Dewalt announced the Flexvolt cordless air compressor last July, and it’s been in stores for a month or so. Due to a shipping mistake, I received Stuart’s test sample (don’t worry, he got another one) and so I get to be the first to review it!
All the relevant specs were covered in our preview post here, so I’m just going to summarize them here:
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- 2.5 gallon tank
- 135 PSI max pressure
- 1.2 SCFM at 90 PSI
- One-Turn regulator
- Can drive over 1220 nails per charge
- 60V Brushless motor
- Oil-free pump
- *Weighs 22 lbs
- Heavy duty roll cage
- 15.5″ H x 14″ L x 12.5″ W
- made in the USA (with global materials)
*My scale says it weighs 25 lbs. with the included 6.0 Ah battery, so they aren’t including the battery in their weight calculations.
The air compressor is sold in a kit, bundled with a 6.0 Ah Flexvolt battery (DCB606) and a fast charger (DCB118) for $299.
Price: $299
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Note: The FlexVolt 6.0Ah battery is rated at its 20V Max charge capacity. At the operating voltage of FlexVolt tools, which is 60V Max or 54V nominal, the charge capacity is 2.0Ah.
Using the Compressor
I’ve been working on remodeling our hallway. It’s not the most glamorous project, but I’m finally getting around to finishing it some 15 years after I started it. Part of the project is replacing all the hollow core doors with 6 panel oak veneer doors. So I’ve been using the Dewalt compressor to hang the doors and put up the casing with my Porter Cable 16 gauge nailer.
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Usually I had the compressor out in the living room where it was out of the way around the corner, but I had to move it into the bathroom with me to put up this casing. That’s when I began to wonder about how loud the compressor was.
For a tiny oil-less compressor, it’s pretty quiet, but it still can be loud enough that you may want to wear hearing protection if you are next to it. On the floor in my shop I measured 87 dB from 1 meter away.
When you’re in an enclosed space the compressor is noticeably louder. I repeated the measurement in my bathroom and I found the compressor generated a little more than 90 dB from a meter away.
Noise level aside, I really liked being able to use my pneumatic nailer without an intolerably loud pancake compressor, or running 50 feet of air hose from my garage compressor. There’s nothing wrong with cordless nail guns, but I like the feedback of a nail gun that fires instantly, not a fraction of a second after I pull the trigger.
Run Time Testing
Dewalt claims in their press release that “The compressor achieves up to 1,220 nails per charge using one 6.0Ah FLEXVOLT Battery (DCB606) and a DEWALT 18 GA Brad Nailer (DWFP12233).”
I don’t have that particular brad nailer, so I couldn’t verify the claims. In fact, I don’t have any 18 gauge pneumatic nailer. The closest thing I have is my Porter Cable 16 gauge, so that’s what I ran my own tests with.
For testing how many nails I could sink with a single battery, I didn’t just want to shoot nails into a board until the battery ran out of juice, I wanted to simulate normal use. I decided on shooting enough nails in succession to get the compressor to cycle 3 or 4 times and then let it rest for random lengths of time.
I set the compressor to 90 PSI, which seems to be the sweet spot for this nail gun. I found the compressor will pressurize the tank to 135 PSI in 2 minutes and 15 seconds. It kicks on again when the pressure drops to about 100 PSI, regardless of where the regulator is set. It takes approximately 30 seconds to charge the tank back to 135 PSI.
I started running a longevity test with a 6.0 Ah FlexVolt battery that I had just charged, and only was able to sink about 80 nails before the battery died. Something clearly went wrong.
It got me wondering and I noticed that it was one of the “Early Release” FlexVolt batteries. So I went back and ran the test with the 6.0 Ah battery that shipped with the compressor and got drastically different results.
For the second test I was able to shoot about 8-1/2 sticks (about 425 nails) in about 4 hours. That’s about 12 to 13 nails before the compressor would have to refill. So one 6.0 Ah battery refilled the compressor about 32 times.
Just for fun, I also shot some 1″ nails. I discovered that the number of 1″ nails I could drive before the tank refilled was the same as 2″ nails: 12 to 13.
