Discussion Forum - Northstar Chevelle Club

My 27 year old Craftsman air compressor sprung a pinhole leak in the bottom of the tank a couple weeks ago.   That compressor has served me very well.  I have used it for just about everything except painting.  It's taken a lot of abuse and I haven't been very kind to it but it just keeps running like the Energizer Bunny.  I received it as a gift from my Mom in 1988 after I came back from my three year tour overseas.  I have this weird sentimental attachment to it I guess so I didn't want to junk it.

I looked into the possibility of replacing the tank.  That idea went out the window after seeing what new comparable tanks cost.  They're more than buying a new compressor!     The only other option was to repair the tank.  I poked a podded around the hole to try and gauge how bad the corrosion was and it seemed pretty solid.  So I welded it up.  And it held.  My lovely Judy offered to buy me a new compressor for my upcoming birthday which I gladly accepted.  But I wanted a large stationary one so that will go in the new garage as it's much too big for our small attached garage.  I still need compressed air in the attached.  Knowing the repair was just prolonging the inevitable, I started searching Craigslist for a cheap solution.  I came across a Campbell Hausfeld 28 gallon vertical portable compressor with a bad motor.  Light bulbs went on.  I went to look at it and the tank looked great.  It only had a single cylinder pump though so the CFM rating was pretty low compared to my twin cylinder Craftsman.  So I would have to transfer not only the motor from my Craftsman but the pump as well.  I decided to go for it.  For $60 it was well worth a try. 

I had a few obstacles to overcome.  The main one was how to mount the motor and pump.  On the Craftsman, the pump and motor are mounted to a stamped steel plate that's welded to the top of the tank.  There were two ears in the plate where the motor bracket attached with a pin.  All these years I never noticed how horribly out of alignment the pump and motor pulleys were.  I don't know how the belt stayed on!  I found it quite funny how much the owner's manual stressed that these pulleys be in perfect alignment and if they weren't, then it should be corrected.  But it didn't show you how to correct it.  Probably because there was no way to do it.  LOL  So cutting that plate off and attaching it to the CH was not an option.  So I drilled and tapped four new holes for the pump and I fabricated two new mounting brackets for the motor.  I was also able to retain the belt tensioning mechanism. 

I didn't think to start taking pictures until I was well into the project.

The Campbell H. was 100% made in the U.S.A.  and everything is marked as such.  I found that interesting and pleasing.  It's a 110v 5 horse motor but can be wired for 220v.  So I may see if I can repair it and keep it as a spare.  It also has large rubber tires, not cheap plastic ones like on the Craftsman. 

The Craftsman was built for Sears by Devilbiss but there are no markings on the motor or pump to indicate where they were made.  It runs on 220v.  The CFM ratings are pretty good for a compressor that size but are probably a bit optimistic.  The tube going from the tank to the regulator is plastic and looks to be 1/4" inner diameter, 5/16" at the most.  That's a lot of air to push through that little hose. 

Working out the placement of the pump, motor, and output line:

I used the Craftsman regulator/pressure switch/gauge assembly.  It is much more robust than the Campbell unit and has larger easier to read gauges.  The input line to the Craftsman assembly was plastic like I mentioned and screwed into the back with a weird compression type fitting.  I couldn't use that port with the pipe fittings obviously so I had to plug it.  I couldn't find a compression plug anywhere so I had to fabricate my own.   There was a pre tapped pipe threaded hole on the bottom that I used for the input. 

The tank input fitting is between the pump and motor vs. on the side on the Craftsman.  I couldn't mount the motor on the other side of the pump due to the placement of the mounting bracket on the motor.  Bending a new pressure line was a much easier alternative.  The copper tubing was left over from the garage heater install.  These were the tightest bends I could make without kinking the tubing:

It works!  No leaks!

Spare parts:

More spare parts:

While not a highly technical project, it was fun and I actually completed it!  It only took about 4 trips to Menards to get all the right pieces.   I still need to fabricate a safety cage for the belt and hot parts.  But it works.  And being a vertical tank, it takes up a little less floor space which is a bonus.  It tucks in nicely behind the tire changer.  I'll use the Craftsman tank as an auxiliary air tank when I go to the track as long as it hold up.