I spoke with Rider, 57, over the phone. He told me that he used to be a welder, but a tragic accident forced him to go on disability. "I got crushed by a Bobcat loader about 12 years ago," he told me.

My love affair with compressed air started a number of years ago when I got an entry level oil-less air compressor for Christmas. Looking like a bloated red fire hydrant lying on its side, it made a ...