Compressor rebuild

[Belize]

Hi guys this is about the third time I've rebuilt my compressor in about 4 years I reckon I think it's obviously over working but does anyone know exactly what the size is for the grub screw on the shaft because I just cannot seem to have anything that fits

[Belize]

Nevermind it's 3.5 mil

[garybrook]

I just pulled mine apart and rebuilt it so the 3.5mm grub is the same. Unfortunately I'm still trying to sort out what is wrong with my EAS system even though I recently rebuilt the compressor, valve body and cleaned up all the contacts for the comms, from the amplifier pack, the looms, the BECM ports, the EAS ECU and both the relays, but nothing gave me any help there. We were in Nowra a couple of weeks ago but about 5km away from returning home the system lost most of the pressure and gave a 55km slow alarm and the compressor just wouldn't run.

At home I plugged in my Nanocom Evo and found I could start the compressor, but it ran down slowly after only a couple of minutes. I'm still unsure but I think the compressor thermal switch could be cooked (showing 'HOT' on the Evo) or the brushes could be just worn out, as discussed in Falconworks advice. I'll find out more tomorrow but I'm no electrician.

In the same vein, I've had a look on new compressors on the HK and the UK Ebay sites. Does anyone know where the compressors in HK are coming from, or have bought and used one? $280 with shipping is a good price, but ..... What do you get? The genuine UK ones were from 'Dunlop', but where from now? Is there good and bad compressors at the moment? Any advice would be welcome.

[prelude]

Hi mate,

The first thing I would check is the voltage over the motor. Check when the compressor is running to see if the voltage drops in relation to the rpm it is making. It could be that bad contact somewhere is causing heat buildup etc etc. The thermal switch could be the culprit, you can try and bypass it (when you are testing, not permanently) to see if it runs well.

I have one of these: Range Rover P38 MKII Dunlop EAS Air Suspension Compressor Pump 1994-2002 - p38spares.co.uk - EAS & Landrover Solutions (http://p38spares.co.uk/commerce/product/1057/Range_Rover_P38_MKII_Dunlop_EAS_Air_Suspension_Com pressor_Pump_1994-2002_.html) and it has been working fine since 2015. I also have one of them imitation ones from a wrecker but I can't say how well it works, it works since I tested it before I put it on the shelve as a spare.

If I were to venture a guess, the P38 pump is fairly rare (not used in other applications afaik) so I do not believe there to be many manufacturers of this item so all the non dunlops are likely from the same supplier.

Cheers,
-P

[garybrook]

Thanks P. I tested the compressor when I rebuilt it and found the pressure/suction was strong, but the motor became hot quickly after about 2 minutes. That may be a clue, or normal, as I don’t have a spare to compare. This car is only a FY00 185k car which worked perfectly for 3 years after I bought it yet the EAS box was replaced by an earlier one from a FY96 version.

I will test the voltages and the thermal switch before I will pull out the compressor to check the brushes. I should have done this already but it will happen tomorrow or across the weekend.

i thought about you comment about the number of Dunlop compressors used and I agree. I haven’t yet seen one in another brand car, even if one is, yet there seems to be many new ones for sale to supply the market for the many broken ones, and the prices have dropped a bit even if there is still just one supplier.

I’ve bought many parts from Island-4x4, some genuine and some not, yet all were pretty good stock. They have two different compressors, the 150 Pound one and the 200 Pound ‘Dunlop’ genuine one. They seem the same, despite the pictures being rather small. Am I paying 50 Pounds for the ‘Dunlop’ label? Hush my mouth!

Belize, pardon me highjacking this thread. Yours was simple, yet my issue is getting more complex as I want to find what the cause is/was. I should have started another one. Perhaps the moderator can fix this. By the way, why 3 rebuilds in 4 years? Regards,

Gary.

[TheTree]

Hi

The standard compressor does get pretty hot so I think that is normal.

I gave up on it and added a Viair 400c to mine, I doubt the standard compressor even runs much nay more, plus I have onboard air to pump tyres etc

Viair 400C Compressor – Air Ride Suspension Supplies (https://airide.com.au/products/viair-400c-compressor)

Steve

[prelude]

Nice compressor to look at :)

I am also considering replacing the unit completely, possibly with an ARB twin air. They should put out the same pressure, are much faster and suitable to air up tyres and such. Fitting it into the system "somewhere" would free up that space to make routing an snorkel perhaps a bit easier.

-P

[garybrook]

I noticed that Paul's P38 EAS Guide site shown that he had replaced his compressor by another chunkier type, with the same principles.

Well, I found what was wrong with my compressor. When I pulled the cap off the wiring/brush holder I noticed that the orange wire was loose after it fell from the relevant post AND the black (brush) wire insulation had been worn through to the copper wire, earthing to the commutator rather through the brush, presuming it slowing down the motor.