As with all compressors, you’ll want to drain the water out of the tank. The 1/4-turn ball valve is located on the underside of the tank in the back.
Here’s a summary of all the results:
- dB @1 meter: 87 to 91
- Fill Time (0 to 135 PSI): 2 minutes 15 seconds
- Refill Time (100 to 135 PSI): 30 seconds
- Number of 16 gauge shots per refill: 12 to 13
- Number of refills on one 6.0 Ah battery: 32
- Number of 16 gauge nails on one 6.0 Ah battery: 425
Final Thoughts
My only complaint so far about this compressor is that it needs a low battery alarm, I was shooting nails into this door jamb and couldn’t figure out why my nail gun wasn’t sinking them. It took several nails before I realized I hadn’t heard the compressor run in a while. Sure enough, I looked at the pressure gauge and it was reading 60 PSI — the battery had died.
As for why I only got 425 16-gauge nails on a charge — I can think of several reasons. Driving 18 gauge nails takes less force (therefor less air) than 16 gauge nails. The Dewalt 18 gauge brad nailer could also be more efficient than my 15 year old nail gun. Regardless, I think my data still may give an accurate picture of the compressor’s abilities.
Another way to look at it is that manufacturers often pick the most flattering data to put their tools in the best light, but they aren’t always the most useful. Not everybody is going to use this air compressor to drive 18 gauge nails with the Dewalt nail gun, some people will want to drive 15 or 16 gauge nails, others might want to drive 23 gauge pins, and I’ve even seen Instagrammers using this compressor with framing nailers.
In short: I liked this little compressor. It was (relatively) quiet, easy to move around, and had more than enough capacity to power my 16 gauge nailer. Unless I only had to drive a few nails, I’d rather use this compressor with a pneumatic gun, then reach for a cordless nailer.
Here’s my reasoning: First off, cordless nail guns are bulkier and heavier. For instance, take the two Porter Cable nail guns shown above. The cordless nailer weighs 6.5 lbs vs 4.1 lbs for the pneumati,c and is quite a bit larger. Also, most cordless nail guns don’t have an instant response. Sure you can get used to the delayed firing, but would you put up with that behavior from your drill?
My final point is that this compressor might be an economical alternative to replacing all your pneumatic nailers with cordless ones. You get the advantages of not snaking long hoses to outside compressors, or trying finding power outlets without replacing all your pneumatic nailers. Buying just 2 cordless nailers will cost more than the $300 for this Dewalt cordless compressor.
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Thank you to Dewalt for providing the test sample unconditionally.
Ed S
Would be interesting to see this as a backpack. I mean, ok, its cordless and pneumatic. I’m sure there are some issues with maneuvering and wearing a backpack on a site or project.
An alarm when the battery is down to last bar would be wise.
But, it looks like your driving was into oak, so that would take more air than primed pine.
So, do you think we are coming to a Tower of Battery-on? You know, same tools but so many incompatible batteries…
Stuart
Physical size, weight, and shape issues notwithstanding, don’t forget about the noise and vibration. I wouldn’t want that on my back.
If want air power on your body, there are portable compressed air tanks for pneumatic tool use. It can be a hassle, though. Although tanks can be refilled, it’s essentially another consumable to manage. It’s not something you can refill yourself, either, at least not the ones I’m thinking of.
fred
The ones I recall seeing (JacPac) used CO2 from paintball suppliers as the energy source.
Curtis
Co2 would work quite well in warm weather. Because pressurized co2 is liquid, a co2 tank can maintain a constant pressure for a very long time as the liquid evaporates. They don’t work so well in cold weather though.
Curtis
If you really want a practical way to run airtools via a backpack then I’d look into SCBA. These are the carbon fiber air tanks that firefighters use and are much like scuba tanks, but are lighter and rated to higher pressures. Use a regulator to step it down to 100 psi and you should have something capable of running any airtool for a good long time.
Of course you’d have to periodically refill your tank and because they are filled to 4500 psi, you’d need access to a scuba/SCBA compressor. It would however give you both a portable and effective source of compressed air that would be both much lighter and effective than a small compressor on your back.
