Black Diamond Air Compressor Comparison
So you’re in the market for a new air compressor. Maybe the old one finally gave out or you’re looking to upgrade.
There are a lot of things to consider when looking for your new compressor. Do you want to be able to move it around, or is it going to be bolted down in one spot? How much airflow do you need? What about PSI? How big of a tank do you need? These are all great questions to think about before making your decision.
Air Compressor Style and Tank Size
Where is your compressor going to live? Are you looking for portability? You should consider a unit with wheels. That may mean a smaller tank, and we offer tanks in the 4 to 8 gallon range in a variety of styles. Maybe you don’t plan on moving it from the corner of your shop. That might mean a fixed tank with a long hose, and these units have the option of a 230 volt power supply. We have 60 and 80 gallon tanks that bolt to the floor, and all the accessories to set up your workspace. Looking for something in the middle? We have a 30 gallon with wheels that could be right for you. Are you are looking for something to mount in a service vehicle or take to the field? We have compressors powered by four cycle gasoline engines too.
Airflow
SCFM (Standard Cubic Feet per Minute) is the flow rate of air through the compressor at standard temperature and pressure conditions. It’s similar to CFM (Cubic Feet per Minute) in that both indicate airflow in a compressor. The difference is that SCFM measures with ‘ideal’ temperatures and pressure conditions and CFM measure the ‘actual’ airflow rate. Your CFM value is always going to be lower than the SCFM. Really, it’s the ability for an air compressor to continuously perform a task. Depending on which tools you need to use, this is something to consider. For instance, when you’re using a finish nailer, you don’t need a large amount of CFM. However, if you’re using an impact driver, you’ll need more.
PSI
Most compressors can handle the PSI (pounds per square inch) requirements of basic air tools. However, if you’re looking to use bigger tools that need more pressure, make sure to check the ratings on the compressor. Imagine the difference between a finishing nailer, which has smaller nails, and a framing nailer, which has bigger nails that need more pressure to get the nail into harder materials.
One of our most popular brands of compressors is Black Diamond of which we currently carry over 10 different styles. You can see our full line up here. We had a chance to meet up with Steve Brown, an expert in these compressors. He talked us through the specs and set up of four of our most popular compressors.
5 Horsepower 80 Gallon Two-Stage Air Compressor
Black Diamond is made in the US. This unit is a 5 horsepower, 80 gallon, two-stage air compressor. This compressor is designed for heavy duty professional use, industrial use, and shops and garages, and anywhere multiple lines and uses are going to need air. It features a 5 horsepower motor, a two-stage cast iron compressor pump, and 80 gallon ASME tank. The unit puts out 17.9 CFM at 90 PSI, and the maximum pressure goes to 175 PSI. The compressor kicks in at 145 PSI and out at 175 PSI.
It's perfect for air tool operations, impact wrenches, air ratchets, sanders, die grinders, cutoff tools, sand blasters, painting, and all the jobs that you need done daily. This unit is unique in the two-stage world as it features a high flow regulator tank, regulator gauge, air pressure, line gauge, and two quick connects. This saves the customer a lot of money in adding on additional accessory sales such as regulators, quick couplers, and everything you need to get air out from the air compressor to your tool.
The unit comes with a two-year limited warranty with the purchase, and a maintenance kit which includes six quarts of fully synthetic oil, three air filters, and two replacement belts. With a purchase of this along with the air compressor, you extend your pump warranty from two years to four years, which is by far the best warranty in the industry.
You need to get an electrician to wire it from the motor to your power source. It's not designed to stay and operate on the pallet that it's shipped on. So once you get it home and into your location, unbolt the air compressor feet. Put down a rubber pad that is available for sale at North 40 stores. Pick three of those up and put a rubber pad down under each foot.
When you get the air compressor home, how do you get the air from the compressor to your compressor line? You can hard plumb it in using PVC or use black lead pipe, but the perfect solution is sold right at the North 40 store, and is called our Black Diamond Stationary Install Kit. It includes a flexible, heavy-duty hose, so you basically plumb the unit in and it comes with all the plumbing fixtures.
Shop the 5 Horsepower 80 Gallon Two-Stage Air Compressor here.
60 Gallon Vertical Air Compressor
This unit happens to be one of our bestselling compressors of all time. This 5 horsepower, 60 gallon air compressor features a cast iron twin cylinder single-stage compressor pump, and a 60 gallon ASME tank. This compressor is perfect for our 3/8 ratchets, 1/2 inch impacts, cutoff tools, die grinders, sanders, and paint guns. Designed specifically for the serious DIYer, the ranch and farm shop, and light duty industrial. What it’s not designed to do is a three or four man body shop, full-time application where you need a two-stage compressor. But it's a perfect price point and solution for the ranch and farm, serious garage guy who needs a bigger compressor than what a portable is able to offer them.
It features one of the highest pressure ratings in the industry for a single-stage compressor pump. This unit will kick in at 125 PSI and kick out at 155 PSI. Pairing that with the 60 gallon tank, it operates air tools much more efficiently than a single-stage compressor that only operates to 125 PSI or 135 PSI. So the higher the pressure and the larger the tank, the more air tools and the longer the air tool runtime is for you. Once you get this unit home, take it off the pallet. This is a shipping pallet only. North 40 sells rubber vibration pads. You put one of those pads under each of these three feet, mount it directly to the floor, and you're good to go for installation.
