Hitachi EC79 Review by Bill W, April 7, 2009

• Overall Rating

I bought this item for my brother a couple months ago, so it does not get daily use. I can’t rate it’s longevity or how it holds up to repeated use and abuse. However, for the homeowner this is an excellent compressor. It is quieter than most any comparable unit, though that does not mean it doesn’t make noise. I don’t have to yell when it is on and I’m right next to it, however. The drain valve is convenient and easy to use (why don’t other’s have the same?). It comes with the gauges already installed, though if they had included a moisture filter it would have been the icing on the cake. The machine weighs about 50lbs. so it isn’t exactly light but not so heavy that it can’t be moved around all over the place. It can shoot about a dozen nails from a framing nailer before recovering. You can top off all the tires on a couple of cars easily without having to let it fill up again. It’s relatively compact size, and the fact that it’s taller than it is wide, make it quite easy to store in a corner of the garage. All in all, for the one and a quarter I paid for it this is a heck of a good buy. Made in Taiwan/China.

Hitachi EC79 Review by David, April 12, 2009

• Overall Rating

i replaced my old 4 gallon emglo for this hitachi hopeing it would keep up with all my air needs and i was plesantly surprised. i wouldnt recommend it for anything that requires constant air like and air chissel of impact gun, but for a one man general contractor. or handy man its a good solid choice.

Hitachi EC79 Review by Joe, May 25, 2009

• Overall Rating

I am a trim carpenter and use this compressor every day. I bought it to replace an 8 year old Hitachi pancake compressor that still worked but was getting a little tired. This type of compressor works great for a handy man or low air use applications. I use it daily to run 2 finish nail guns and I have never had a problem with not enough air. It runs well on a 15 amp circuit and starts well in the cold weather. If you need to run multiple framing or roofing guns look for a bigger compressor.

I also own a Porter Cable and Bostich compressor.

The PC is the lightest and quietest, but I just broke the regulator off by hitting it with an empty plastic garbage can. I don’t think they are made to hold up to daily use.

The Bostich is the loudest of the 3. I haven’t used it much, I bought it to stay at the cabin. It seems to work fine, but it takes the longest amount of time to get up to pressure and shut off, but to be fair it is ussually empty when I turn it on.

The Hitachi is the heaviest. It is very well made. The gauges and regulator are protected behind a plastic cover. It has a very nice drain valve to drain water from the tank. If it lasts as long as my last one it will be a very good compressor.

There are two things I don’t like about this compressor. It is not as stable as some, it tends to topple over in my van if it isn’t stowed carefully. In fact the old one fell out of my van several times when I opened the door and it had toppled on it’s side, but to it’s credit it never broke. The other negative is the built in handle sucks. It is just a flat toped recess in the plastic cover. Every other compressor of this type I have owned has some kind of ridge or curve in the handle so you can securely grip it. I always feel like my hand is going to slip out of the handle.

I give it 4 stars. It does everything I need it to do, it is well made, it is just a little hard to carry.

Hitachi EC79 Review by D. Grosso, July 23, 2009

• Overall Rating

The unit arrived yesterday. When I unpacked it I plugged it in and it started up normally. Then I noticed the entire control unit including guages and tubing were shaking and that whole unit was loose. Also the face of one of the guages was bent and broken and the safety air bleed valve was broken off so I needed a pliers to bleed of the air. The shipping box was undamaged so I’m sure it was shipped from the factory in this condition. Needless to say I am sending the unit back for a refund. Its too bad since I own some other Hitachi tools and they have been great

Hitachi EC79 Review by JR, August 6, 2009

• Overall Rating

The Hitachi EC79 compressor was just the ticket for the work I did putting in a Bamboo floor in my Master Bedroom. Every nail I placed using the EC79 was perfect (except for those I screwed up myself). There was never a time that this little unit did not live up to the job I required of it.

The reason why I rated it a 4 instead of a 5 was it is a bit loud to use inside. It wasn’t as loud as the nailer, but it was still loud. I wouldn’t want to use it inside if anyone were trying to sleep in the house. Otherwise, though, it is a spectacular unit.