Nathan
Going to that end is a bit much but I could see someone wanting say a 35 cu ft bottle – in something maybe even AL – that you could backpack – pressurized to say 250 – 400. and that would run a nailer for quite some time. not all day mind you but quite some time. By the time you got something like that to market – cordless nailers will be that much cheaper.
The yeti
I have a 5 gallon and a tankless compressor . I just don’t see enough advantages to going cordless on this high draw item . I agree to pump a tire in a pinch it is great . However most people are not gonna be hauling this around on a daily basis . So even for that it might not be very good . With a small inverter I can run my tankless off dc power . Giving it more range .
fred
its always good to have more options. This is one that probably has better applications than the one you picked – where a corded compressor would also work.
Maybe up on a roof – or out in the backyard/woods – or in a wet area – this might prove useful. But depending on what sort of work you do, it might not suffice as your only compressor. Having other options as well would probably be useful. We had two truck-towed engine-driven compressors (for our jackhammers), several engine-driven hotdog compressors, several twin stack corded compressors and several corded pancake compressors – but I might have bought a cordless (to try out) if one had been available when I was buying. We also had the option of bringing portable electric generators to the jobsite (a truck mounted Miller diesel welder/generator, a Generac jobsite generator and a batch of small Hondas.)
RC Ward
That 90 dB is very loud in my book, but it sounds like a cool little “toy”’for the shop if you have 300 bucks to burn. Nice review
Chance
DeWalt rates this compressor at 79 dB. When comparing sound levels use manufacturers sound ratings as they will be tested the same way and not in a bathroom.
This compressor is not a “toy”. I used this compressor exclusively on a 4,000 square foot home installing trim. It worked flawlessly even when nailing solid hardwood treads to solid hardwood risers.
Nathan
unless they say specifically their noise level is tested using ANSI _____ test, or OSHA standard _______ or ASTM #_____ method you have no idea if they are actually comparable testing values.
What Ben did here was a real world example with the machine – which illustrates how it functions in use in what might be a normal application.
Not in a carpeted Anechoic chamber. Also consider that decibel meters, unless calibrated often or rather recently – can vary as much as 6 db.
John Blair
Good review that gave a good sense of the product. The real world usage with a “its been my garage for a while” air gun is more useful than the “best possible scenario shooting a smaller nail.” But to answer the question, “Sure you can get used to the delayed firing, but would you put up with that behavior from your drill?” I would totally get used to it if my only other option was a noisy compressor.
Since I love my 18 gauge cordless nailer (*cough* only one of two Ryobi tools I own), I could see this being very useful for a 23 gauge trim nailer.
Joe
I use it for my deck company for nailing trim, hangers…the Dewalt cordless framing nailer is awesome ,so I frame the deck with it and use this compressor for trim and hangers…Dewalt has a cordless “hanger gun” I have it but it’s large , heavy and can’t nail hangers att 12”oc…so my Bostitch strap shop ,small ,light hanger gun works perfect with this compressor……..why cordless ,why use this compressor….because there is. No Power at any of the new construction jobs I build at….so it’s this cordless compressor or lug a generator and compressor around …..this works perfectly…..
Tom
Joe, you should be their spokesperson – sounds like you have the perfect use case for this one — relatively low volume demand where power access is an issue and battery powered guns aren’t ideal.
I’ve got one of those tiny Senco compressors that is good for little trim jobs and the like. I guess I might be convinced to upgrade to this compressor if I were faced with the choice today and was invested in the Dewalt system… but probably more likely that I’d be convinced to just buy a battery powered gun.
Anyone have a comparison on number of drives per battery via the compressor vs an equivalent battery powered gun?
Chance
This DeWalt cordless compressor greatly outperforms the Small Senco compressor.
Nathan
thanks for the review – just what I wanted to know. I don’t know how you maintain your nailer but I could see a new one running a little more efficient. I know some of the newer dewalt and bostitch ones are MX free. Might play a slight role.
