Carette 4500 Compressor Testing and Tear Down Report

[horseman76]

The Omega compressors use the grease fittings for lube. Don't know if it will last but  Air guns of Arizona sells them and claims good results. Wayne

[triggertreat]

The Omega compressors as I understand it, uses the grease for lube instead of having oil mixing in with the compressed air.  I think you just have to turn a knob before filling on occasion to feed in more grease.  Doesn't sound like a bad idea, but IDK.  I have heard they are slower to fill than a Carette or AV. I have and like the AV, but the air does smell of compressor oil.  It has become less smelly with use.

[KnifeMaker]

Omega Super Charger/Turbocharger compressors.


Knife

[ezman604]

Food grade white grease used in the Omega Super Charger to lube the piston. No smelly smelly. I love my Omega. It has about 85 hours on it now. Was rebuilt at about 25 hours but did not need a complete rebuild. There was a defective part (check valve ball) that was made from too soft of a material that caused it to be blown out into the bottom of the case when the HPA built up enough. After replacing the check balls with new and improved ones, I have put an additional 60 hours of trouble free operation on it. It's a great compressor. Settable pressure gauges (dual limit needles) to shut off at a specific pressure, auto moisture purge and self contained are the big pluses for this unit. The minuses are the price and the weight. Portable? Well, yeah. But heavy as heck to move around. LOL
But there are HPA compressors much higher in price and a lot less portable than this unit. This one works for me!!!

[Motorhead]

At 108 hours with my ALPHA 90 ( Basic unit of the Omega Super charger ) .... rebuilt/resealed the 3 pump stages at 88 hours.
It is getting a Rod Knock now that is having it sound like a ShoeBox knock knock knock .... bummer & no idea now long it will continue to work or worse.

[MJP]

Is there a bearing or a bushing on the rod?
If a bushing then just swap it out or if there is no bush, take it to a machinist who can fit one.
Better to fix it while it still works.

Marko

[Motorhead]

Is there a bearing or a bushing on the rod?
If a bushing then just swap it out or if there is no bush, take it to a machinist who can fit one.
Better to fix it while it still works.

Marko

Captive needle bearing in a VERY light press fit to connecting rod.  garbage soft rod at that !!
It was starting to knock before the 88hr service ... pressed out the bearing ( Actually nearly finger pushed out ) and then set it back in with loc-tite 680 sleeve retaining compound.
lasted @ 10 hrs and started knocking again.
Sadly it looks like RAPTOR INTERNATIONAL who was importing them is no longer around with only finding AOA as the only dealer via web searches.  That really s ucks !

[MJP]

New bearing and mic the shaft if its worn. But most likely just new bearing could cure it. Locktite hard bearing retainer glue and it wont come off without heating.

Marko

[Ezra S.]

With Dave Ez's kind permission, I am partially re-posting my review of the Carette 4500 compressor here at GTA. This is an option I wish existed just over a year ago when I began my quest for a compressor.

The Carette 4500 compressor is a Chinese compressor that seeks to fill the price performance gap between "big boy" dive compressors and Shoebox compressors. They unfortunately arrived amidst a wave of "junk" compressors. To my great surprise, their Carrette 4500 is very different.

Mr. Wang kindly supplied the demonstrator unit. I have not kept that compressor post testing. I gave it away. I already have a Bauer Jr and do not need another compressor. I found a fellow air gunner who is also a victim of another manufacturer’s poor built compressor. It was a nice surprise for him. I’m sure he will give it a good home.

As a demonstrator unit rather than a final production unit, the test unit may not exactly match the appearance and configuration of the actual shipped units. I have been told that the external finish will be better on the actual units. Also, the crankshaft bearing and rods will be more durable than those on the demonstrator.

The manufacturer is now running a introductory promotion for what I call the "full configuration." That is with a PMV (pressure maintaining valve) and auto bleed. I wanted the PMV to maximize water removal and the auto bleed to make usage convenient. They listened.

 Guykuo,
 I purchased the 110V version a few months back. All was well untill recently motor is tripping the overload. The motor is getting HOT(140F.) I removed the belt guard. Motor and compressor pulley seem to turn with ease.
 Voltage at outlet: 122VAC

 Popped open the peckerhead (motor control box) to find labels reading 50Hz. Can you confirm that this motors windings are wound for 50Hz and not 60hz?

 If its a 50Hz motor i am running it 20% faster on 60Hz. That would explain temperature rise in this motor (which i am assuming is Class B insulation.)
 This would also explain my hotter temperature readings on the first stage cylinder. (155F)

 On top of all of this the belt is wearing bad on the drive side pulley(motor).

Funny thing is that when i run the compressor off of a 100' 16AWG extention cord, the motor still gets pretty hot but does not trip. Voltage drop through said cord under load brings it down to 113VAC.  Motor pulls a solid 14A under these circumstances but does not trip overload.

 Anyone feel free to chime in on any tips/ect. to help me out here.

