You think arguments about welding get rough, compressed air drying makes rod fight look like a happy day at daycare.
Just 1 filter just ahead plasma not going to cut it. Compressed air roaring toward nozzle at warp speed no single device got enough time to pull water out. Not even refrigerated dryer unless it discharging into tank before machine.
15+ years back Franzinator popped up on Hobart, sits between compressor and tank and knocks water out of air by rapid cooling. Biggest temp change available der. Naturally 1000 fools post how can't, won't engineering school all over place. Men who built Franzinator say it works. 15 years down road pretty much every post on www says it works.
Water leaving compressor in either vapor or micro drop, gets slammed into cold surface condense, water don't hit wall has to make 180 turn and more falls out, what stays hits second cold wall above inlet and more condenses all in less den 10th of second.
OK, so now air in tank at colder and drier condition, but tank so big most air don't encounter room temp cold wall and water rides along. Airstream goes into pipe to machine. Pipe usually up on wall so most genius run T down from pipe to air connector. WRONG, Lot of water sitting in pipe relaxing and waiting. Air line generally not flowing so water has time to grab recliner on bottom of pipe. Air starts to flow, water rides along. Air pipe needs to be tapped going UP and stream needs to make 2 turns to go down to outlet. Dat leves water in recliners in horizontal. Best if water has drip leg to hang out in, but dat too much trouble for most 'system designers'.
Now comes war between what best next. DOH, where you live makes big difference.. You on Louisiana coast you got 10 times water of guy in Arizona. Nice thing, plenty salesmen waiting to sell you der crap er I mean fine product. Hustler A got fine Chink plastic spinner, Hustler B got plastic housing holds special toilet paper, and Hustler C got hunk of pipe full of special beads.
Guess what? You can make your own way better and way cheaper. Situation got so bad Hypertherm included detector in machines to display "Insufficient air". Biggest problem, machine innards get plugged up wid toilet paper fibers dat get like concrete.
How you solve dat? You find small scintered metal filter dat plugs up before machine plugs and install at machine air inlet.
Want to make your own absorbant silica gel dryer, you can. Hunk of pipe, handful of fittings and bag of silica gel kitty litter. You get actual real bragging rights instead of just being another guy who Master Carded cause he can't build squat.
Want to know easy way to minimize water coming into compressed air system? Put air intake more den 13 feet above ground, higher if you in valley wid lot of fog. Remember tho, intake line gotta be bigger den inlet of compressor. At least twice diameter of compressor inlet.. 2" PVC good starting point and minimize number of elbows.
Whole bunch of tricks to compressed air.