Quincy 553DS80VCA20 QP Pro — 5 HP, 80-Gallon Vertical Two-Stage Air Compressor, 208V 3-Phase

Most reciprocating shop compressors in this size class throw their oil around inside the crankcase and hope enough lands where the bearings are. This one does not. The QP Pro carries a gerotor positive-displacement oil pump that pushes oil under pressure to the crankshaft, bearings and connecting rods, the way a car engine does — and Quincy puts a number on it: up to 15% more pump life than a splash-lubricated equivalent.

That is the reason to look at this rather than a cheaper 5 HP unit with the same tank on the outside. It is a vertical 80-gallon two-stage compressor wired for 208V 3-Phase supply, built for a shop that runs air most of the working day rather than in bursts.

Two details to check with us first

Published references to this model differ slightly: the heading above and the specification record on this page both give the product code as 553DS80VCA20. The web address of this page carries a slightly different string. Send us the code from your quote or from the data plate and we will confirm the exact build in writing before anything ships.

No airflow rating is quoted on this page. The delivered-air figure published for this unit arrives with no unit of measure beside it, and an airflow rating without its unit is a digit rather than a specification. If delivered air at pressure decides your purchase, ask us before ordering and we will get the current figure straight from Quincy.

What pressure lubrication actually changes

Splash lubrication works by letting the connecting rods dip into a sump and fling oil onto everything above. It is cheap and perfectly adequate for a machine that runs for ten minutes and then sits. What it does not do well is feed a bearing that is running continuously and hot, because supply depends on speed, oil level and luck. A pressurised system removes the luck: the gerotor pump delivers a measured flow at a measured pressure however long the machine has been running, and because the oil travels a circuit rather than being thrown about, it can be filtered. This unit takes a spin-on filter, changed the way you change the one on a truck, with no gaskets to scrape and no housing to unbolt. Clean oil that actually reaches the bearing is why one pump outlives another on identical duty.

Will it fit, and what does it need?

The tank stands upright, the right shape when floor space is the constraint and ceiling height is not. Plan for a footprint of roughly 37" by 24" and an overall height of about 74". Before you commit to a corner, look up: door tracks, ducting, sprinkler heads and mezzanine edges live at that height, and you need clearance above the machine to pull the belt guard and reach the oil fill, not just to stand it up.

The assembled weight is around 680 lbs on a small base, so this is a machine with a high centre of gravity. It wants flat, sound concrete, and it should be levelled and secured in line with the manual rather than simply stood in a corner. The tank outlet is 3/4", so size your drop and any hose reel accordingly.

Power. The motor is wound for 208V 3-Phase supply. That is not a setting and it is not switchable: if your building has single-phase service, or three-phase at a different voltage, this is the wrong member of the family and we will point you at the right one. A magnetic starter is fitted, so you are not buying one separately. Quincy does not publish a breaker size for this model — its own specification sheet says to consult a certified electrician, and so do we.

Your responsibility. Confirming the incoming voltage and phase, providing the circuit, disconnect and overcurrent protection, and providing a floor that will take the weight are all the buyer's. We will talk it through, but we cannot inspect your building from here, and a compressor wired to the wrong supply is not a warranty claim.

Two stages, and why the intercooler earns its place

A two-stage pump compresses in two bites. The large cylinder takes atmospheric air to an intermediate pressure, a finned intercooler then strips out the heat compression just put into it, and the small cylinder takes the cooler, denser charge the rest of the way to 175 PSI. Cooling between stages is not a refinement — compressing hot air wastes work.

The supporting detail is all heat and sealing. The cylinders are cast iron and the gaskets graphite. The flywheel is a fan-type cast iron casting, electronically balanced, doing two jobs at once: smoothing the pulses out of a two-cylinder pump and driving cooling air across the intercooler and heads. The reed valves are stainless with bumpers behind them, limiting how far a valve can lift so it does not work-harden itself to death at the edges. None of it is exciting; all of it is the difference between a pump that holds tolerance for years and one that starts passing oil.

Perfect For

• An independent service shop with three-phase supply running impacts, hoists and a spray gun through most of the day.
• A fabrication or body shop where the compressor is expected to keep up rather than catch up.
• A dealership or fleet workshop replacing a worn splash-lubricated unit and wanting a longer service interval.
• Any building where floor area is tight but the roof is high enough to take a vertical tank.

What is in the box — and what is not

You receive the complete compressor: the pressure-lubricated two-stage pump, the belt drive and guard, the electric motor, the magnetic starter, the oil sight glass and the vertical receiver, mounted and ready to be wired and piped.

Our record is equally clear about what is not fitted, and these are the items people assume: no air dryer, no aftercooler, no electronic drain valve and no pump low-oil shutdown. Dry air at the tool means a dryer and filter as a separate purchase, which we can quote with the machine; a tank that drains without someone remembering is an add-on too. Better to know now than in week two.

Specifications

Certification, stated plainly

Quincy's specification sheet for this unit lists ASME for the pressure vessel and UL and CSA on the electrical side — a code stamp on the tank, safety marks on the electrical components. Neither is a substitute for the other, and neither is a substitute for your local inspection. If your insurer, your jurisdiction or your own company policy requires a particular mark or a filing for a pressure vessel this size, check that requirement against the data plate before you buy rather than after. We will send you what Quincy publishes so you can.

Warranty

The machine carries a 1-year factory warranty, which Quincy extends to a 3-year "No Bull" warranty on conditions it sets itself: the EWK-6 maintenance kit must be bought with the compressor, and the unit must be registered with Quincy. The extended cover includes on-site and labour service. Registration is the step people skip, and it is the one that costs them the extension.

One warning that applies to every compressor we sell: if something fails, do not take the pump apart before the claim is agreed. A disassembled pump cannot be assessed, and stripping it is the fastest way to turn a covered failure into an uncovered one.

Freight and delivery

This is a freight shipment, not a parcel, and it travels to the lower 48 states. It arrives on a pallet and it is heavy, so make sure there is a forklift or a pallet jack and a firm surface at the delivery address. If there is not, take terminal pickup and bring a trailer — a common and sensible choice. Residential delivery is available and carries a residential fee, quoted live at checkout with the freight itself.

Inspect the shipment before you sign. Walk the pallet, look at the tank and shroud for dents and at the pallet for fork damage, and write anything you find on the bill of lading before the driver leaves. A signed clean receipt makes a damage claim very difficult.