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Are any of the supercheap air compressor + tool combos worth while or are they too weak to get things undone?

they all do the job they are designed for.
You must research to make sure the compressor has ample out-put and tank size for whatever air tools you intend to use.
otherwise you stand there halfway through a job waiting for the air pressure to build up again,and again and again.
i havnt see the packages but i reckon they would match tools to the compressor rating.

Rattle gun is weak. Suspect the issue is the compressor not being large enough. Snap-on cordless rattle gun FTW ;)


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Do people still use air tools at all?

Yep I have a few that I use all the time, air saw, small ratchet. Not used often but handy a 3/4" impact with big sockets, it puts a bit of strain on my compressor but it is nothing something that I use all the time to justify a bigger compressor. However the hitachi battery impact and drill get the most hence why having 6 batteries is handy.

Magpie, to give me an idea, what sort of heavy duty stuff can you undo with the hitachi?

Dann, I'm still using hand tools!
Yet I take my sweet time and am obviously not running a business. Not all the time but sometimes it's very satisfying working up a sweat.


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Buy the best air compressor your wallet allows or buy one that runs your most needy tool perfectly and go from there. I got a cheapo 50L Ryobi compressor from Bunnings for $150. Does my most basic jobs. But you may have a lot more dosh than me so explore more and get the belt dríven ones rather than direct drive.

Cordless rattle guns rule!

(Even the cheapies I use )

Another fan of the cordless rattle gun here - I love my 18V Ryobi rattle gun - no rusted nut/bolt has ever defeated it and I'd never do suspension work without it.

The only thing that will replace my Makita electric drill with chuck though is another one (hate keyless chucks, no longevity).

My hitachi's are the 18V brushless models and like others there are not many bolts that can't be removed with the exception of exhaust nuts that have been on for a long time.

The air wrenches are handy to have on with different size sockets to the battery impact gun. Plus the air ones can get into places the electric cannot. If I had to choose it would be air at home and electric when away from home.

The only air tool I now use is a wet sander and it loves to use air so a min of 15-17 cubic ft/min 425-280 litres is required .And unless you spend big the the cheap $uper Cheap tools are useless

Use air tools all the time.

Blower and Parts washer gun get the most use, but then there's a good bit of use from the air chisel and the die grinder.
Had a rattle gun (supercheap one) and it worked, but was piss weak (weaker than doing it by hand)


An yeah, buy a decent compressor.
THe one at home is a 50/60l direct drive, works fine for home stuff, never had to wait for it to fill outside of things that use massive amounts of air, like the blower, or the paint gun.

Best thing for a compressor is to get one that exceeds what you think is enough- i.e. the amount of air it delivers. Its easy to run out of air on a compressor. As noted earlier check the comp output and the tools consumption- like Lizard said - even a proper small die grinder often uses a lot of air. Tools are definitely not all equal.- the rattle guns used by the mechanic may well develop much more torque than a cheap which is still useful at home. Overall I do reckon a compressor is a great thing for the garage- so many uses.

An alternative is to have a seperate air storage tank, this helps if you have a small compressor but need to use some air hungry tools for a short period. If you use all the air in the storage tanks then it will take a while to refill. It is no subsitute for a decent compressor but spare tanks are cheaper (provided you take appropriate safety steps associated with compressed air storage).

I have a 190 Litres/min free air delivery 2.5HP belt drive with a 50ltr tank and whilst it is good for most tool usage the small tank lets it down.

Another think to have when dealing with air tools are inline oilers/water catchers, nothing destroys an oil tool quicker than lack of oil. Even with an inline oiler I put a couple of drops into the tool before I pack it away.

I use air tools any time i can it saves so much time but with any tool an el cheapo can get the job done but the more money the better you dont want your tool breaking while your working on your car then you cant put it back together without the tool but you cant go buy a new one because your car is apart. Buy the name brand for tools youll end up having it last longer and it will be more dependable