Be advised about this shipping problem with this compressor. Tool Crib should know better than to ship these heavy units in flimsy boxes! Luckily the local Porter-Cable service center is willing to fix it under warranty!.
Great machine - 8 Oct 02

I read every review I can find on a tool before buying and did so in this case. The problem was, there were a couple `for' and a couple `against' this compressor which didn't help in the decision process (usually there's enough positive or negative comments to aid in making a decision). Heavy duty enough for any homeowner and most light construction jobs (finish carpentry). mechanical but that's completely irrelevant!) about the gage guard and the connection at the tank and yes you could easily break it off. If you want to ensure you don't have this problem, buy a compressor with a cage around it. Maybe if you put it on a 45 degree incline and then bounced up and down. Heck what do you want from a COMPRESSOR!

- Plenty of air to shoot my 15ga nails and recovery time on the tank is VERY quick.

And this is my big issue with these direct drive units. The advantages of convenience, weight and maintenance free performance come at a price. Expect a few years of use and then replacement when the first major component fails.

Even with these drawbacks its a great little compressor for finish carpentry. I've got the new MAC2400 on order for the shop for those higher volume needs, but I plan on keeping the MAC500 due to its small size, light weight and extreme portability.

Size of the tank is fine, but its really about the horsepower of the motor and amount of air motor can put out so that you don't have long period of motor running in order to build a pressure in the tank.
This Portable Compressor is Rugged and Well Built ! - Surprised and impressed! I looked at Home Depot and Lowes and decided to order this air compressor to save the Tax and the trouble of bring it home.

Looking at the other brands of portable compressors I really like how well this one is built.

It has a sturdy cage that protects the Tubing, Regulator, pressure switch, and brass connectors.

I expect to be using this tool for years to come.
Better than the pancake model - I've used the smaller Porter-Cable pancake compressor for about 2 years. I've had no problems with it using it 3 or 4 times a week for my wife's upholstery & drapery business (stapler and brad nailer). First, and probably most obvious is that it runs less often with a larger capacity. Believe it ir not, though, when it does run it is quieter than the smaller one and it runs a fraction of the time before it cuts off. The only thing I don't think is an improvement is the knob for adjusting air pressure. It's too hard to turn and you have to do a lot of turning to get it up to 85 lbs.

This time I installed the compressor with the air hose reel from Amazon mounted right beside it on the floor. A bit difficult to install, but really worth it to keep the hose in order and out of the floor when it's not used. If you get the reel, you'll probably need to make a trip to the local hardware store for an interconnecting piece to connect the reel to the compressor.

I'm really happy with this tool -- its quiet operation (well, relative to the other one), short run time, and it stows out of the way in the same space I had the smaller one in.
Plenty of Power to Offer...but it needs plenty, too. - This is a nice tight little machine which should have plenty of power
to run two hoses at one time, and the professional HVLP spray painting
gun I plan to use with it in my small general contracting business,
BUT, it will need the right power source. I tried the compressor on an
undedicated 15 amp circuit, and it immediately blew the switch every
time. I called Porter Cable and they admitted this 3HP motor NEEDS A
DICATED 15AMP CIRCUIT (with nothing else on the circuit to compete).
I also learned (the hard way, of course) that if you are using the
compressor with a 50' extension chord (with too high a guage) on a 20
amp circuit, the pump will not get enough electricity to pump air
after cutting-in when the tank pressure drops to 110 psi (the
specified cut-in pressure) - the pump will start pumping, but quickly
stop and you'll hear the motor straining until it blows the 20 amp
circuit, too. Porter Cable told me that if I plan to use even a 20
amp circuit with an extension chord, I need to use a 12 (preferable
10) gauge extention chord (ideally 25' rather than 50'), or the pump
won't get enough juice to cut-in properly and refill the tanks. It's
cheaper, my new Porter Cable friends say, to buy more air hose than
the right gauge extention chord - Ah, such knowledge I'm gaining.
Sadly, the compressor arrived with an air intake filter housing badly
bent downward (done apparently at the factory, as the box from Amazon
wasn't damaged), so I couldn't remove the air filter. AND, the drain
valve (to drain water from the bottom of the tank) would not
completely close allowing lots of air to excape from the tank. In my
chats with an Amazon tool sales rep, and later with a Porter Cable
tech rep (to help me unravel the compressor's electrical-needs
mysteries), both Companies quickly and nicely insisted on sending me a
new air intake filter housing and a new drain valve (I guess I'm
getting two of each?) - no questions asked. The machine is fairly
loud, but it only takes my pump about 6 seconds to refill the tanks
from the 110 psi cut-in pressure to the specified 135 psi cut-out
pressure. I figure the noise level goes hand-in-hand with the added
power this compressor offers - power I think I need. Suggestions: the
manufacturer needs to tighten quality controls inspection of the
product prior to boxing & shipping, and the editorial reviewers
need to "call a spade a spade" in write-ups on this tool's
power needs.