Direction on what to look for when buying a new ...

Most folks would advise you to buy as much compressor as you can afford. Which is good basic advise.

But first, ask your self some basic questions: how often will you be using your compressor? Daily? For 8 hours a day? Tons of people can get by with a 20 gallon single stage compressor for home use. I do. I've even seen shops run the heck out of one or two of them and get by. For awhile, anyway.

Do I occasionally have to wait for it to build back up? Sure, but I'm old, retired and usually not in a hurry. And truth be told, by then I probably am ready for a rest period myself! So I'll saunter off to the shop fridge for a cold drink and take a break.

Be honest with yourself about your needs and your budget and chose accordingly. If you decide you need a nice big compressor, from reading around on this sight, one of the best vertical 60 gallon compressors is available from Harbor Freight. It has an Italian compressor pump and I think a US made motor or tank. And on sale, it is a screaming deal.

As far as pressure, the higher the pressure stored in the tank is simply more stored energy. Most people run a regulator to keep line pressure at around 100 PSI anyway. So for example, a 60 gallon tank with 175 PSI can be effectively as much work energy as an 80 gallon tank with 100 PSI in it. (For illustrative porpoises only. Not real numbers. Not an engineer, didn't stay at a Holiday Inn)

A ball valve works for me, but I'm in "Its a dry heat" Arizona. The electric ones are nice if you're running the compressor all day long in a humid environment. Inexpensive retrofit units are all over eBay and Amazon.

A magnetic starter usually carries a higher duty rating. But contacts are contacts. Eventually those will wear out just like the contacts on a simple pressure switch. It again comes down to a question of the amount of use/abuse you intend to dish out vs. a cost factor. And keep in mind heavy duty always costs more upfront and also to replace. A magnetic contractor is usually harder to source and more expensive to replace than a generic pressure switch. So, trade offs.

CFM's are harder to explain simply. But in general, a higher CFM will in theory fill a tank faster or power a high volume tool like a bead blaster better. But there is some difference in the working pressures involved. For the same fixed size displacement, a single stage compressor can flow more CFM at certain pressures better because the displacement of both cylinders are available. In a dual stage compressor, one cylinder feeds it output of lower pressure to the other high pressure cylinder so the CFM or flow is ultimately less. (I hope that explains it!)

First, great screen name! Welcome to GJ.Most folks would advise you to buy as much compressor as you can afford. Which is good basic advise.But first, ask your self some basic questions: how often will you be using your compressor? Daily? For 8 hours a day? Tons of people can get by with a 20 gallon single stage compressor for home use. I do. I've even seen shops run the heck out of one or two of them and get by. For awhile, anyway.Do I occasionally have to wait for it to build back up? Sure, but I'm old, retired and usually not in a hurry. And truth be told, by then I probably am ready for a rest period myself!So I'll saunter off to the shop fridge for a cold drink and take a break.Be honest with yourself about your needs and your budget and chose accordingly. If you decide you need a nice big compressor, from reading around on this sight, one of the best vertical 60 gallon compressors is available from Harbor Freight. It has an Italian compressor pump and I think a US made motor or tank. And on sale, it is a screaming deal.As far as pressure, the higher the pressure stored in the tank is simply more stored energy. Most people run a regulator to keep line pressure at around 100 PSI anyway. So for example, a 60 gallon tank with 175 PSI can be effectively as much work energy as an 80 gallon tank with 100 PSI in it. (For illustrative porpoises only. Not real numbers. Not an engineer, didn't stay at a Holiday Inn)A ball valve works for me, but I'm in "Its a dry heat" Arizona. The electric ones are nice if you're running the compressor all day long in a humid environment. Inexpensive retrofit units are all over eBay and Amazon.A magnetic starter usually carries a higher duty rating. But contacts are contacts. Eventually those will wear out just like the contacts on a simple pressure switch. It again comes down to a question of the amount of use/abuse you intend to dish out vs. a cost factor. And keep in mind heavy duty always costs more upfront and also to replace. A magnetic contractor is usually harder to source and more expensive to replace than a generic pressure switch. So, trade offs.CFM's are harder to explain simply. But in general, a higher CFM will in theory fill a tank faster or power a high volume tool like a bead blaster better. But there is some difference in the working pressures involved. For the same fixed size displacement, a single stage compressor can flow more CFM at certain pressures better because the displacement of both cylinders are available. In a dual stage compressor, one cylinder feeds it output of lower pressure to the other high pressure cylinder so the CFM or flow is ultimately less. (I hope that explains it!)

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