York On

York On-Board Air Compressor System (continued):

Parts & Price List: As I said earlier, except for the compressor itself, I didn't really try to save any money on this project. Instead, I opted for convenience and top-quality components. You can certainly do it for much, much less than I did (i.e., by fabricating your own mounting brackets, finding a used air tank, etc, etc). Anyway, here's most everything I used to create my system; grouped by the various sections of the air system and in the direction of air flow (more or less).

Compressor Suction Manifold: 3/8" male filter/"muffler" $8.30

1/2" female x 3/8" female reducer $3.41

York Compressor: from salvage yard $20.00

Compressor Bracket Kit from Kilby Enterprises $200.00

Discharge Manifold to Air Tank: 1/2" female x 1/2" hose barb fitting $2.09

1/2" red air hose (12 inches) $2.24

1/2" hose clamps (2) $1.34

1/2" hose barb x 1/2" male fitting $2.10

1/2" female x 1/2" female check valve $32.50

1/2" male x 1/2" male hex nipple $3.36

       (see Pressure Switch Assy) 1/2" fem x 1/2" fem x 1/2" fem "T" $6.98

1/2" male x 3/8" male reducer $3.41

3/8" female x 3/8" male elbow $2.61

Pressure Switch Assembly: 1/2" male x 1/4" female reducer $1.61

1/4" male x 1/4" male hex nipple $0.91

1/4" female adjustable pressure switch $13.77

SPST toggle switch $3.99

Green panel light $1.99

Heavy-duty universal 12-volt relay $5.99

Heavy-duty in-line mini fuse holder $1.99

Air Tank: from Sun Performance Products $75.00

3/16" x 3" x 36" flat steel (2) $8.90

Pressure Gauge/Safety Valve Assy: 1/4" male x 1/4" male nipple $0.51

1/4" female x 1/4" male elbow $1.56

4-way 1/4" female "cross" $4.39

       (see In-Cab Pressure Gauge) 1/4" male x 1/8" tube barb fitting $1.15

1/4" male 2" 0-160 PSI pressure gauge $10.08

1/4" male 50-200 PSI safety valve
(came with the Kilby Bracket Kit) N/A

In-Cab Pressure Gauge: 1/8" high-pressure tubing (4 feet) $1.20

1/8" tubing barb x 1/8" female fitting $1.30

1½" 0-160 PSI in-dash pressure gauge $22.00

Pressure Regulator Assembly: 1/4" male x 1/4" female elbow $1.83

1/4" male x 1/4" male x 2" extension $2.34

1/4" female x 1/4" female x 1/8" female pressure regulator, with 1/8" female 0-160 PSI pressure gauge $23.95

Air Ports (front and rear): 1/4" male x 1/4" fem x 1/4" fem "T" $3.07

       Front port: 1/4" male x 1/4" male hex nipple $0.91

1/4" female quick connect $5.40

       Rear port: 1/4" male x 3/8" hose barb fitting $0.85

3/8" blue air hose (12 feet) $26.88

3/8" hose clamps (2) $1.34

3/8" hose barb x 1/4" male fitting $0.85

fender washers (2) $0.50

1/4" female quick connect $5.40

ARB Lockers Manifold: 3/8" hose barb x 1/4" male fitting $0.85

1/4" female x 1/4" male elbow $1.56

1/4" female x 1/4" female x 1/8" female pressure regulator, with 1/8" female 0-160 PSI pressure gauge $23.95

1/4" male x 1/4" male hex nipple $0.91

4-way 1/4" female "cross" $4.39

Two 1/4" male x 1/4" female elbows $3.66

     (see note below) Two 1/4" male x 1/8" male hex nipples $1.82

1/4" male 100 PSI safety valve $4.99

GRAND TOTAL: $560.13

Note: The female fitting in the ARB solenoids are metric. However, 1/8" NPT standard male fittings were used instead, since I couldn't find any "standard" x "metric" fittings!

Sources of Information: Since I had no desire to "reinvent the wheel", I looked at numerous other people's on-board air systems before taking on this project, both within my Club and on the Internet. Here are some of the web sites that I studied carefully to get most of the information I used to create my own (like snowflakes, no two are exactly alike) on-board air system (listed in alphabetical order):

Ben Hollingsworth's Site Jeep YJ, with 4-cyl engine www.jedi.com/obiwan/jeep/yorkair.html

Harryworld Jeep TJ Site Also Jeep TJ Sport, w/ A/C www.harryworld.com/harry/york.html

Jon's On-Broad Air Page Budget York install in a CJ-7 www.huv.com/jon/jeep/Air/

Kilby Enterprises York compressor bracket kit www.onboardair.com

Sun Performance Products Source for air tank www.sunperformance.com

Airing Down: No need for an on-board air system to air up, unless you first plan to air down, which is a whole 'nuther story in itself!! Once again, there are numerous options available to airing down; from manually depressing the valve stem to the myriad of high-tech air-down gadgets available on the market today. But instead of me going into a whole lot of detail here, check out the article written by Harry Lewellyn, entitled "Airing Down: Tire Deflation Methods", at http://www.4x4now.com/sf0597.htm.

Originally, I wanted to permanently install a Quadra-Flate type of system in my Jeep, which would have allowed me to air down and/or air up all four tires simultaneously. Except for the four "jumpers" that would connect the system to each valve stem, everything would have been permanently installed in the Jeep. Maybe I'll get around to building it one day. But for now, I decided to go with the Oasis Off Road "Trailhead Automatic Tire Deflators" to air down. The Oasis Off Road kit that I purchased cost $50 and came with 4 anodized aluminum automatic tire deflators (8-20 PSI), a 0-20 PSI pencil tire gauge, an allen wrench to adjust the deflation pressure, a tire deflation guide, a laminated information card, and a real leather pouch to store it all. It took several tries to get each of the deflators to deflate to "relatively close to" the same pressure, but now that all are adjusted, well . . . suffice it to say that Harry Lewellyn very appropriately refers to this system as the "no-brainer deflator"! Just remove each valve stem cap and screw on the four deflators. The tires will automatically deflate to the preset pressure and then stop! (note: the instructions clearly state that "in order for the deflators to reliably begin operation, tires must be inflated to a pressure approximately 80% higher that the setpoint; e.g., if the deflators are set to shut off at 15 psi, tires must be inflated to approximately 27 psi or greater").   For more consistent results, I've labeled each deflator (e.g., left/front, left/rear, right/front, etc). I've been able to get all of my deflators accurate to about 1 psi. Then periodically, I use the low pressure tire gauge that came with the deflators, to make sure they are not out of adjustment.

For more information about the Oasis Off Road "Trailhead Automatic Tire Deflators" and other related products, visit their web site at www.oasis-off-road.com