Thanks in advance -Seth
 

 
 

 

[Humdinger]

 If you purchased your Carette a few months ago it would still be under the manufacturer's warranty.  First recommendation is to call the distributor, AirtanksforSale, and see what they can do for you.   If your motor pulley or compressor crankshaft pulley has loosened and gotten slightly misaligned it would cause motor overheating and premature belt wear.   The belt should last hundreds of hours with no wear.  Did you check to see if either pulley lockdown set screw has loosened and caused the belt create stress on the motor?

[Ezra S.]

Thanks for the input. I will double check.  I know the tightness and alignnment are no issue. I will check pulley to shaft play and report back. I contacted Joe B. His only recommendation was to remove 2nd stage cylinder temperature sensor. Im 99% sure that that sensor is not tied in with the motor overload so it is irrelevant.  He did however ensure me that we are going to get it fixed as it is indeed still under warranty. I will return with a report on pulley on shaft play.

[Ezra S.]

Okay,
 Just ckecked. Neither pulley is loose on the shaft. Not sure where to go from here. I guess ill be calling Joe back sometime next week. Any recommendations/tips are still welcome. I am working through the weekend so wont have much time to check anything in depth until next week.

[Humdinger]

Okay,
 Just ckecked. Neither pulley is loose on the shaft. Not sure where to go from here. I guess ill be calling Joe back sometime next week. Any recommendations/tips are still welcome. I am working through the weekend so wont have much time to check anything in depth until next week.

OK, your electrical knowledge exceeds most guys.  I'd try two things.  Are all of your outlets showing that high a voltage?  I'd check my outlets and see if all of them are at 122.  I'd replace the belt with a new one and make sure everything aligns with normal tension as well to see if the original belt was the problem instead of the result.

[cootertwo]

I'll guess maybe you got the wrong motor on that unit ?

[Ezra S.]

I fully intend on getting a new belt. (Cogged) asap. Going to look monday but if i cant find one locally ill have to order one. I send Joe a message. I will be calling him as well on monday as it will be my first day off after this weekend.As for the voltage. All outlets are reading 122v +/- .3V at the time of measurement. That is on separate corcuits around the house.That ofcourse will vary a bit throughout  the day but not to the extent of effecting the motor. 

[Humdinger]

 I described your situation to a friend who is much more knowledgeable than I am about electrical circuits.  His first thought is for you to check to see if your motor is wired properly.  There is usually a plate on the motor or in the electrical box that shows the correct wiring configuration for each voltage.  He had a motor overheating that was supposed to be a 110 but was wired as a 220 with a 110 plug.  Once he rewired it for 110, the overheating issue stopped.  Is your motor wired correctly for 110 volts?

Also from what you describe about your belt problem, he also said that if it wasn't misaligned and you say it turns freely, could it have been too loose?

[Ezra S.]

I described your situation to a friend who is much more knowledgeable than I am about electrical circuits.  His first thought is for you to check to see if your motor is wired properly.  There is usually a plate on the motor or in the electrical box that shows the correct wiring configuration for each voltage.  He had a motor overheating that was supposed to be a 110 but was wired as a 220 with a 110 plug.  Once he rewired it for 110, the overheating issue stopped.  Is your motor wired correctly for 110 volts?

Also from what you describe about your belt problem, he also said that if it wasn't misaligned and you say it turns freely, could it have been too loose?

 Thank you for your input. Im doubting it is wired for 220.  I will most likely be looking again as soon as i get a chance but  if i remember correctly there is only a neutral  and hot wire ran from box to motor.(white and black)
  As for the belt the tension seemed plenty fine and alignment seemed good as well.
  Latest update is that Joe B. Sprung into action today creating a group message with the manufacturer  included.  Still waiting on a response from them but they are in china so hopefully i wake up to some sort of helpful information. Good news is that Joe B is involved and is taking action. Im still open for suggestions ect. Thanks again.

[Trigger_Finger]

Mine died on the 9th hr. The motor siezed. I got a replacement with 4 hrs on it. But I havent used it that much since I got the F10 Shoebox and my shooting time diminished because I added another hobby,,, 3D printing!

[Ezra S.]

Mine died on the 9th hr. The motor siezed. I got a replacement with 4 hrs on it. But I havent used it that much since I got the F10 Shoebox and my shooting time diminished because I added another hobby,,, 3D printing!

Great to hear of your new hobby. Not so much about the motor failure. Would you mind elaborating  (events that let up to the problem, when you realized you definitely had a problem, and how the replacement under warranty went?)  Also how is the new one running? Any better?
 Im around my 6th hour plus Joe's break in hours. Any information will help me! Thanks.

[Trigger_Finger]

It was chugging along fine until that last time it sounded it was struggling. "Knocking sound. I'm not sure if I remembered if I had stop the filling or I finished the 4500 psi tank. Then on the next fill, it won't turn even with a wrench. I got the replacement right away but I lost my confidence over longevity and so I ordered the Shoebox F10 as primary compressor or as the back up .