional tire you inflate will be much, much slower than the times you posted. You need to count the runtime it took to inflate the tank to begin with (or count the time it takes to get the tank back to where it started).

Is the air hose in your photo capable of filling all tires at once, with a hose to each tire? Maybe you could tell us how long it takes to go from 36 psi to 50 psi, or from 50 psi to 65 psi, for all four tires. I guarantee the little Chinese unit I bought will do it faster. It's not that I'm defending the one I bought, I'm simply trying to keep this discussion factual.

BTW, slapping an Irish sounding name like McGraw on the compressor doesn't mean it's not made in China. It only cost around 1/3 the amount I paid for the Chinese branded one I bought, so you have that going for you!

Sponsored

 

[hodginator]

I didn't want to have to take the tow hitch cover off when off-roading (that cover prevents the mud from getting in your hitch receiver and all over your trailer electrical outlets). Plus, the quarter-turn retainers that hold the cover on get caked in mud too. So I'm using this 120V unit. Probably overkill, but with a MorrFlate 4 tire filling hose it will fill all four of Cybertruck's AT tires, simultaneously, from 50 psi to 65 psi in only 3 minutes and it just plugs into the 120V outlet with a heavy duty 3-prong 120V plug. Yes, it's blazing fast. Tesla recommends 65 psi for towing trailers.

It's very quiet and solid sounding but I can't vouch for the reliability of the digital controls as I've only used it once. One of the four head bolts on one of the compressor cylinders had not been fully torqued from the factory. I tightened it before I used it, and all seems well. It doesn't jump around like most inflators, it weights 16.5 lbs. and is rated at 900W (which is why it can move some serious air).

I think it's an impressively engineered compressor, However, I don't think I could jerry-rig it to pump if the electrical controls failed, that seems to be the potential weak link. That said, it costs a fraction of the Viair solutions that are slower and require accessing the trailer's electrical plugs.

I was looking At this unit today, so I’m curious how it’s been working for you.

I bought the Husky unit the OP bought and burned it out in one shot after trying to air my tires back up after doing some trails this weekend. Granted, I let it run for about ten minutes without A break and it let the magic smoke out. It’s much harder than I thought to get a good portable 110VAC inflator that can handle airing up 4 tires without melting or taking an hour…

 

[HaulingAss]

I was looking At this unit today, so I’m curious how it’s been working for you.

I bought the Husky unit the OP bought and burned it out in one shot after trying to air my tires back up after doing some trails this weekend. Granted, I let it run for about ten minutes without A break and it let the magic smoke out. It’s much harder than I thought to get a good portable 110VAC inflator that can handle airing up 4 tires without melting or taking an hour…

It's been working great so far, just used it yesterday. Keep in mind, it will overstress it to fill all four tires consecutively because having it connected to only one tire at a time means it can only flow as much air as one tire valve can pass. This will build excessive pressure between the compressor and tire valve, causing the compressor to work harder than it needs to. This could be mitigated by running it on half speed (it has that option) but the Morrflate hoses allow it to be run at full speed without overheating when adding 15 psi to all tires.

 

[HaulingAss]

I bought the Husky unit the OP bought and burned it out in one shot after trying to air my tires back up after doing some trails this weekend. Granted, I let it run for about ten minutes without A break and it let the magic smoke out.

I warned you within a day of the OP's original post with this:

Why did you buy that for the Cybertruck? It's not suitable for inflating Cybertruck tires. Just because it might work to add a couple pounds air, doesn't mean you should recommend it.

 

[tmeyer3]

I just gave up shopping and threw an old one gallon hotdog airtool donk in the bed. ? I say, use what you got.... Until you get tired of waiting... ?

One nice thing about the tank though, assuming you have a 100% duty cycle pump, is that it keeps on running between tires to fill that tank and they all come with a tool pressure regulator to automatically stop at the desired pressure. Lots of pumps have that, but I sure like not having to monitor it.

I think this is what I have, works great so far. Takes about 2min to add 20psi in the 45-65psi region for me--stock 285/65r20s. Should be faster per pound for 15-50psi but I haven't aired down that low just yet.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-H...ectric-Quiet-Air-Compressor-3300113/311273547

Edit: I didn't realized they advertise tire inflation as a good use for this, I thought it was for small tools only, but it's just what I had on hand. Guess I'm not voiding the warranty after all!

 

[HaulingAss]

I just gave up shopping and threw an old one gallon hotdog airtool donk in the bed. ? I say, use what you got.... Until you get tired of waiting... ?

One nice thing about the tank though, assuming you have a 100% duty cycle pump, is that it keeps on being useful from one tire to the next and they all come with a tool pressure regulator to automatically stop at the desired pressure. Lots of pumps have that, but I sure like not having to monitor it.

Two points:

1) How many compressors have a true 100% duty cycle rating? It seems better to me to have a compressor that can fill the tires in under 5 minutes, so you don't have to worry about duty cycles.

2) Monitoring a compressor that takes 4 minutes to go from 35 psi to 50 psi is hardly a problem. It's fast enough that you are not wasting a lot of time checking on it and slow enough that you can still walk away from it to do other tasks without worrying that it will suddenly jump from 45 psi to 70 or 80 psi.

The quad-tire Morrflate hose system I use has an accurate tire pressure gauge built-in. That makes it easy to achieve the correct target pressure (and all four tires will have the same pressure since they are all interconnected). If you want to run different pressures front and rear, you can fill them all to the lower of the two target pressures, turn off the compressor and disconnect two tires and then resume pumping. This works because the Morrflate system uses air chucks that are normally closed.

