Tool Talk: Pneumatic vs. Electric

[Iplayfarmer]

Having never really had many air tools and having just acquired enough air compressor to maybe run a few, I'm now wondering what are the advantages and disadvantages to air vs. electric tools.

I have an impact wrench that I love, and I've used air sprayers and a rachet. I'm specifically interested in opinions on the tools that are commonly electric tools like drills, sanders, and grinders. In which situations is air best? When is electric best?

 

[jinman]

Any electric tool that generates dust will also ingest the dust through its cooling vents. Therefore, any grinding/sanding of metals or conductive materials such as carbon fiber will be best done with a pneumatic tool. Also, you can drag a pneumatic tool through water and never worry about being electrocuted. Wet areas are therefore best with pneumatic tools.

I don't know of any really good electric nailers. These days either compressor driven nailguns with hoses or standalone nailers with pneumatic cylinders are used. Battery power may be closing in on these, but currently, I think pneumatic rules.

Very good battery powered tools are starting to make inroads into traditionally pneumatic applications, but corded tools always have been very dangeruos in factory environments where there is constant danger of a cord being cut or crushed. Metal worktables are fine for welding, but electric cords around metal work tables are an accident waiting to happen.

All this stuff is just my opinion, but I think my reasoning is sound from my experience.

 

[dodge man]

The big advatage is size and heat. An air drill is small and compact, maybe half the weight and 3 times smaller than an electric. As air is uncompressed, it also gets colder (kind of how air condtioning works). So an air tool naturally runs cool. Cost is kind of a toss up, in my mind air tools aren't any cheaper than electric or cordless, but I'm not sure, I've never really compared.

 

[Bird]

In which situations is air best? When is electric best?

Tough question, and I don't thisk there is a simple answer. In general, and in my experience, air tools will have more power and last longer than comparable electric tools. I can't say for sure that they don't exist, but I've never seen an electric impact wrench with anything close to the power of an air impact. Four inch electric angle grinders are fine tools, but if you want an 8" or 10" angle grinder, I'd only consider air powered. They're both good, so maybe it's partially just personal preference in some cases. My preference is air.

 

[BobRip]

I have a Dewalt 18V impact wrench. While it's OK I have had two uses that it cost me. The first one it would not loosen the lugs nuts on my Tundra. It seemed to be working OK, but when I charged the battery it worked. The other times was using it to tighten the top nuts on my Dodge Caravan front shocks. I thought I got it tight, but it was still making a clunking noise. I took those shocks on and off three times and finally took it to the dealer. They said the nuts were loose. No problems after that. It does not behave like a pneumatic tool, so you have to be mindful.

 

[20 20]

BOTH are good to have around.

 

[JoelD]

Good question, from my experience you need a mighty big compressor with huge CFM to run a grinder, cutting wheel or sander for any length of time.

I've got a 10+cfm at 90, 60 gallon tank compressor and a cutting wheel will kick the crud out of it, she'll run full throttle and not keep up.

I only use electric cutting wheel, I can run that black and decker all day long (bearings starting to fail now after 4-5 years of use) and be no worse for wear. Cheap money to replace.

Impact wrench, nothing as strong as compressor.

Joel

 

[CCWKen]

I have about air everything but still use electric buffers, grinders and hand drills. I have an air drill that I use in tight places and for spot weld cutting. It's hard to beat the quick tool changes of air but I use several during the course of a day--Mostly wrenches, sanders and shears. The compressor comes on in the morning and I shut it down in the evening so the air is there most the time. It really doesn't pay to run the compressor if all you're going to do is drill a couple of holes.

One thing for sure though, any power tool beats doing it by hand.

 

[Big Bri]

I have about air everything but still use electric buffers, grinders and hand drills. I have an air drill that I use in tight places and for spot weld cutting. It's hard to beat the quick tool changes of air but I use several during the course of a day--Mostly wrenches, sanders and shears. The compressor comes on in the morning and I shut it down in the evening so the air is there most the time. It really doesn't pay to run the compressor if all you're going to do is drill a couple of holes.

One thing for sure though, any power tool beats doing it by hand.

Thats the truth.
I own all three, air, electric and battery. i think they all have there place.

Battery tools are awesome in many situations, when i had a fencing business we used battery tools a lot after walking the finished job making sure everything was done correct. no need pulling out a corded tool just to trim a gate or post top. there also great for when the wife ask you to hang something or fix something quick no need to pull out that bulky 100 extension cord.

air tools are great for the power that they have, as said above a air impact is one heck of a tool. i do like the air grinders, and rachets. but they do have a limitation . . . the amount of air in your tank. so unless you have a large cfm compressor you might have to wait for the compressor to catch up with itself.

electric tools have there place also, for long turn prolong uses nothing beats electric.

 

[dcyrilc]

I'm inclined to say that each has it's place. I've yet to see an air powered skill saw, saws-all, or saw mill. For general drilling I prefer a varible speed 0-300 rpm Milwakee. For an impact driver - nothing beats air. I just bought a numatic grease gun and I think my old (hand powered) one is going to get very lonley.

 

[AchingBack]

If you have a lot of lubrication needs, and don't want to mess with a hose, I recommend a battery powered grease gun. This is especially necessary if you are working away from your shop compressor; i.e. in the field, or on a job site.

