Has anyone ran their plasma cutter off a wheelbarrow compressor like this one? https://www.homedepot.com/p/Makita-10-Gal-5-5-HP-Portable-Gas-Powered-Twin-Stack-Air-Compressor-MAC5501G/205910871
It’s got enough CFM and has a 10 gallon tank.
I’ve got a Crossfire with a Hypertherm 45xp. Wondering if the compressor will keep up.
I haven’t, but the specs look like it could keep up with most plasma cutters…but you’ll probably have to keep engine running the whole time it’s cutting - tanks are pretty small. I’d guess biggest issue would be moisture - need to keep the air very dry for plasma. and the noise…welcome to the forums! Sorta new myself, but lots of good info on here. 
My thought is that if it can keep up, then it would be convenient to wheel it outside of the garage, fire it up, and run it when cutting.
Typical 50 amp plasma cutter is around 250 cfh so I think it’s going to short cycle quite a bit. Could lead to heat problems and as mentioned condensate is a real issue for plasma cutters. With all that said I understand why you’d want to kick the compressor out of the shop. I have a 25 cfm compressor that I’d love to send to the great beyond because of the noise.
Tim street I would definitely rethink that compressor. It’s not gonna be able to keep up. Although you will have plenty of pressure the pressure will not last long because with a 10.5 gallon tank you don’t have volume. I have the CrossFire as well (waiting on last box #2 of the Pro) connected to a Miller Spectrum 875 also with a ?26 gallon compressor. I was cutting out a 2 1/2" wrench 16" long and before completing my machine stopped cutting due to lack of pressure because I didn’t have enough volume. I had to make & install an add-on auxiliary tank connected to my compressor to get more volume. After doing so I have no problems making longer cuts. I just have to pay attention of how long my compressor runs now so that I don’t burn it up. My plans are to get me an 80 gallon 2 stage compressor later on. Well I hope that this info helps you. Good luck!
If you allready have that compressor you could get something like this for more
storage. Just take a bit to fill up but would help on the volume issue. ( no propane in it of course )Oh, come on, run it with propane just once, with video camera running. lol
A tank with a bottom drain might be a better choice.
Those propane tanks are ideal, just have to drill the bottom and weld a fitting on for the petcock. You can line up 2 or 3 in a row and give your air out of the compressor a chance to cool and condense before it get to whatever dryer you are using.
Out of date propane tanks are cheap as heck at the scrape yard.
I don’t have this compressor. I have this compressor on order. It’s $1,300 alone and I’ll need a regulator for it, a dryer (same for if I bought the wheelbarrow compressor), and I’ve got have a sub panel wired to my garage.
It could save on some expenses if the wheelbarrow compressor would work. Maybe it is just wishful thinking.
That looks almost identical to one that I’ve had for probably over 20 years, mine is a puma brand. It’s been a good one had to replace the air bleed off button once and last year I finally had to replace a start and run capacitor on the motor.
It will certainly be a dry gas!
Are you sure your not running into a flow issue? 26 gallons is pretty big if your compressor turns on while you"re cutting and doesn’t turn off then yes it’s definitely a volume problem but if your running out or pressure while the tank is still full then it’s a flow problem
My 26 gallon is only a one stage compressor. When the torch fires and the tank pressure gets below (I think) 90 lbs the compressor kicks on and won’t turn off. Then the tank pressure will continue to drop too low then the torch cuts off. That’s cutting on 1/2" plate. I then added the add-on tank, cut 2 bigger parts using the same 1/2" plate with no issues whatsoever. So yup it was a volume issue.
sure sounds like it.
Can I see a picture of your aux tank setup? Im in a similar situation.
Here is a picture from an old tank that I sanded down and applied 2 coats of paint onto it. I’m currently out-of-state at this time but as soon as I get back home sometime Saturday I’ll take a picture of the plumbing to show you how I connected everything.
nice thanks that looks pretty big. I picked ip a 20 gal im hoping that is enough to argument my current compressor though based on the specs it should be able to keep up. Im only cutting 3/16 at most though. Though I think I have an idea I would also like to see how did your piping is routed thanks.
Okay I was able to get back home sooner than expected. On the 1st photo at the top right hand side is the pipe (3/4" PVC sch 40) coming from my main compressor tank which is located in a
small shed outside of my shop. I want to also mention that I ran a dedicated electrical line from the shop breaker box with a red light (on & off indicator) connected to a switch out to my compressor shed so that if a pipe would happen to bust while off working it would be turned off so that it would not burn up the compressor. Then it T’s off and runs down to the auxiliary tank.
Then on the left hand side of the T-connection it runs out to 3 different quick connects in various spots of my shop including 1 that runs out to my
carport for airing up auto tires. The quick connect that I have for the plasma cutter has a regulator there for controlling the air pressure on the cutter or air tools that I may use instead of going back and forth from the compressor shed.
On the 2nd photo is how I plumbed my tank. I purchased all of the connections at my local Lowe’s store. There’s no air in it now because I have to change the 90° connection at the gauge that I bent when installing. Also I did mess up and should have put the quick connect on the tank itself instead of the hose that way I could have used the tank as a portable tank. I will change that over at a later date. Very easy & simple. Hopefully this will help you.
nice thanks I think im going to setup something similar