But far more importantly you did real work with it – and got what I would consider good results. you ran that for what 5-6 hours worth. I don’t use 18ga nails either so I wish they would put out useage with say a 15 ga and a framer or something to span the line of uses instead of just one size. It does make quite the difference.
I already have a decent 6 gallon pancake and I use if unplugged quite a bit for little things. Had this been out 2 years ago when I bought it – I would have bought this instead, maybe. Cost is a touch high. Would love to see them do a 5 gallon – dual battery/adapter version but I bet it would be 500 or so dollars.
Good review as usual.
Brian A
So why such low results with the “early” flexvolt battery, was it one of the many defective ones?
fred
I can’t say anything about Dewalt batteries – but having bought hundreds of Makita an Milwaukee batteries – I can say that batteries are devilish things. Failure to charge or having a battery that does not seem to fully charge is not very common – but it always seemed to happen at an inopportune moment. I was never sure if was the cells (often made in Korea or Malaysia) or the pack assembly (China) or charger handshaking – but we returned and/or scrapped our share of them. Chalked it all up to a cost of doing business.
Raoul
I would like to see them open up that early release battery and see what’s in it and if it’s the ssme as current batteries. I guess I will keep an eye out for any low energy batteries (call them Hillarys?). I’ve had a few dud Flexvolt batteries but they just stop working and don’t recharge. Never had a low energy one.
Benjamen
I don’t know. The only thing the battery was used for was the PPS and it seemed to perform well on that. It was definitely lasting as long as the other 4.0Ah batteries.
I think this is the first time I used it as a 60V battery. I don;t know if that is relevant or not.
Tiberious
All the reviews talk about using nailers.
We Chainsaw Carvers use air compressor to blow off carvings, Chainsaws, grinders. And our cloths.
Sawdust gets everywhere! Our Air Compressors sit unused waiting while we carve.
Being able to take them to an onsite stump job without power is very appealing. Blowing off our gas and bar oil caps are almost mantory to keep the bar Oiler from clogging with sawdust.
I would love to know how long a battery will last if blowing off for 5-6 minutes causing the motor to run for about 6ish minutes every 20 minutes. (Chainsaw Tank of gas) How many battery’s would it take for a 9 hour day?
My current Harbor Freight 3 gallon offten can’t keep up causing wait time to finish while my buddies pancake Porter Cable does a much better job filling. Larger tanks away from the shop are not an option.
Pretty interested in finding out if I would be replacing one battery a day or would need to bring a box of batteries?
Raoul
I agree. They don’t talk about any of the other uses for this thing. I cart my pancake PC compressor around for a lot more than using pneumatic nailers. It would be convenient to be battery operated.
Benjamen
What other uses would you like to see? If I have the tool, I can give it a try when I’m trying blowing.
JMG
Could you repeat some of the tests with the larger battery pack?
Benjamen
I’m probably not going to repeat the test with a 9Ah battery for a while. One, I don’t have one right now. Two, I don’t foresee getting much more than 1.5X what I got with the 6Ah.
It might be interesting to see if it fills faster though. Hmmm…I need to think about this more.
What I might do at some point is test the Dewalt 18Ga nailer and see how close I can get to Dewalt’s specs. Or maybe try a newer 16 Gauge nailer to see if there’s an improvement over my old one.
Tiberious
Thanks I would love to know how many battery packs I would have to use in a day if I am blasting myself, Chainsaws, Grinders for about 30 seconds to 4 min (let’s say 2.5 minutes) every 12 minutes.
So 5 times an hour x 2.5 minutes for about 6 hours= 75 minutes. A day
Ok. Not a easy test.
How long will a 6 aH battery blow? Or maybe how long will the battery run the compressor motor if the drain valve is left open?
I think you said it takes about two minutes to fill from empty. If you blow sawdust off your fuel caps for 30 seconds. How long to refill tank?
How many times can a battery fill the tank from empty or half empty.
Those kind of stats would help determine if it could replace my on site stump job air compressor.
I may be willing to carry a extra battery. But not a tool box full of them.
