The Morgan Press runs on air. It doesn't use a lot, but it requires high pressures. The manual states:
"The minimum compressor required to adequately operate a press is a one horsepower, two-stage compressor with a 30 gallon holding tank rated to maintain on/off pressures at 120 to 150 psi."
I'm not one to go with the bare minimum, but I also didn't want a 500+lb behemoth that I can't move. (I'm a little crazy here, I put all my work benches on casters so I can move 'em around at will. The compressor needs a dedicated, hard-wired 220V supply, so it's not like it will be moving much.)
After reading a bunch of reviews, I finally settled on a 5hp, 40 gallon 2-stage Puma compressor. I bought it online and a couple weeks later it showed up at my door. After wiring in a new circuit, it purred to life (okay, it roared-- compressors are loud!).
It was quite a rush to finally "power on" the pneumatics side of the press and see everything work. For the first time, I feel like I can start to see this actually coming together.
But, I can't use it to much yet-- it needs lubricated air, and when I pressurized the system, I found a crack in the lubricator that keeps it from working.
