Customer Reviews

Porter-Cable C3151 Job Boss 15 Amp 3.5 Horsepower 4-1/2 Gallon Oil-Free Wheeled Single Hot Dog Compressor

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This is a great compressor. Not knowing much about the construction biz, I splurged to start work on my basement. Very good decision. Mostly agree with what others have said, but here are a few notes for those of you who are like me and DON'T do this stuff for a living:

1. The manual says 15 Amps, but its more like a hair above that. It will trip a 15 Amp circuit breaker if there is more than one appliance. It even tripped my 15 amp dedicated circuit for my sump pump. My only good performance came from plugging into my dedicated washing machine outlet which happened to be 20 Amps.

2. One of the tubes came disconnected out of the box. The copper one that pumps the air into the reservoir. Not a big deal, but it took me about 2 hrs to figure out that a gasket was NOT missing and that the tube connects through a "furrowing" ring (basically it self-tightens to hold the tube in place). Perhaps a quality control issue.

3. The cut-off pressure is not adjustable. Also not a big deal, but I don't need 120psi in the reservoir just to inflate by car tires to 35 psi or do some minor household stuff. (I definitely wouldn't want to buy a second compressor for that either.)

4. Aside from those minor inconveniences (hence the 4-stars), this is a very plug-and-playable compressor for the DIY homeowner. Strong enough to do that wall framing project but delicate enough to handle the trim finish work and inflate your car tires. I made the mistake of buying one of the pancake style compressors and found it a little weak for doing the basement framing.

I have been in the carpentry business for 30 years and have never been as disappointed in a American tool as this one. First off the unit is huge, it has a handle but won't stand up on its back legs,it gets hot and has no easy place to grab it to put it in the truck, it is the noiseist compressor i have ever used. The on off switch is all but hidden, the cord wrap is useless, the wheels and axel vibrete and rattle, even the stickers are falling off already. The reason the front plate comes off is because it is twice as heavy and nosy as it should be. PC makes good tools but I don't like this one. Bob Meanix

I warn you this is long winded, but it will payoff in the end. I promise! I chose this model over its oil lube sibling because of the higher recovery. I bought this compressor reconditioned at a great price of $189 about 6 months ago and it arrived within 2 days and in great shape! I assumed by looking at it that either it was not what someone wanted or expected or used it for a quick job, cleaned it up and sent it back. I didn't care as long as it didn't need any parts. I turned it on and got no pressure. After a quick lookover I realized that the quick disconnect behind the removable control panel was, well, disconnected. Proving the latter assumption. After reconnecting all was fine except as everyone points out it cycles often. And after cycling 5 times, it tripped my 15A breaker. If you turn the unit on until it cuts off with nothing hooked up and the valve turned down to 0, watch the gauge to see how long it holds. IT WON'T BE LONG!!! I removed each air line fitting one at a time and resealed each line using Teflon tape AND dope. YES you can use Teflon tape for compressors if you get the correct rated tape and dope for gas lines. After 2 hours of tedious work the compressor now will achieve 160 PSI AND hold it for over an hour!!! I figured out a way to get the wire to stay wrapped up and all it required was to wind it in the opposite direction! The only thing that would be nice is if could stand up on end. I'm gonna make a couple of outriggers to accomplish that, but it's not a priority for me. It's compact enough to put in the trunk of my Civic! And if you put a rubber washer under each of the bolts holding the top plate on it will stop rattling! Put your work in; IT'S WORTH IT!!!

Where else could you get 6CFM at 90psi and 150psi operating pressure in such a compact and portable package? Price is a little high, but all of my tools (as do most all of them) have a maximum operating pressure of 125psi. And unlike the other compressors I have owned over the years, this one can actually provide enough air at 125psi to get the most out of my air tools. The only thing that I don't like about it is that it only has a 50% duty cycle.

Michelles husband John using her account)

I`ve had this compressor for about a year now. Sometimes we use it on the jobsite, sometimes we use the comprable DeWalt that the guy I work with has- depends on who gets there first. The only complaints I`ve had with it is that its heavy and the cord wrap stinks! Lugging it into houses is a pain and since I primarily do finish work, most of the time it needs to come into the house to be close to the power source. (manual recomends not using extension cords whenever possible) I`ve run every kind of nail gun imaginable on it, frequently more than one at a time, sometimes three or four at a time with a splitter and had no problems. I definitly find it to be better than its DeWalt counterpart and the older twin stack Emglow a guy who used to work with us had. I`ve also had no problem with it starting up in below freezing weather while others I`ve seen need to warm up for a little while. I would definitly buy this compressor again.

John

This the best compressor on the market it keeps up with 2 framing nailers with no problem all day this machine is for constuction not for paint gun with high volume you need a bigger tank 10 gallion or bigger. My Dad's friends were amazed on how well it kept with my DAD's 2 FC 350 FRAMING GUNS RUNNING THEM AT 90 PSI all day long. The only problem we had with is setting the psi,it was set after one or two try's it works real well

Ordered as a compact, easily portable unit, which it is.

Arrived not being able to achieve the stated 150psi.

I asked tech support if this could just need to have the regulator adjusted - they said no; take it to a repair center.

Left at repair center; after repair, informed they 'adjusted the regulator...' Still doesn't achieve 150psi, but I'll work that out myself.

Also doesn't appear to put out the volume of air advertised.

I've had this compressor for about 3 years and while it is a good compressor I find it to be very loud compared to others in the same class. Also it vibrates so much that we are constantly retightening the bolts for the wheels and handle assembly. Also the plastic guides for the retractable handle have broken and it makes collapsing the handle difficult. Finally Porter cable needs a better system for the cord. It always unwraps no matter how you wrap it around the cleats.

I install windows as part of my job. I use an air hammer to break out the old windows and they require a lot of air. This compressor worked well with some catch up time but hey, it's only a 4 1/2 gallon tank. Cord wrap is fairly useless, handle makes it portable, regulator worked, switch and air release are protected. Mine was $214 after the $50 off, A9, and the old $269 price, worth that and then some. I can lift this into my truck a lot easier than my contractor wheel barrow type Emglo. I hope it lasts a while but at what I paid I will consider it disposable though after one year.

This compressor has delivered in all of the areas I expected. It is very portable and easy to use. CFM output is very adequate for small jobs or larger demands for short periods of time. My only disappointment was with the handle assembly. I feel that it should be more secure with some sort of locking mechanism.