Hitachi EC119SA 15 amp 2.5-Horsepower 4-Gallon Twin-Stack Air Compressor

• Quiet operation and extended life
• Powerful 15 amp-induction motor
• Protective roll cage design protects the pump and motor from damage
• Includes 2-inchdustrial couplers, oil dipstick, and 8-ounce synthetic oil
• 1-year limited warranty
• (2) factory installed couplers
• Cast iron, oil lubricated pump with oversized bearings for quiet, dependable service
• Comes with a 1-year limited warranty
• Contractor preferred 4-gallon twin stack tank
• Powerful induction motor

I purchased one of these units and was very pleased for about 3 months. The unit ran great and was very quiet for a compressor due to the induction motor. Running it indoors you can actually talk over top when its running and hear the other person. At 3 months the unit stopped working and would only hum without kicking on. After replacing with a new unit I was ok for about 3 weeks and the same problem happened. The issue is the oil level. Hitachi supplies a small bottle of 5w-50 oil and the instructions are to fill on a level surface to a point between the notch on the dip stick. The first time I over filled slightly using about 4/5 of the oil supplied. on the second unit I filled to the required level or about 2/3 of the oil supplied. Both units eventually seized. After speaking with a customer service I found out the supplied oil is premeasured and ALL THE OIL SHOULD BE ADDED. I found Hitachi to have very good customer service, the first unit was replaced and the second serviced at no cost. My opinion is this is a very good unit with a small design flaw on the oil pickup system and instructions which should tell you to add all the oil. Also note, when they say don't operate at more than 10 degrees angle, they mean it. The oil will not get to the crank and the unit will seize. This unit is very small, very portable, extremely quiet unit and supplies 4.cfm @ 90psi all of which is a great combination. I would have given 5 stars except for the lost time and effort of not properly addressing the oil issue for this unit. At the end of the day I purchased a dewalt D55146 oil free unit for a backup as jobsite reliability is key for me. I hope the Dewalt performs better over the long run.

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I ordered this compressor and was excited to recieve it. UPS does it again. The release valve was snapped off. I will give a full review when I talk to Hitachi and get a new one.

Update: Had to pay a machinest to tap out the broken value. Hitachi customer service was awesome and sent me the replacement parts for free but now the compressor is leaking at the plastic hose that uses a preasure fitting to hold it in. I buy a lot of tools and never have had an issue. I would not take my experience as a negetive. Hitachi is great I just got a lemon.

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This is the first air compressor that I've purchased, although I've used them on-and-off for years. After a lot of research, I concluded that the quality level of unit that I wanted, I could not afford. There is a significant jump in build/design quality when you go from the $125/$300 range to the $300/$500 range. I need one only for home remodeling/garage use, but I didn't want to buy junk. When I found this unit factory reconditioned, I bought one immediately. After 1 week of use, I am very happy with my decision. It is well made, easy to use, fairly quiet, has a very low tank fill time and recovery time, and is a notch above homeowner-grade tools. The unit isn't light, about 65 lbs, but that's due to the liberal use of metals instead of plastics. It arrived in almost like-new condition. It looks as though is was only used once or twice, then returned. You can download the manuals that originally came with it from Hitachi's website. Highly recommended.

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Owned this air compressor for 1 year. Used it to frame and sheath a house, sheath and shingle three roofs and trimming out two complete interiors.

My experience is as follows;

Framing

Compressor kept up with two Hitachi NR90AE framing nailers providing the nailers were not used in "bump" mode for several consecutive shots.

Barely able to keep up with one Hitachi NR90AE framing nailer in "bump" mode firing several consecutive shots.

Completely unable to keep up running two Hitachi NR90AE framing nailers in "bump" mode firing several consecutive shots.

Sheathing

Compressor kept up with two Hitachi NV83A3 coil nailers providing the nailers were not used in "bump" mode for several consecutive shots.

Barely able to keep up with one Hitachi NV83A3 coil nailer in "bump" mode firing several consecutive shots.

Completely unable to keep up running two Hitachi NV83A3 coil nailers in "bump" mode firing several consecutive shots.

Roofing (Shingles)

Compressor kept up running one Hitachi NV45AB roofing nailer applying five nails per shingle.

At times would not keep running two Hitachi NV45AB nailers applying five nails per single without waiting approx 45 seconds to fully recharge.

Trimming

Compressor kept up running two MT65A4 finish nailers or two NT50AE2 finish nailers.

I recently purchased a second Hitachi EC119SA for back-up and will run two compressors when "bump" nailing the large framing and coil nailers.

The compressor must operate on a dedicated 15 amp circuit or 20 amp circuit. Due to the oil lubricated pump the compressor can not operate on more then a 10 degree angle.

I have not used the compressor in temperatures below 48 degrees so I can not comment on the reported poor cold starts. I do know other name brand oil lubricated compressors also experience poor cold starts.

So far for the money I had good luck running these compressors!

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I have had this unit for a couple years, with only occasional use filling tires, blowing sawdust out of chainsaws, etc. MAYBE 10 or 12 hours of total continuous run time. Recently the pressure reducer/regulator control failed I have rarely made changes to the delivered pressure, so I think the part was just defective from the beginning. As others have noted, in cold weather the unit does not start up easilyeither trips it's internal breaker or the house breaker. It can take some time playing with it to get it going. In warmer temps this is not a problem.

(Over a year later...) I have run the compressor a lot since I changed out the reducer/regulator, and it has been a good performer since then.