MakitaMAC700 2.0 HP* Big Bore™ Air Compressor

I will make this short and sweet. I bought this compressor for myself this year for Christmas. I made no hesitation when purchasing this exact model over all the others. I am a professional carpenter and this unit meets/exceeds my expectations. Although I just unboxed the unit itself, I have been using the exact model for well over a year now.My boss has this exact model, one he bought over 5 years ago. He owns and operates his own residential building and remodeling company. This compressor was one of his first purchases, and it has outlived most purchases he has made since.The gist of it all:He didn’t quite take care of this unit. Not once did he ever change the oil (please don’t forget the importance of regular maintenance) or follow any of the maintenance recommendations. This beast has been out and exposed to the elements for extensive periods of time. It has braved some of the harshest of seasons New England could muster. It has framed houses, decks, additions, and many more. The recovery time is quick, the noise level is a whisper when compared to other units of similar size and function.We tend to use this model when in smaller spaces and don’t want to wheel out the monster rolair unit. This one is far more portable despite its heft. We regularly run multiple finish guns off of it, and done some serious framing with it. We run a small crew 1-3 people so we aren’t really stressing this unit out, but we have.It has stood up to it all and still functions incredibly well.There was no question, no doubt in my mind that this was the compressor I would purchase and if you’re in the market, don’t hesitate.

This is an extremely dependable air compressor that is also much quieter than “pancake” and other common compressors.It’s heavier than pancake compressors, however the weight comes from the use of durable materials such as iron and steel.There are many other reviews that cover the PSI and other aspects, so I will focus on one thing that I haven’t seen discussed which can be very helpful.This compressor needs oils changes and maintenance to get the most life out of it. If you spend a little time on this occasional maintenance then this compressor can easily last you more than 10 to 20 years. It’s that durable.If you want to further improve its service life then use a high quality synthetic compressor oil in it. For example: “TRIAX Kompressor MV ISO 46”, which is better in cold weather too.The manufacturer instructs to assemble the unit, fill the oil reservoir, and then run the compressor (with the air tank open) for 20 minutes. It then states the unit is fully ready to use. Well, I would add another step here. That is, after the 20 minutes break in period I would change the “break in” oil and replace it with high quality synthetic. When you drain the “break in” oil you will see it’s dirty and filled with metal shavings, which is normal. By replacing this oil after the break in you can improve the lifespan of the parts because they will have less contaminants and metal shavings causing additional wear.Hope this review helps you and you enjoy this compressor for decades to come. They probably won’t be making them like this for much longer so get one while you still can.

I read every review of this product and came nearly to buying it a year ago, but backed off in fear that I'd get one of the ones broken in shipment. Those stories are worrisome---getting one returned or fixed made some buyers tear their hair out. But my DeWalt compressor was SO very unsatisfactory---ear splittingly noisy, had a relief valve necessary for start up, but which would hang up, bleeding air and slowing pressure build-up fatally unless fiddled with. I reviewed every other possibility. I tried getting the Makita locally---if they arrived broken, then I'd buy one delivered safely to a dealer, even if I had to pay more.... But, no go. Nobody carried one. The compressors I could find at Lowes, Home Depot, Ace, and several local dealers all were unsatisfactory for a variety of reasons---having owned a bruiser for several years, I knew enough to know what I didn't want.So, I bit my lip and ordered the Makita from Amazon. Amazon is great, as you all know, and I like Makita products (some of the best---I could write stories about the cordless drills I've owned!), and I even like UPS. But, somehow the combination.... Well, I waited in fear.UPS came. I examined the box carefully. It was dinged. Before I could stop the UPS driver, he was gone. I could readily see just how these compressors were so easily damaged---their "works"/"stuff" is mounted on one end, unprotected, and very susceptible to end-to-end movemen in the box. Despite a very heavy shipping cartoon, Makita apparently has done little or nothing to correct the problem which disables so many of these good compressors.Mine had deep indentations in the cardboard where the "stuff" (to borrow the famous airliner travelers expression!) had banged up against the cartoon. But against all odds, the compressor appeared undamaged. Hurray! I was destined to be one of the lucky ones... I'm no fool when it comes to equipment---I usually don't have to resort to reading the manuals (well, heck, maybe I AM a fool...) In this case, I had to read the manual, almost cover to cover. The various "holes" where intake filter, and oil plug had to be added on, were not labeled, and though they seemed "sort of" intuitive, mistakes wouldn't be pretty. I could not find a single diagram which showed these parts effectively. In the end, it was a leap of faith, but I added the oil (seeing the oil level in the little window is NOT a piece of cake---Makita has put a big red dot in the glass---and it actually inteferes with seeing anything). The intake air filter is a good idea, but it's a tiny little blob of foam---I can't imagine it not clogging up quickly and repeatedly.You start up the compressor and let it run without back pressure for 20 minutes---a good idea, but I never had a compressor which needed THAT before.But, blissfully, it was---well, when they say "quiet" it's all relative (no air compressor is really 'quiet')---but compared to the Emglo/DeWalt, this one is a mere baby's murmur.So, it's got a tiny little tank---what about it's capacity, and re-generation time? Well, for my uses, it pumped itself up in fairly record time, and keeps air flowing all the time I need it, and besides which, if it's running all the time you're using it, no big deal---'cause it's 'quiet'"----such a relief.So, my rating? A big fat 5 stars. Could I make it better? Yeah, I'd redesign just where the "stuff" is so it couldn't be broken so easily. And I'd put a bigger intake air-filter on 'er. And I'd write a much better manual with a big, and actually helpful, diagram. I'd take the silly dot off the oil-level window.But I grinned all the way to the dump where I threw the Emglo with gusto!