My Shoebox setup
I have had forum members ask how I set up my Shoebox. So I am posting this to try and answer some questions, and to show how really easy this is.
First you have to order the Shoebox by getting on http://www.shoeboxcompressor.com and getting on the list. After January 1, 2011 the price is going up $40.00 or so, so do it now if you want to save money.
Before my Shoebox arrived, I went down to Harbor freight and purchased a oilless Pancake compressor that will put out 100 PSI, a hose, a small package of fittings and a water filter.
Then I set it up on my bench and installed all the parts as you can see in the photo including on the very end of the hose, a female fitting like the one you would plug your shop airtools into.
When the Shoebox got here, I had to install two things that are disassembled for shipping:
1st: the male nipple on the top that my Pancake compressor hooks to and supplies the Shoebox with air. That nipple even had the teflon tape wrapped on it. This was installed with a 9/16 inch end wrench.
2nd: I had to install the bleed valve which is in the lower center of the Shoebox compressor in the picture. Then I attached the screw that keeps the bleedvalve from unscrewing with a phillips screwdriver.
I then plugged it in, attached my Pygmee tank to the male connector located under the bleedvalve in the lower middle part of the Shoebox. The female connector like the one used to fill a AF rifle with a ETAC is the one needed.
At first my Shoebox appeared to not pressure up fully to 4500 PSI. It turned out that the small guage was not accurate, I replaced it with a larger more accurate gauge and all was well.
At the end of the upper piston is a small collar with a spring attached to it. There is a set screw on the collar. you can make adjustments to the fill pressure by loosening the set screw and moving the collar slightly out for more pressure.
If this sounds too simple, it is because it truely is simple.
Roachcreek
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one other thing RC. on the shoebox tech website, Tom recommends putting the water trap at the shoebox end of the feed line. the theory is that the air into the shoebox will be cooler at the distal end of the feed line and thus the water trap will be more efficient. i used the same trap as you but it got used up and full of moisture after filling 2 scba(44cf) tanks and i couldn’t find any replacement media. so i bought a different type of water trap at Lowes( doesn’t use a dessicant)- only cost about $12 and only needs periodic emptying. has a glass bowl with a drain tap at the bottom, plus a cintered bronze filter( made by Dewalt). anyway, just an FYI. Jerry
I like how small and compact that unit is. That is just too cool. 😎
the timer certainly takes the worry out of filling/topping a bigger bottle and forgetting to lube the piston rods every 3-4 hours( i lube every 3 hours just to be on the safe side and it takes less than a minute to lube, reset the timer and get back to filling- cheap piece of mind!).
Doaarhunt,
Yes when I read what you had done, a light came on. But right now I am only filling that little Pygmee bottle and it takes about 20 minutes to fill it after topping my Condor off a couple times.
Next month I will get the hose assembly for my 44 Cu.ft. from Joe and then I will need that timer.
Roachcreek
Nice set up.
I just picked up that same compressor for $50 as a back up. Nice little unit
basically just like my setup with slightly different components- sheer simplistic genius! 1 thing you might want to consider RC is to put your shoebox on a simple sprinkler timer( about $15) set for 3-4 hours. this will turn your shoebox off at the preset time to allow you to lithium lube the piston rods. it’s easy to turn it on, walk away and forget about the lube requirement . with the sprinkler timer, it won’t matter/do any harm if you forget.
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Gee Dollar, that makes me wonder if you should get some stainless steel tubing, enough to make several coils, and put the water seperator at the end of the coil? (Did that make sense?) Three 3″ coils would yield some close to 30″ of tubing for the air to cool and the moisture to condense. Just a thought.