Got the Quincy (report for Harold)

Wayne, you must have a pretty mellow wife to put up with an air compressor in the house. Steve

Hey Wayne,

I'm relieved to find your happy with the purchase. It's sort of risky going out on a limb telling the other guy how to spend his money, but I've been so pleased with my Quincy that I couldn't imagine anyone else not sharing at least a similar feeling.

You're a lucky guy, Wayne. I have a wife like yours, too. We're living in our shop while we're building our retirement home, with my lathe and mill just on the other side of some temporary cabinets, which are all the separate us from the chips, and not all that well. She has never complained, even when she finds chips on the bed after I've run a fly cutter, or roughed something on the lathe. Do you wonder how many women would put up with guys like us?

The leakage in an interesting thing. My system will often hold air for days, yet there are days when the compressor may cycle a time or two. I never turn it off unless we leave town, and I blow it down (just long enough to eliminate any water that has collected) almost daily. I have the blow down system in a manifold assembly that dumps outside the rear of our shop, so it's not messy, and the noise is a non-issue because we live in the middle of 5-1/2 acres of wooded land.

If you leave an air hose connected to your line, you might check it for minor leaks. I've found that's where my air usually goes. The valve often closes, but not perfectly. A quick push and rapid release of the button (trigger) usually stops the leakage. It often is so slight I can't feel it, but you can hear it when you place the nozzle near your ear. (Don't pull the trigger while doing that!) :-)

Harold

Congrats on having a great spouse.

My Quincy has a gate valve (not a ball valve) on the main tank outlet. If I open the gate valve halfway and let it pressurize an air line, it will hiss perceptibly. However, when I open it all the way open, it seals at the top, and you can hear the hiss stop dead. Now I get much less bleed-down, simply by when I open the gate valve, open it all the way. I hear this also holds true for oxygen cylinders and perhaps other welding gases as well.

GWE

So, which of your great grandchildren will inherit the Quincy? I hear rumor that they have oil in them somewhere to change once in a while. Is there a check valve in the output line going into the tank? There should be so the valves aren't at fault in the bleed-down.

Don't know. I'm only concerned that I get to use it.

The distributor recommended changing the oil, yikes!, 4 times a year. Something about getting water in there. I think I changed oil once or twice on my old one, in 27 yrs, never had water.

Brochure says they use lapped cast iron valve seats, so it doesn't need a check valve.

Wayne D.

I got 3 of these puppies and they all have check valves. I have to pull the exhaust valve bodies about once a year and clean the baked-on carbon off, it holds the valves open a snitch, but we run the piss out of them. Don't you love the sound? The past few years we've been using synthetic oil from Grainger and all apears ok.

Sounds like you have a good one there. Better hold on to her. Oh, and the same applies to the compressor too. :)

sdb

. Now I get much less bleed-down, simply by when

Grant, let me clarify your point before someone gets hurt. Oxygen tanks have a double seating valve, which should be opened all the way when using. Never open acetylene tanks all the way! First, I was always taught to only crack acetylene 1/4 turn, for if there is an accident (fire), it is quick to turn off. Second, acetylene becomes unstable over 15 lbs. That's why there's a redline on the regulator. Ron

Your points about the acetylene cylinders are well taken. You never stop learning, do you? - GWE

That's what I learned too. Why don't they just make the valves so they can't be opened more than 1/4 turn?

I can't help but think it's to do with filling the cylinders.

Harold