Benjamen
I’ll try some blowing in next few days and see how it performs.
Benjamen
Air blowing test — here’s what I did:
I set the regulator for 90 and attached an air blow gun. I filled up the compressor completely. Then I pulled the trigger and set the timer.
The compressor comes on pretty quickly, but it couldn’t keep up. I got 1 minute until the compressor settled into steady state at about 10 PSI. I’d say I got less than 20 seconds of usable blowing.
I tried halving the regulator pressure to 45 PSI and I got pretty much the same result.
Maybe you can take an “air shower” with this compressor, but you are only going to get 20 seconds spurts of usable blowing then you’ll have to wait 2 minutes for the compressor to refill.
Tiberious
That’s great. Helpful info. Thank you.
How long did the battery last when you did this.
How many times would it refill?
My Harbor Freight gets about 25 seconds of blowing before I have to wait to refill. I should test it to see how long it takes to fill. I think it was about 3 minutes.
Most of the day it’s used 10-20 seconds to clean caps for fill up. But lunch and end of day everything gets a blastinging to remove sawdust from tools and body.
Benjamen
I only ran the blowing test for a few cycles. I didn’t run out the battery.
If you are blowing for 20 seconds periodically through the day — and not all at once — you could probably get similar results to what I got for the nailer: about 30 fills on the 6Ah battery.
Ct
I am very glad there are cordless compressors available now, but at this point in time it really doesn’t seam right for me..on the very very rare occasion I need a compressor on a job I have a very small corded unit that weighs near 20 pounds as I recall . ..otherwise I just pull out the event cordless 18,16 or framing nailer and getter done. Yes they are a Lil heavy and bulky, but I feel it’s quicker for small jobs then messing with a compressor.
JoeM
I think my opinion of this compressor is the same now that Benjamen has reviewed it, as it was when the announcement for it first came out.
I’d like it for my small apartment, as the occasional compressed air can replacement, and for use with my Enamel Model Paints for airbrushing. But I would wait for this one’s bigger brothers to be made before using it as a real home air compressor. Ben’s project putting nails into door frames pretty much confirms my opinion here. This one is just too small, and doesn’t have the option to be plugged into the wall, in order to do much more than that. And that’s NOT a BAD thing. This is good for tiny apartments where the work is small, and you don’t need a 110dB vibration going through your teeth. This is the BABY brother to the FlexVolt capable compressors to come.
I would still rather it had TSTAK and/or ToughSystem Cart adapters on the rails, so that it could be locked into your DeWALT system of choice to be carted around easily. As much as we may joke about a backpack, if we take that seriously, I would rather it be on something that rolls behind you, or rolls out away from the wall, so you can do what you need to do. Maybe it’s to roll it onto a plastic bag or something to open that draining valve cleanly, maybe it’s just to vacuum behind it during regular housework. Either way, this would be made better by the rails locking into the TSTAK or Tough System rolling carts/whatever rail system, so it is easier to just move it.
Maybe I’m a sucker, I don’t know. I would still like one of these. Maybe I’m an idiot and should wait for one of said bigger brothers to come out, like a 5 Gallon, one that has new features. I don’t know. Benjamen pretty much confirmed what my initial thoughts on this model were when it was announced.
Bob
Intriguing, worth a look.
The world needs a decent cordless, tankless tire compressor. Those junky compressors that produce 200, 250, even 300 PSI can do so only because the piston is the size of your pinky. The resulting volume is so low takes forever to pump up a car tire. I would rather reduce the PSI to around 40, and quadruple the volume.
Some low pressure, higher volume compressors are showing up, but the pressure is still too high… well over 100. Ridiculous!
Andrew
I have to sprint past this every time I see the display at Home Depot. Rebuilding this house, power is at a premium (1960s wiring .. my father’s “handiwork”) leave a lot of dead zones and too many questionable receptacles. This is going to be my next big purchase.
Rick
While tempting, it’s a hard sell for me when I have a quiet air compressor like the California air, and a DeWalt power station.
It’s obviously heavier and more stuff than this, but at least with the power station you can still run other things!