[Al Skierkiewicz]

Everyone,
So you all understand the process here, LRIs are not distrustful. We do answer to the teams who ask, "why is that team filling their robot with a shop compressor?" If you have a shop compressor in the pit and are using it often and quite noticeably just prior to your match, it gets noticed by those around you, those passing your pit and especially by those competing against you or with you in the next match. Why? Because teams have used shop compressors to fill their robot in the past, have bypassed the pressure relief valve and ignored safety rules and design criteria. There is no official rule against compressors from FIRST but there are event rules that prevent such items particularly for their current draw and acoustic output. As we move to district events, power will become a specific issue. Larger regional events pay dearly for power distribution to be installed and to be maintained. I believe events like Boilermaker still bring in generators to supply power to the pits and field. When you use high current (that is start currents) devices, you risk taking the pits around you, the entire pit or the entire event down. I have volunteered at events that suffered from power outages for this exact reason. It may be easier to ask you to remove the compressor than to continue to field questions and complaints throughout the weekend.
As to current ratings on compressor, do not confuse "full load amps" with start current. Such a compressor rating at 10 amps will often have start currents in excess of 25 amps. If you are at the end of a power feeder, every drop upstream of your pit will experience significant brownout or breaker trips. If you read your instruction manual closely, you will see a caveat that you should have a delay trip breaker installed on the line you use for the compressor to prevent tripping a standard breaker or to use on a high current output if possible.