 

[schmism]

its been my experience that air tools are lighter in weight, but are not as powerful as an electric. my 14v cordless drill will outpower an air drill not to mention my Milwaukee hole shooter.

air sanders are nice but wont out power my porta cable 6" RO sander. My die grinder is handy in tight spots, but my small dewalt 4.5" angle grinder with cutting disc will out cut it 2:1

I dont own an electric or cordless impact but used a 18v cordless snap-on impact that made a 3/4" air impact look like a toy. that thing was NICE!

when it comes to body work i love my Air Angle Die Grinder (like a die grinder but with the 90deg head) its lightweight and makes quick work of surface prep for welding and or rough bondo feathering.

 

[Cami]

Pound-for-pound, air motors blow electrics out of the water; there, I said it.

@schmism: When you compare a 4.5" electric grinder to a die grinder, yes of course the grinder will cut more quickly. The grinder has a nice, big universal motor, known for their torque, of maybe 3/4 horsepower. A little die grinder's air motor is probably in the range of 1/4 to 1/2 horsepower and simply lose the cutting contest on that basis. Take a look at how large an electric die grinder is compared to the comparable pneumatic model.

A lot of issues with air tool performance come down to supply. Not having enough compressor is common, but often adequate supply lines are a problem. In my experience, a 1" impact gun run on a 3/8 hose usually feels "tired" but runs much better if you can get a fatter hose.

The merits and disadvantages of pneumatic tools are commonly known but something to consider, that is often overlooked, is how much your compressed air supply really costs. It's an expensive way to transmit power, really, but you don't really notice until you do it on a larger scale. It seems to me that you need about 5 hp of compressor capacity to run 1 hp worth of air motor continuously.

 

[Gary Fowler]

YEP, kinda like your hydrastatic drive tractors. Using a motor to turn a hydraulic pump that is used to turn a transmission to turn wheels waste a lot of energy. Air tools aren't quite that bad, but still waste a lot of energy and if you drain your air tank daily, you loose all that stored energy also. I cant say that air lasts longer than electric either, both need proper maintenance to work properly and last.
The advantage is weight to power ratio. If you are using a big 7-9" electric grinder all day compared to an air powered grinder of the same size, you will not exert nearly the energy with the air grinder. I kind of like the sounds they make too.

 

[banjodunn]

G'day as mentioned earlier it depends alot on your compressor size air drills, grinders, etc are usually used for an longer period of time and therefor suck your comp dry i find elec better in those situations however i still own most of the tools mentioned in both air and elec. Cami i was always taught that the size of the impact drive should be the size of the delivery hose


Jon

 

[Kubota 2350]

I have both, the air is the best, but if you need to work away from your air source then battery or the electric win hands down.

 

[JoelD]

Thinking a little more on this, I use my compressor mostly for air, blowing stuff clean, filling stuff up (mini-bosses Dora bouncy ball last night) and my 1/2 inch impact wrench and 3/8's ratchet.

All other opperations, drilling, cutting, grinding etc are performed with cordless or electric.

With the way cordless is developing and electric are already there, tough to justify a big compressor set up for tools for the average guy / gal.

Good electric / cordless tools are tough to beat.

Not to mention the time it takes for my compressor to fill up as I only use on the weekends.

Again, I've not found a more powerful impact wrench yet though.

Joel

 

[SpringHollow]

I dont own an electric or cordless impact but used a 18v cordless snap-on impact that made a 3/4" air impact look like a toy. that thing was NICE!
.

Either your 3/4" air impact was a poor design or was air starved. The Snap-on battery one is powerful but has half the breakaway power of their 3/4 air one as a comparison.

Ken

 

[Iplayfarmer]

With the way cordless is developing and electric are already there, tough to justify a big compressor set up for tools for the average guy / gal.

I already have some compressor capacity. I just recently upgraded for sandblasting by adding an old Craftsman 6 CFM compressor to my previous Eaton 4 CFM compressor. Both are 100% duty cycle. I have them both feed to a central auxiliary tank. 10 CFM isn't a ton, but it runs my little sandblaster. Between the two compressors and the extra tank, I have about 40 gallons of storage. I leave the Craftsman on all the time so the tanks stay full. I only drain them about once a month (if I remember). I plug the Eaton in when I need some extra capacity.

I was looking at air tools; and most drills, ratchets, etc. list 4 CFM as the requirement. I ought to have plenty for that. Even a 7" Air Angle Grinder is listed with a 7 CFM requirement.

It sounds like I may want to get serious about upgrading my hoses, though. I have some 3/8" hose and some 1/4" hose, but I use 1/4" I/M fittings throughout the system. Between my blow guns, air chucks, nailers, staplers, impact, ratchet, paint sprayers, etc. It will be quite an expense to change it all out. I guess I could do it gradually by building a pigtail with a 3/8" male QC and a 1/4" female QC to adapt down to my old stuff until I get around to changing the old stuff out.

 

[bota7800]

I leave the Craftsman on all the time so the tanks stay full. I only drain them about once a month (if I remember).

Slightly OT: I am not usually a Harbor Freight fan but they have a $10 automatic compressor drain. - Harbor Freight Tools - Compressor Drain It replaces the tank drain with a tee, hose and (probably) a valve. I just glanced at it, didn't look at it in detail, but it is interesting. Has anyone used anything like that? Are they worth it?

If it works I might start leaving my compressor on for ready air. As it is, I sometimes neglect to drain the compressor after a quick job.