Hill EC 3000 question

[nolisting]

I an considering buying the Hill. I understand it is not intended to fill an external tank. That being understood I wonder what the groups experience has been topping off small tanks such as a carbon fiber 100cu tank to 300 bar. I would not want to purchase the unit if this would greatly exceed its capacity resulting in a shorter lifespan.

Thank you in advance for your responses. 

 

[Chickenthief]

It's a 2 piston thing with all the inborn problems.

Each piston doing more than 18 times compression and the problems with diesling that arises.

High temps and high wear.

Wont last.

 

[biohazardman]

I have such a hard time understanding people purchasing the EC 3000 compressors. If you look at how they are built a single O-ring is the piston ring on the first stage and the second stage piston has two. There is no cooling to speak of on the unit so they can't last long. For the $1300 they cost you are paying for a compressor that will need a rebuild fairly often.

Check this video out at 11:40 to see the piston and ring assembly.

https://www.airgunnation.com/topic/hill-ec-3000-4/

Although the quality of the build on the EC 3000 is far above the Yong Heng it is the design that really matters and it is not built for longevity.

Still it has it's own little niche of the market carved out somehow.

The lowly $300 Yong Heng sports a cast iron first stage cylinder with metal piston rings, like an air cooled car engine, and sufficient air cooling to keep it at operating temperature for some time. The second stage piston has three composite rings on it and is water cooled so they don't just melt right away.



The QC, is not that great, and support on the Yong Hengs is near non existent but parts are cheap and knowledge shared freely on YouTube so it is not a problem.

The support, from what I have read, for the EC 3000 is excellent though but then that is what you are paying the extra $1000 for.

I really hate buying from China so this was not an easy thing for me to say.

Edit;

Seems to me this would be a much better unit for the money it can be run for extended amounts of time and it is water cooled so should last much longer. Has a good warranty as well from what I have read.

http://www.airtanksforsale.com/alpha90/

Another made in China unit though.

 

[Leatherman]

I bought the Hill after going through a couple of compressors in the sub $1000 price range that did not hold up to my topping off guns only and had less than 10 hours on each. I can’t justify spending $3000 or more on a heavy duty scuba compressor and so I looked at what was available for topping off a rifle only that was as good of quality build and from a reputable maker feeling that I should get a few years out of it before having to rebuild which let’s be honest they all will eventually have to be rebuilt. Also availability of parts and support down the road a few years is my concern also. Hill is made in England not China and has been around a while and are known for their quality products . The EC 3000 is One of the many small compact compressors designed for topping off a rifles bottle, period. It says so in the manual and they don’t advertise it any different. My Hill fills very quickly form 100 bar to 300 bar on my 300cc Leshiy bottle and quicker on my Dreamline to 230 bar. Like less than 1 minute. It has an automatic shut off if it reaches something like 160 degrees and turns back on after cooling down to a safe temperature. If I plan on shooting a lot I leave the fan running so when I return to fill my bottle the head is room temperature to start again. The only time mine has paused to cool down was when I filled a 450cc FC bottle from empty to 250 bar. I don’t trust any make of small compressor under say $1500 to last long if used to top off large tanks where they may run long enough to reach high temperatures and of course longer wear time on all moving parts and seals regardless of materials. So if you have a large bottle you use at remote places like at a range and regularly use up 1000cc or more of air , your going to be taxing any small compressor to top it off. With all that said , It makes some sense that if you fill a tank 200 bar at a time and let the compressor cool down before resuming would seem to be no worse than filling a rifle bottle several times but that 200 bar in a large tank will take longer than topping off a 200 to 400cc bottle . If I was into competition shooting I would invest in a larger tank compressor and bottle with a friend or club if possible. 

 

[shoot44]

I am pretty sure it is a 3 stage unit. Look at the video at 11:49. One large piston in the middle with a red O ring, a smaller one below that also with a red O ring and the top final stage about the size of a pencil. You can see the plumbing at :18 seconds in the video. First stage - air enters middle left, exits middle right. Second stage - enters lower right and exits lower left. Third stage - enters upper left and exit from the top. From what I can see the air inlets use ball valves and the air exits use elongated valves with a spring.

As for filling bottles, the instructions clearly say OK but only for bottles up to 7 liters.

Add all that stuff that Leatherman said. Is it worth the price??? Mine is to me.

 

[Woodard63]

I read all I could on the forum about compressors that I could and also watched many videos about them. As others have stated I ended up with picking the EC 3000 because I didn’t want to deal with the water hoses and keeping the water cool enough. With the EC3000 it uses the temp switch to regulate temp and a small little fan. I liked this because if I want to go on vacation or to a friends house to shoot I can load my compressor up and take it with me plug it in at said place and fill guns. No water or buckets to deal with. Nice and easy. I read too many reviews of the cheaper compressors being hit or miss and I knew with my luck I would most likely get a crappy one that wouldn’t last. If you can afford a compressor like the EC3000 then that’s what I would go with. 

 

[Eaglebeak]

Can you be more specific. What do you mean by a small100 cu tank? Cubic feet, inches, or centimetres? The hill should be robust enough for topping off even a 100 cubic foot bottle, as long as you fill in stages.

 

[Calson]

What I found interesting is that one of the places that sells a wide range of compressors, http://www.airtanksforsale.com/, shows several scuba grade compressors and states that they are not for use to directly fill an airgun, and another set of compressors that are supposed to be for airgun fills only.

If I am filling a 410 cu in tank from 2000 PSI to 4000 PSI once a week the cost to have this done at the only dive shop with a high output compressor would cost me over $1,000 a year. Breakeven for the Hill EC3000 is after 52 tank fills. I had 4 tanks at 3500 PSI to fill for a day of diving in Monterey and I had to pay $60 for the fills and wait nearly an hour to get them filled along with those of all the other divers. I needed guaranteed breathable air for my diving but that is not the case with filling a tank for use with my PCP rifles. Convenience is also very important as I want to fill based on my schedule and not drive 30 miles to a scuba shop before hitting the range.