I've repaired the black insulation and tensioned the post to hold the orange wire properly, but installing the brushes in to their holder and holding them out while lowering over the commutator is another issue. I've tried a couple of versions of a holding tool, which didn't work, but I need to think out another one. I'm sure that lots of sparkies have done this work before but I haven't. Another day.

And I have ordered a new compressor as there was stock in NSW rather than HK, just in case, and I'll have a spare like some owners of the P38.

[oka374]

Use fishing line to tie the brushes back before assembly then just pull the fishing line out once the brushes are past the commutator but before you tighten the motor end right down.
I've put tiny nicks in the brush corners/edges to stop the fishing line sliding off as you assemble the motor if that is a problem.

[garybrook]

Thanks oka374. Good idea and I'll try that as I did use fine copper wire, but they 'stick' and there wasn't much room to cut the wires (after 3 tries). Maybe I don't have enough persistence. The fishing wire may slip just the right amount though. Next episode coming.

[Belize]

Hi garybrook

No problem stealing the thread,I'm glad I'm not the only one having on going problems. The reason I've rebuilt my compressor 4 times is that it's over working it's always trying to find a height. Ive rebuilt and replaced the valve block and it doesn't help. I usually just disconnected if I'm four-wheel driving .the compressor gets real hot I think this is normal.

[4bee]

FWIW.

When pumping air a compressor will naturally get hot ( it is something to do with the physics of air & compression) & is the main reason you cannot use a small refrigeration compressor as an air pump because the heat is such the the flapper valves soften &/or distort. Many have tried & failed.[bigsad]

[garybrook]

Just to update this saga, the new compressor arrived and I installed it late last week. The 'blue' hose from the compressor to the valve body didn't match exactly, but when I swapped the original hose to the new compressor fitted and everything worked like new. I got good pressure/volume, still a bit warm when filling the tank but stopped and started when it needed to. All of the error messages on the dash cleared straight away, but I still had an unknown error fail message on my Nanocom EVO EAS screen, so I don't know what it was telling me.

I haven't pulled the new compressor down to check the components but .... Enough! ... until I repair the brushes/cables and test the old compressor back in the car again, which I'll keep the old one as a spare. The new compressor looks like a dead copy of the Dunlop originals, but there was papers in the box - which is still in the garage - that shows who the maker was (China/HK) and who the NSW supplier I bought from via Ebay, so I'll record the warranty details if anyone else is interested, or if my experience of the compressor if it fails this year or so.

[garybrook]

I said I would record the purchase of the compressor I bought. The compressor was made by MaxspeedingRODS (or Maxpeedingrods - Performance Auto Parts, Tuning car parts and Engine Accessories Online (http://www.maXpeedingrods.com) - without the first s) in China and sold by autopapa-au in Regents Park, NSW for $300AUD. They papers in the box say there compressor is a replacement for the (AP-O)ANR3731, and it sure looks that it is. The part number seems to be S500072000173218099. The warranty notice says nothing about the time, i.e 12 months or so, but it says if you have any problems you should contact them at sales@maxspeedingrods.com and they would respond within 48 hours. We'll see.

[Ghind]

Gary thanks for the recommendation. I followed your link and went to the US site, selected Australia delivery and Australian dollars (but didn’t select the Australian flag). I googled a discount code (HONEY6) for an extra 6% off and it has ordered for me for $233.82 delivered

it was already on special. If I Picked the Aussie flag it was $100 odd more

[garybrook]

Well that's interesting. I thought their site was in USD with GST to add, regardless with the shipping being free. I bought my compressor from Ebay so .... Good for you. Let us know how you go with installing it in your car as the blue line couldn't fit in to mine, but I could swap the line from the older compressor and that was fine. I taped the brass adapter with gas tape (thicker, pink), not just air (thin, white) as the line couldn't seal fully until I swapped the tapes, which was fine then.

[Hoges]

If you haven't come across it previously, you might try this free app: Range Rover - EAS - Reset download | SourceForge.net (https://sourceforge.net/projects/easunlock/) for setting sensor heights, finding EAS faults etc
Needs Microsoft ...excellent excuse for re-purposing an old XP-based laptop! you also need to make up a simple cable with a OBD2 to serial interface...(Jaycar for the bits)
It's straight forward and easy to use. All details on the sourceforge website

[p38arover]

I had that on my old O2 Xda Windows Mobile PDA phone that had a real serial port. I had another I lost getting out of RRToadhall's car near John Brabyn's place near San Fran (John ran RangeRovers.net back then - RRToadhall and I were RRNET Admins on our way to John's.)

Hmm, I have an almost NOS Toshiba Windows Mobile PDA in the garage. I wonder if it could be repurposed.

And Greg, how long is it since I visited you? (I just checked, Oct 2015.) I haven't seen you on here in a long time - a bit like Hoges. Good to see you both back. [thumbsupbig]