 

[tmeyer3]

1) How many compressors have a true 100% duty cycle rating?

Just the really expensive ones!

2) Monitoring a compressor that takes 4 minutes to go from 35 psi to 50 psi is hardly a problem. It's fast enough that you are not wasting a lot of time checking on it and slow enough that you can still walk away from it to do other tasks without worrying that it will suddenly jump from 45 psi to 70 or 80 psi.

Yup

The quad-tire Morrflate hose system I use has an accurate tire pressure gauge built-in. That makes it easy to achieve the correct target pressure (and all four tires will have the same pressure since they are all interconnected). If you want to run different pressures front and rear, you can fill them all to the lower of the two target pressures, turn off the compressor and disconnect two tires and then resume pumping. This works because the Morrflate system uses air chucks that are normally closed.

That's cool! I might get something like that someday. Sounds extra handy. Does it take up much space to carry around the extra hose?

 

[hodginator]

I warned you within a day of the OP's original post with this:

LOL, yeah I wish I had seen this thread prior to buying it.

I'm definitely going to look at the Morrflate hoses. That should make this so much easier.

 

[HaulingAss]

That's cool! I might get something like that someday. Sounds extra handy. Does it take up much space to carry around the extra hose?

Not much. About the size of the Tesla Mobile connector (thinner but bigger around). The biggest downside is having to coil it back up after using it. Like most reinforced hoses, it has to be twisted to coil it. But the extra setup/takedown time is worth the speed and ease of actually filling them back up. I have the one for wheelbases up to 155" and it has quite a bit of extra hose. The next shorter kit might fit the Cybertruck (even though it's not specified to fit the Cybertruck's wheelbase of 143"). It would be close. If it fit, there would be less hose to coil up. My guess is it might be a tight fit if your valve stems ended up in the wrong spot.

The Quad tire Morrflate can also be used for airing down if you want, that can take a lot of time doing it individually. Just install it on each tire and open the slide valve until they are deflated to where you want.

 

[tmeyer3]

Just out of curiosity, and in the name of being prepared, I decided to do a full 20-50psi timer on that little husky 1gallon guy. It didn't do too bad. On the stock 285/65r20s managed 5:25 for one tire. I've certainly seen worse, but it's also not amazing.

 

[HaulingAss]

Just out of curiosity, and in the name of being prepared, I decided to do a full 20-50psi timer on that little husky 1gallon guy. It didn't do too bad. On the stock 285/65r20s managed 5:25 for one tire. I've certainly seen worse, but it's also not amazing.

Did you start with the compressor tank at full pressure and end with it at the tire pressure? If so, it will take a lot longer to do each additional tire (and probably overheat in the process). For accurate fill times you need to count the runtime it takes to bring the compressor tank back up to pressure.

Here's the first compact 120V compressor I've seen that I think might be able to beat the one one I bought:

Amazon.com: SMAOUT 12V Air Compressor, Portable Inflator 7.06 CFM, Air Pump Max 150PSI for Heavy-Duty Offroad Tire, 4x4 Vehicle, SUV, RV : Automotive

Please note, I have no experience wth this unit and am not recommending it based on anything other than it looks like it might be a reasonable solution. I have no idea how it sounds, how hot it gets, how reliable it is, etc.

Unfortunately, it's quite heavy at 25 lbs. I think mine is 19 lbs.

 

[tmeyer3]

Did you start with the compressor tank at full pressure and end with it at the tire pressure? If so, it will take a lot longer to do each additional tire (and probably overheat in the process). For accurate fill times you need to count the runtime it takes to bring the compressors tank up to pressure.

Nope, just direct connected the tank to the tire, turned the regulator to 50psi and let it rip. A quick touch test after 5min and it was warm, but nowhere near what I would consider hot for a compressor.

 

[HaulingAss]

Nope, just direct connected the tank to the tire, turned the regulator to 50psi and let it rip. A quick touch test after 5min and it was warm, but nowhere near what I would consider hot for a compressor.

If the tank had atmospheric pressure at the start of your test, then the 20 psi air in the tire would have flowed back into the tank when you direct connected it, slowing down the filling process. If you could plumb the air coming out of the compressor (before the tank) directly into your air hose, you would get faster fill times and less heat build-up in the compressor.

 

[mbeltran]

Here's the first compact 120V compressor I've seen that I think might be able to beat the one one I bought:

Amazon.com: SMAOUT 12V Air Compressor, Portable Inflator 7.06 CFM, Air Pump Max 150PSI for Heavy-Duty Offroad Tire, 4x4 Vehicle, SUV, RV : Automotive

It’s actually 12v, NOT 120v. I have this unit and run it with a 120v-12v converter that can handle the high amperage. Works great, but the heat generation is insane. I would never buy one that didn’t have the duty cycle and overheat protection. Most people will buy these for off roading, so 20 psi to 50 psi inflation. That’s a lot for a unit not designed for that use case.

 

[oisiaa]

I'd just leave the tank pressurized to 110psi. It should hold that pressure for months to years. You might not even need to plug it in to gain 10psi on a low tire.

My thoughts exactly The air tank should hold pressure just fine for a long time (years if connections are proper). By the time the compressor kicks on you're on your second tire.

Sponsored