Sunday, October 13, 2013

Astro Pneumatic 2630 Universal Quick Coupler with Safety Lock and Air Regulation

Astro Pneumatic 2630 Universal Quick Coupler with Safety Lock and Air Regulation
  • Designed to facilitate efficient safety locking, air flow regulation and pressure release
  • Constructed from durable material
  • Offers long lasting durability

This thing makes connecting and disconnecting air tools a breeze! I replaced a cheap connector that is typically found in those kits which had become very difficult to use when the line was pressurized. Connecting and disconnecting on the old connector required quite a bit of force, and popping the release to remove a tool resulted in a large burst of air which was not only rather loud, but pushed the tool or hose out with enough force that it could result in injury if you weren't careful.

This Astro coupler is a vast improvement. I installed it within about 60 seconds using a little thread tape. The blue adjustment ring is locked when there isn't a male coupler inserted, so it acts like an extra air lock. Then you push the tool in to the coupler and it allows the ring to be twisted allowing air to flow to the tool. The tools click into the coupler with very, very little force.

I'm not sure how useful the air adjustment (regulator) aspect will be, as I tend to control my air on the compressor thus in my case the adjustment is either on or off, but for some uses it might be helpful to have the adjustment right there at the tool. When you are done with the tool and you want to remove it, you simply rotate the adjustment ring to the locked position and it releases the air between the coupler and the tool. The amount of air released is minimal and it is very quiet. It isn't like a traditional coupler that releases a powerful blast of air. Then you simply pull the sleeve (the black part of the coupler) and the tool disconnects with minimal effort.

One nice feature is if you happen to like to leave something like a blow gun attached and if that tool happens to leak air a bit, you can simply rotate the collar to lock the airflow and it should prevent air leakage when you aren't using the tool. In my case my blow gun tends to bleed a bit of air, so in the past I always had to disconnect it. With this coupler I can just leave it installed and rotate the collar to shut off the airflow when I'm done for the day.

According to the instructions the couple accepts M style, ARO style, Hi Flow style, and T style connectors so it is essentially universal. I believe everything I have is M style (which seems to be the most common but don't quote me on that). I honestly have no negatives to report here because the coupler just works... and it is far superior to the regular couplers that have no pressure release option.

In short tools go in easy, tools release easy, it gives an additional layer of safety, and makes the entire process much easier. I suppose at almost $20 it is a little steep and it is true you could purchase several of the cheaper couplers for the same money, but I honestly feel this is a worthwhile upgrade.

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