Thomas Compressors T-617HDN 4 Amp 1/2 Horsepower 2 Gallon Oil-Free Hot Dog Compressor

I'm an experienced hobbyist woodworker. Lately I've been tapped by my son's school for various projects such as bookshelves and work carts. A number of casework and trim projects are ahead for my household projects. I decided to speed things up by shifting to dado/rabbet joinery held with brads during glueup instead of biscuits. I researched compressors carefully around town and on the Web. Compressors available at the Borg and various local tool shops are gawdawful loud, heavy, and look to be made of cheap plastic and pot metal. It seems like most consumers want units that are cheap and powerful. I don't expect to use the unit for more than finish nailing, inflating tires, and blowing dust around the shop. The compressor will be carried around and used indoors. I don't mind paying more for tools that will last a long time. In my case cheap and powerful are low on the list. I'm looking for quiet, durable, and light.

The 1/2 HP Thomas seems to be right for me. It is...Read more

I have several compressors - from a commercial "giant" model - down to this newest addition. I bought this for my hot rod trailer - and I needed a compressor that would run off a 3kw generator. I only needed this to air up the tires (75 psi on the trailer and 85 psi on the fronts of the truck) and the occasional "blow gun" for clean up. Not only does this little guy make 120 psi - it's quiet - light - and very nicely built! This is no imported junk! I couldn't be happier.

Received my compressor today. It's very loud. Clearly too loud to have less than a shouting conversation next to the compressor. Much louder than I expected. I have a RadioShack "sound level meter" which reports that the compressor is 76 decibels at 5 feet. Otherwise it seems to compress air as specified but much louder than the advertised 60db!

I called Amazon Customer Service. I told them that it appears that the compressor is defective. I was told that they put in a request for a replacement and that I should wait "24 to 48 hours" for instructions.

I will post back to this review when this is resolved. At this point, one star.

12/2/08 update:
Received a second compressor from Amazon yesterday. This one measures 74 db at 5 feet. Just for yucks, the sound is 60 db at a little more than 50 feet consistent with "inverse square law".

The sound level alone makes this compressor unsuitable for my intended purpose. Called...Read more