Using A/C Compressor for On Board Air?

[Ranger44]

I know people were talking about this in another post. Can anybody provide pictures. I know this will involve getting a pressure regulator, lines, and a tank. Does the A/c compressor need some sort of oil new oil? Does it need to be flushed? In basic terms How will this system operate? What kind of Psi will the system make? I find this very interesting and a cheaper way to add OBA.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

ive always wondered if this was possible with a smog pump.....

later,
Dustin

 

[kunar]

the way i have heard is to use an air tool oiler and a small filter on the intake, and a water separator on the output. i've read they can make 400+ psi so you need to use a pressure switch like you said. i've also read to use some slick50 or something similar to cycle through the pump before you put your lines on it.

 

[holyford86]

I did the onboard air thing. I used a york F210 compressor because they have an internal oil sump unlike the ones used in rangers. No complaints with it. you could use the compressor that came stock but as mentioned above, you need to run an inline oiler. A normal shop air compressor switch works great for a high pressure/low pressure shutoff. I would run another switch in series with the pressure switch so that you aren't maintaining pressure all the time. You have a few different options with tanks. You could build a bumper and use that as a tank, you could use a portable air tank and modify it, or you could use an airbrake tank off of a large truck as I did.

 

[metalmacguyver]

before you do anything, take it to a shop and have them recover the refrigerant so that you can do your bit not damaging the environment. and obeying the law.

 

[holyford86]

before you do anything, take it to a shop and have them recover the refrigerant so that you can do your bit not damaging the environment. and obeying the law.

+1 if it hasn't already discharged via a leak it would be a good idea.

 

[MountainRanger]

I used my stock A/C compressor on my ranger i threaded reducer fittings into the ports on the back of my pump the intake has an air tool olier with a tiny k&n looking filter. The outlet has a three way distribution block. one for the pressure switch 90 on 125 off. one going to the tank and ,one going into a pressure gauge in the cab. Then i ran a hot wire into the cab to a switch that goes to the pressure switch following with a wire from the positive side of the clutch to an amber led beside the gauge so i know when its running
i used a 4.5 gallon tank mounted in the rear where my spare tire carrirer used to reside. It fills the tank in about 1.5 mins at idle and a hell of alot faster with some go juice.
ill try and post some pics soon camera is broken so ill have to borrow one

 

[Hahnsb2]

I'm running a stock AC compressor for my OBA. I don't have a filter on the intake, been that way for almost 2 years. I'm running a air compressor pressure shut off switch, I just wired it into the same place on the wires that the stock AC pressure switch used to be. It works pretty well, I just squirt some oil into the intake every once in a while.

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

just keep the compressor oiled and it will perform and last quite well. though i havnt finished my system, ive used my compressor a few times thus far. they move a very decent amount of air and are capable of over 400PSI. i have an old R12 tank from work that i will be using for my air tank when my setup is complete (looks to be about 3 gallons).

a smog pump wouldnt work for OBA. they are designed to move CFM's and nothing more, they dont build pressure.

 

[Ranger44]

System has already been discharged. I will have to do a little more research into this, learn a little more. Any good web sights for this? Anybody have any pics of what they have? Thankyou guys!

 

[ForOffRoadDriving]

+1 on pics and website links. i posted last week wondering about the same concept because A/C is useless to me. michigan rarely gets hot enough that i feel like i will die and OBA would be much more useful for me on my DD as i have named all my rangers "RESCUE RANGER" because thats mostly what i use them for, is going to work and bailing my friends out when they need help. ive see my cousins OBA system on his CJ7 but its so poorly hacked together i cant tell how it works, it just does.

 

[metalmacguyver]

I did the onboard air thing. I used a york F210 compressor because they have an internal oil sump unlike the ones used in rangers. No complaints with it. you could use the compressor that came stock but as mentioned above, you need to run an inline oiler. A normal shop air compressor switch works great for a high pressure/low pressure shutoff. I would run another switch in series with the pressure switch so that you aren't maintaining pressure all the time. You have a few different options with tanks. You could build a bumper and use that as a tank, you could use a portable air tank and modify it, or you could use an airbrake tank off of a large truck as I did.

where did you get your compressor and how much fab work was needed to make it fit?

 

[Ranger44]

Hey, found these sites:

http://www.jedi.com/obiwan/jeep/yorkair.html

http://www.huv.com/jon/jeep/Air/tank.html

It's for a jeep, and they use a Ford York compressor, but it gives a great base for a project.

 

[Ranger44]

 

[holyford86]

where did you get your compressor and how much fab work was needed to make it fit?

I pulled it out of a mid 70s motorhome with the clutch for 40 bucks, Changed the pag oil in it to atf and modified the stock A/C brackets to fit it, so it tensions the same way that the factory one did. You would need to buy or find the serpentine belt clutch to make this work on a newer ranger, the clutches are pricey.