This 60 gallon stationary compressor, like all of your other 60 and 80 gallon Black Diamond stationary compressors, are 230 volt motors. They do not come with a plugin ready cord. So the owner manual states that you must have a qualified electrician hardwire this in from the motor to your power source at home.
V-Twin 30 Gallon Vertical Air Compressor
This unit features a V-twin cast iron pump, 1.6 running horsepower motor, and a 30 gallon vertical portable tank. This unit puts out 5.3 CFM at 90 PSI and 6.2 CFM at 40 PSI. The best part about this unit is that it comes fully equipped with a power cord and is 115 volt plugin ready. You can operate this off a household or garage standard current. So it's very easy and maneuverable and convenient to get around and use in multiple locations. It will run a 3/8 inch ratchet, a 1/2 inch impact, a paint gun, a die grinder, or a cutoff tool. A lot of the air power tools that you have in your shop or that you plan to get, this unit is big enough and powerful enough to operate those.
It has fully pneumatic tires, a 30 gallon ASME tank, and handles. It has a built-in regulator, so when you plug the unit in and turn it off, it'll automatically pump up to 155 PSI, which is the highest pressure on a portable compressor in the industry. So if you don't need 155 PSI, if you're spray-painting and you only want 60 PSI out of your paint gun, the gauge will tell you how much pressure is in the tank. The other gauge will tell you how much pressure you have regulated out to your hose or to your tool. So even though you have 155 PSI in the tank, if you only want 40 or 60 PSI output, just simply dial in your regulator till your regulator gauge reads 40 PSI.
It saves you add-on sales and dollars spent for additional regulators and quick couplers and all the things that you normally have to buy with other portable air compressors. The Black Diamond comes fully equipped, ready to go. This is a long life compressor. When you take it home, you basically have to screw on the air filters if that's not done at the store for you. Make sure that the oil level is right up to the top of the red dot on the easy to read oil level sight glass. Make sure the air filters are on, plug it in, turn it on and it'll automatically pump up to full pressure. When the tank is full, it'll automatically shut off. So it’s simple and easy to use.
8 Gallon Cast Iron Single Stage Air Compressor
This is one of our bestselling gas wheelbarrow style air compressors that we make. It's perfect for running air tools, 1/2 inch impacts, 3/8 inch ratchets, sanders, die grinders, paint guns, blows off power equipment, radiators, combine radiators, big tractors, fills tires on the job site, and it's perfect for the actual contractor style. This unit will run five framing nailers off this one air compressor, so it's a great unit to run multiple lines off of and powerful enough to run most of the air tool needs that you're going to need.
It features a Honda GX 160 engine and an inline twin cylinder cast iron air compressor pump. This unit produces 11.6 CFM at 40 PSI and 9.9 CFM at 90 PSI. So again, it's enough to run multiple lines, multiple tools off this one very useful unit. In terms of the air compressor movement, it's low profile. It's not going to tip. It's not top-heavy, so it's perfect for that solution. On our wheelbarrow or our gas compressor driven Black Diamond air compressors, we feature a liquid filled gauge. You might think that there's moisture in the gauge and actually there's not. It's a liquid filled gauge, intentionally put on gas powered compressors because there's a lot of vibration created by the gas engine. So if you don't have a liquid filled gauge, it's hard to get a reading on where your air pressure and your line pressure is. So that's why we included a liquid filled gauge on this one. The unit features a two-year warranty.
You pull the power cord on the Honda engine, and once the unit starts, it will automatically build pressure to 155 PSI. And once it fills up in a matter of less than 60 seconds, it will automatically idle down. So where an electric compressor will kick in and kick off, you can't start and stop a gas engine every time the tank fills up. What happens is the unit will start up, it'll fill the tanks in 60 seconds or less. Once the tanks are full, this unloader valve will trigger that the tanks are full. It will trigger the pop-off valve, sending the engine into an idle and blowing off all the air that isn't needed in the tank anymore out the backside of this unload valve. Once you use the nailer or a blow gun or the tanks drop down to pressure under 125, this will automatically kick back on. It'll idle back up to full speed, full throttle and it'll fill the tanks again.
Shop the 8 Gallon Cast Iron Single Stage Air Compressor here.
Black Diamond doesn't just sell air compressors. In the market for a new generator, log splitter, or hand tools? Check out their whole lineup of products here.
About the Author: Kylie Richter
Kylie Richter is a multimedia journalist who joined the North 40 media team in 2021. She’s a sixth generation Montanan – something she’s always been proud of. She grew up on a wheat farm on the Hi-Line. A journalism graduate from the University of Montana, Kylie spent a few years working in the newspaper world before deciding to switch to marketing. She’s also dabbled in coaching, construction, and runs her own small business. Working for North 40 gave her the opportunity to get back to her roots. Not a day goes by where she doesn’t appreciate the chance to hit the backroads out in the country for work.