What 1/4" Air Hose are you Loving/ Hating?

[butzla]

Well, it finally happened.  My trusty 50' x 1/2" rubber hose finally sprang a leak.  I purchased in 1991.  Why 1/2" you ask?  When I bought my first nail gun, my local supplier (Spag's) was out of 3/8" and only had 1/2" which he talked me into.  since then I've accumulated 6 or 7 nailers, all with 1/2" fittings.  This morning a heard a loud hiss around my swivel near the gun and it has since developed a nice blister.  I only have 2 more pieces of crown to nail so I'm hoping some Gorilla tape will get me through.

So now I want to switch to 1/4" hose which I've been hearing great things about.  This summer I purchased a Flexilla garden hose because of it's kink-free claims.  It's light but it is anything but kink-free.  It's a pain in the arse to deal with.  I see they make air hoses as well and I think I'll pass on them.

So what's your poison?  PVC, rubber, poly?  What brand and where to buy.  I'm going to have to replace all of my fittings which I'm not happy about but it'll be worth it, not having to drag that dreadful 1/2" rubber anymore.

 

[RustE]

Coilhose.  Although I think the 5/16" ID version is just a bit nicer than the 1/4" ID version, seems to be more consistent airflow and doesn't like to tangle as much.  Both have 1/4-NPT end fittings to work with all of the typical connectors.  On that note, I also really like the Coilhose 6-ball couplers for their small overall size.

 

[RKA]

Same for me, Coilhose Pneumatics 1/4" poly coiled hose.  It's light and flexible enough, but I haven't had it out in cold weather to see how it responds.  The springy-ness of the hose does get to be a nuisance when you get beyond 65% of it's stated length.  But you probably know this, so either buy a straight hose or buy a longer length hose set to account for that.  Durability I don't know, but I've had this pair of poly hoses for 7-8 years of light use, no issues.  I don't expect them to last as long as your 28 year old hose though!  But they are a solid company and produce good products.

For the air tools in the garage I have a larger (3/8"?) flexzilla hose and love it, mostly because it stays flexible in cold temps.  I have the hose stored in a retractable reel.  The rubber and PVC stuff is a pita when it's cold.  I haven't tried their smaller hoses for nailers...haven't even looked into it since the poly hose works fine for me.

 

[pettyconstruction]

I have been running a senco 1/4” hose foe a long time ,and love it.
It have push in fittings and is fairly flexible .

I have recently bought a Flexzilla hose and like it also,but it is a bit larger hose.
Charlie

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

 

[semenza]

Flexeel is hard to beat. Made by Coilhose.  Coilhose has both a Coilhose line and the Flexeel line. The hose is not the same between them.

Seth

 

[rst]

Definitely Flexzilla, I've been using various hoses since 1971...love Flexzilla.

 

[butzla]

Thanks all,  I went with the Coilhose Flexeel Max.  Seth,  You have me worried.  I was between the regular Flexeel (blue) and the Max version (green).  But on Amazon I could only get the blue one in 25' length so I opted for the green one which is still "Flexeel".  It's a little beefier and comes with swivel connectors.  Hope this wasn't what you were talking about:

Flexeel Max on Amazon  [member=1619]SRSemenza[/member]

I'll let you know how I like it. 

 

[rst]

Green is the best!

 

[semenza]

Thanks all,  I went with the Coilhose Flexeel Max.  Seth,  You have me worried.  I was between the regular Flexeel (blue) and the Max version (green).  But on Amazon I could only get the blue one in 25' length so I opted for the green one which is still "Flexeel".  It's a little beefier and comes with swivel connectors.  Hope this wasn't what you were talking about:

Flexeel Max on Amazon  [member=1619]SRSemenza[/member]

I'll let you know how I like it.

I don't know about the Max version. I do know that the regular is available in several colors.  The Coilhose site has tables with all the variations on of lengths and fittings and strain reliefs. It is a good place to go to figure out exactly what you want.

The Flexeel that I have several of is the coiled version in blue.

Seth

 

[sancho57]

I bought mine at HF had t for about a year. Been working great no complaints plus I got the coupon so it was even cheaper......
https://www.harborfreight.com/14-in-x-25-ft-polyurethane-air-hose-64027.html

 

[tjbnwi]

Did you pop the Flexeel?

Tie it off to something solid, go to the other end of the hose, pull as hard as you can, you'll hear the hose popping. It will act much better once this is done.

Tom

 

[xedos]

I like the Hitachi Pro polyurethane hoses. Especially the 25' version which is hard to find. 

Available at most Lowes and on Amazon. 

However, lately I've grown accustomed to my co2 setup.  Which is ready to go in seconds and quieter than any compressor around.  It's not practical for anything above a 16ga nailer and probably not the best choice for a whole house trim job. But for most everything else..........