Suggestions Suggestions for compressor- engraving/sand carving

If you have 3 phase at the new place, by all means get a rotary screw compressor capable of a minimum of 150% of your estimated consumption.

If you don't have 3 phase, some of the smaller rotary screws run single phase 220v up to about 7hp, but they top out somewhere around the mid 30 CFMs. Check with an electrician to see if a phase converter might help move toward a larger compressor.

I'm out in the boonies and don't have 3 phase, so I run off a 100 CFM tow-behind feeding a 200 gallon receiver. I typically use a 3/16" to 1/4" nozzle on a 300 lb. pot with a supplied air helmet and that's getting toward the upper limit of my CFMs.

You can never have too much air.

JB

 

Multiple compressors plumbed to one tank isn't a good idea. I'd go for the largest compressor I could feasibly run and match it with a suitable air receiver.

I run a 3/16" to 1/4" nozzle in my blast booth (a 20 ft shipping container) for monument and boulder work. And I run a 3/16" nozzle in my 48" x 48" Trinco blast cabinet in my shop for paver brick and river stone work.

My tow-behind compressor is 40 years old and tired, and it only puts out about 70 psi. A 3/16" nozzle consumes approx. 35 CFM and a 1/4" nozzle consumes approx. 70 CFM. Given those factors, I'm just about right with the air reserve.

I do a lot of tinkering and inventing when it comes to sandcarving, and I've been able to push the boundaries a bit when it comes to engraving depth and mask longevity.

Check out thread the thread below from earlier this summer:

https://signs101.com/threads/brick-stone-engraving.154616/#post-1441771


JB

 

Rotary vane will work too. https://www.compressorworld.com/rotary-vane-air-compressors/air/cfm:50-99-cfm

 

Yes, that would be perfect.

JB

 

You'll be amazed by what you can do with that much air. I run a 48 X 48 cabinet and it's not over powering with a 3/16" nozzle.

JB

 

I just use a Craftsman 26 gallon from Lowes