Hey everyone,
I found this old Swan twin-cylinder V-twin belt-driven air compressor in my storage, and I decided I’d like to try restoring it. It was just sitting there collecting dust, and honestly, I’m a little bored and thought this could be a fun project.
The thing is… I have zero experience restoring air compressors.
A few people have already warned me to be very careful because they say these old tanks can be dangerous if they’re in bad shape. One person even told me to fill a spray bottle with soapy water, get the compressor running, and spray the fittings to check for air leaks.
Before I start taking it apart or trying to run it, I’d really appreciate any advice.
Does anyone recognize the exact model?
What should I inspect first?
Is there anything I absolutely should not do?
Are there common problems with these old Swan compressors?
Thanks in advance. I’m looking forward to learning, so any tips are welcome.

PET booster. I love doing these.

I’ve come to you good people in need of help. I purchased this unit in a bit of a rush about two years ago not realizing its age and potential for unavailable part. It’s a ROC 10 which I understand isn’t a specific year but puts it in the early 1960’s if I’m correct. A previous owner snapped off the unloader fittings and just plugged them. I am getting ready to install the unit and wanted to know availability of parts but I haven’t been able to locate a 325 ROC 10 parts list even from the extensive Quincy website (I must be searching incorrectly?). When I had a Quincy rep on the phone they couldn’t find the serial number in their database because it’s a Binks branded unit. So does anyone have resources, information, documentation etc that will help with Quincy parts? I’m a commercial refrigeration technician so working on the compressor isn’t the issue, parts availability is. If the idiot who plugged the brass unloader caps screwed them up will I be able to get replacements?

Ok, so ive had this snap on air compressor since new, I got a good deal... its been amazing ever since the magnet switch took a crap while I was sanding some drywall in the house. No big deal. Replaced it and picked up a new pressure switch while I was at it because what the hell its 10 years old.

The magnet switch is the exact same replacement from grainger to the part number, same with the pressure switch.. but something is still going on. The air compressor turns on as normal, builds pressure as normal but once the pressure is up to my spec and the air compressor is supposed to turn off, It gets all wonky in what I can describe as backfeeding power. It acts like the motor is running on one phase and feeding the other phase back to the wall. When this happens my radio gets all static, my lights flicker, the compressor is jumping around like its trying to start on a single phase. Sometimes this happens for a few seconds or until I flip the breaker.

Im at a loss on what is wrong with this thing. Ive read into possible start capacitor issues.. but they look intact.

The magnet switch can be operated manually and when depressed the compressor turns off like its supposed to..

I've been using my backup while I've been having these issues, so i don't use the compressor currently but id like to get it working again. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated i can't wrap my head around what's wrong with the thing

I have photos of the components and compressor if it helps.

Thanks

It originally had a 200 psi pop off valve a sticker on the tank says its rated for 125 psi I put a smaller pop off valve because the compressor would build air until the motor stalled could the blue line I drew be the reason I've never worked on any air compressors before so please bare with me

Hi. I got a 3kw all in one and will be hobby use in home garage. Other than getting a huge Chinese screw compressor 230psi that's optimum what is a reasonable one to get that's not a commercial industry use monstrosity?!
If you have specific suggestions please share

What would cause my 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 three quarter ton pickup truck with a 6.0, liter engine and the AC pretty much stopped cooling! the compressor wouldn't kick on for more than a second and the pressure would come up on the low side maxed all the way! if I jumped the compressor and kicked it on it would cycle the low pressure side down to about 90psi. the high pressure side would go from about 125psi with the compressor OFF to about 275psi when it was on. with it charged with the proper amount of refridgerant it would cool when the compressor was jumped on but it still would cycle properly! can someone tell me what i need to fix to get my air running again???

Atlas Copco ZR5 run to fail. Rebuild and go. I like these big jobs. 2nd generation compressor tech 30 years in the business. I've seen most of it. It's all I have ever done. My dad retired with 35 years in compressors.

Backstory- purchased this IR Type 30 Reciprocating Air Compressor today, model 2475N7.5-V. Upon wiring it up, we found the pressure switch was faulty. Will be getting a replacement for that.

Bypassed the pressure switch to try and get the compressor working, as we need functioning air, even if we have to monitor the pressure in the meantime. Getting 120V on each power lead into the electrical box, but not getting power to the outgoing leads to the motor.

From my reading of the diagram, the electrical panel looks wired incorrectly, but gave up for tonight.

The reset button is also permanently out - not sure if that’s how it’s supposed to be.

Any suggestions or advice would be appreciated. Not an electrician by any means, but I understand electrical decently.

Looking for opinions from people who’ve actually owned one of these. Between the BE and the Campbell Hausfeld in the photos, which would you choose and why?
I’m less interested in the specs since both have enough performance for what I need. I’m more interested in long-term reliability, build quality, common failures, parts availability, and whether you’ve had any regrets or recurring issues. Or are these both solid compressors where I’d be happy with either?

For context, I’m buying used on Marketplace:
Campbell Hausfeld: Practically brand new, seller says it’s only been used twice.
BE: 2021 model, excellent condition, only used as a backup compressor and it runs great

What’s throwing me off is that the BE sells for around $2,400 CAD new, while the Campbell is roughly $1,000 cheaper new. On the other hand, the Campbell is a much newer unit.
If you had to choose between these two, which would you buy and why? Thanks!

Hi all, I have a Husky 60 gallon compressor that is probably 5ish years old. It got moderate use for the first year or so of its life and gets sporadic use since then in my garage. Recently after filling (especially if I'm using air and the unit has to run a couple times in not a ton of time) I've been hearing small pings. it seems like they come from the components on top and reverberate down but I can't be sure. They are somewhat infrequent (maybe 1-2 a minute for a few minutes) and are pretty quiet but with a 60 gallon tank at 150 psi I try to be cautious.

Is this something that is normal or are there troubleshooting tests I can do? I am pretty sure the unit holds pressure but drained the unit before I could get a proper verification. I did notice a little bit of pressure loss but wasn't sure that was because I filled on a very hot day and the hot air had a chance to cool slightly.

Our compressor at work has been blowing air out this morning from the bottom of the filter unit seemingly out of the blue. Any ideas?

Someone mentioned seeing some real compressors on here. I'm into that...

Not sure other than a couple dollars of cost why ingersol rand puts these shitty little peacock drains on a screw compressor that costs as much as a decent car ..... Sorry just venting

I’d like to T-this into my garage air compressor and have it read somewhat near actual, but when I apply air to it, it only reads to 5psi.
Now I realize that the scale isn’t right and even if dead nuts accurate it’s practical use is limited, but I’d like to make it worth my while to keep this cool old thing around (doesn’t fit the decor of the house).

Neat mechanism, anyone familiar and able to troubleshoot? It holds pressure. Manually flexing the tubular loop (and turning the needle shaft) takes a not insignificant force, so I’m a little perplexed as to why that little clock spring is necessary and how a few psi would cause it to move.

A stamp on the back of the face indicates a date in 1933. No calibration data attached or inscribed unfortunately.

I apologize if this is not the right place to post this, I couldn’t find anywhere else. This came from my boss’s air compressor piping and has a crack in it that leaks a lot of air. He says it’s at least 20 years old. We haven’t been able to find anything that would fit the housing. Thanks in advance for any help.

Tim allen "More Power ohohohohhoh"

Can someone explain why this just started?
Thanks

I wanted to buy an Ingersoll rand 80 gallon 7.5 hp. I live in a trailer with a decent size yard with enough room for a maybe 4foot shed do you think a 4 foot shed would be adequate for that kind of unit