Cummins air compressor


For you lovers of the Class 8's and bigger.

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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 1887

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 10:40 am

Location: Wichita, Kansas

Post Sun Oct 11, 2015 8:54 am

Re: Cummins air compressor

CB89,
I had never given that a thought until I read your post. It would be possible to design a 12V start 6V system. Questionable whether it would be worth the effort, though.

Dean
Lifelong Kansan
Grew up with red paint
Moved off the farm 33 years ago.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 5160

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Sun Oct 11, 2015 10:00 am

Re: Cummins air compressor

Dean,
The real beauty of these super-capacitor things it requires no other changes to the electrical system. It would be possible to make a 6-12 system using a dual output alternator or a series/parallel switch.
The Super Capacitor requires a battery to go with it. Not a problem on big trucks that run multiple batterys anyway. Would be problem on a light truck or car. They do not make a unit that can charge on a system below 10 volts.
Did you get my e.mail/ PM about the 282?
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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 1887

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 10:40 am

Location: Wichita, Kansas

Post Sun Oct 11, 2015 5:22 pm

Re: Cummins air compressor

CB89,
I did not receive a PM or an Email. I sent the original message as an email. I just sent you a PM, we'll try that.

Dean
Lifelong Kansan
Grew up with red paint
Moved off the farm 33 years ago.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 5160

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Tue Nov 03, 2015 8:49 pm

Re: Cummins air compressor

Well, I bought the 12 volt supercapacitor, I just couldn't justify the added money for the 24 volt unit. Installed it, hooked it up to 3 old batterys salvaged from reefer units, and let it charge for 30 minutes, hit the start button and it spun the old Big Cam 4 like I forgot to install heads on it!
I went a bought 3 new deep cycles to go next to it. Should be all set in the cranking dept for quite a while. I've got loads of little things to do to the cabover before I take it out on Thursday. I hope I get them all done. Going to put a few miles on the old beast this winter I think.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 5160

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Sun Nov 15, 2015 7:24 pm

Re: Cummins air compressor

Well, I have 3000 miles in with it and am happy so far. Not a cheap solution but reliabity is seldom done cheap. I can sleep warm all night and not worry about starting in the morning.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 5160

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Wed Jan 20, 2016 10:16 pm

Re: Cummins air compressor

Thought I post an update on the Maxwell after getting some time in with it. The last two nights have been around zero here in Montana. I can sleep with the engine off, and the heat running (will **** near drive me out, have to have the fan on the lowest setting) and start the truck in the morning without any worries. I am running a 10-13 amp load on the batterys while sitting, and the three deep cycles seam to handle it well enough. A full days running recharges the deep cycles, the Maxwell recharges in less the 15 min.
Kinda odd, I'm driving a 33 year old truck with state of the art heating and starting systems.
As long as it last for as long as they claim, I can recommend it without a doubt!

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 8936

Joined: Thu Dec 27, 2012 12:45 pm

Location: Canada's left Coast

Post Thu Jan 21, 2016 12:03 pm

Re: Cummins air compressor

Are you usa WEBASTO heater? Is your system heating the engine coolant or is it hot air?.
Very interesting.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 5160

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Thu Jan 21, 2016 11:58 pm

Re: Cummins air compressor

Espar, and close cousin to Webasto (or weird-bastard, as a friend used to call them). I use a small coolant type heater, I plumb it so the output passes thru the trucks heater core before going back to the block. (I get 1st dibs on the heat!).
I could never see the point of having two, one for the block and one for the cab (air heater). Even at zero (F) the heater will drive me out of the small cabover, so have to turn the blower off. Then the heater cycle to low output, cause the block is hot enough. Cycles to low when the return temp is about 140 and shuts down when the temp reaches 165, turns back on around 155. The way I run it and in the temps I am seeing it never shuts off all night.
The only problem I have found doing it this way, every season and a half, the combustion blower motor wears out and you have to change it to the tune of $200! I guess its not designed for the long runs I give it.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 8936

Joined: Thu Dec 27, 2012 12:45 pm

Location: Canada's left Coast

Post Sat Jan 23, 2016 10:17 pm

Re: Cummins air compressor

I have to wonder if the WEBASTO coolant heaters used by a local company may not be tuned properly. When a Webasto heater fires up, in the shop, everyone has to leave. The shop is about 125 feet by 300 feet 40 foot ceiling. One of the mechanics told me the smoke is thick enough to block the view across the shop. I am having trouble accepting this as normal, but then I am not familiar with this heater.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 5160

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Sun Jan 24, 2016 9:46 am

Re: Cummins air compressor

I never saw one that would blow that much smoke. We had them in the Double deck buses from England. They were the older air type heaters and fairly big. I don't remeber much smoke, a little when starting.
My Espars produce a little diesel vapor/ smoke until the glow-plug is hot enough to ignite the diesel, then it clears right up.
I would say they need to be dis-assembled and cleaned (de-coked) as they shouldn't smoke.
Some people claim that you can "clean them out" by running them on Kero for an hour or so.
Mine would smoke bad when the combustion blower was on its last legs, but it would "thow a code" and shut down soon after. That is another possibility.
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