Sand/Abrasive Blasting... What to buy, how to use???

[2lick]

Here are my thoughts...

I have been looking around and it looks like this equipment is a lot cheaper than I thought.

What I would like to eventually blast are:
Ski engine to paint it nicer
Cases to help epoxy stick better
Intake
Possibly b-pipe cambers
ski hull - I saw a media that said it was safe for fiberglass??? if so that would be awesome!
Trailer- I plane to repaint a trailer and thought blasting it would be the best
I know Ill think of a lot more once i have it.....

So First I need a Gun kit:
Do I go suction or pressurized?
What gallon size would be the best?
Anything else I should be looking at?
Any particular wand?

Next would be what media:
What type for what applications I listed are best?
Anyone have a general list for application?
Can I get one that would kinda work for all?

How to use it:
I planned on simply laying down a tarp in my garage and blasting away..... I hear this stuff can be harmful so I guess I would wear gloves, goggles, and a respirator....

Also if any one knows of any good site around on howtoo's or that would help me out please let me know. The past hour on google has turned up crap.

Thanks-NICK

 

[demolition_x]

try this website... http://www.eastwoodco.com/jump.jsp?itemType=CATEGORY&itemID=1310


they got lots of interesting painting and restoring car stuff.

 

[2lick]

cool Ill check it out...

 

[2lick]

I went to local harbor frieght today and this is what I found that got me interested in it all.....

For 46 dollars I can get:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=40925

This one is on sale for 100, looks like th only difference is size...
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=34202

Here is the media I can get at the store too:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=93428
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=92155
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=2742
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=92150
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=92155

problem is on the box they all sound like they would work for me.... minus the fiberglass of course...

 

[#ZERO]

It depends on how much money you would like to spend and how much blasting you will be doing. I would go with a small blast cabinet such as the one from Harbor Freight Tools or Eastwood Co. Glass bead media works well with aluminum and it’s fairly inexpensive. You will need an air compressor with a good CFM rating or you will have to go with the smaller diameter nozzles. Here are some links of interest below with information about blasting.

http://www.tptools.com/

http://search.harborfreight.com/cpisearch/web/search.do?keyword=BLAST+CABINET+&Submit=Go

http://eastwood.resultspage.com/search?p=Q&ts=custom&w=blast

 

[2lick]

Ah #0 i was waiting for you to reply to this thread... I remember you talking about blasting on your stuff...

I was thinking about a cabinet.... it would contain the mess more... but then i couldn't do my trailer if i invested in a cabinet...

i have the air compressor covered... its something like 30 gallons/12cfm at 90

 

[#ZERO]

Blasting with a cabinet is the only way to go; you will lose the blast media too quickly and it’s very expensive. A 12 CFM compressor will work but it will take forever and you will only be able to blast small parts. I dip most of the parts in a five gallon carb parts cleaning acid tank to loosen the surface before blasting.

If you’re going to blast a trailer I would take it somewhere a have it done professionally for a small price.

 

[Speedfreak]

I don't know about a small price I do a lot of work for car restorers and one guy I was just talking too took a car to have it blasted and it was $600 that is not for the entire car just the engine bay door jams and parts of the under carrage. But since then he bought the larger of the two blasters that you have listed and he says he used about 5 - 25 pound bags of material to do a car like described above.

I would look into a cabinet and then a good 4.5 inch grinder and a wire cup brush to do the trailer. On the trailer all you need to do is remove the loose stuff and smooth it out.

Also remember that sandblsating won't remove powder coating very easily. It just takes the bad spots off.

And also a 12 CFm compressor isn't that big you need a 100% duty cycle with that CFM. It is basically just holding the nozzle of the blowgun open for 20 or 30 minutes. My budy has a snapon 80 gallon compressor with 25 cfm? (I think) and it starts getting hot after an hour of blasting.

 

[Scorn800]

To cabinet blast properly you will need an air compressor to give you about 20cfm. Anything less and you'll be waiting forever. You might want to try finding a good used set up instead of harbour freight. Something with a reclaimer.

 

[SXR-FOREVER]

2lick, I'm actually going tothe Harbor Freight by me today to get a blaster. I'll let you know what they say is the best for what we need it for (also want to blaster motor, pipe, etc). I'll let you know tonight.

Trevor

 

[Crab]

I have this one and it works great, large enough for most stuff and I use glass bead from NAPA on aluminum. You need a large compressor.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=93608

 

[just joe]

I have this one and it works great, large enough for most stuff and I use glass bead from NAPA on aluminum. You need a large compressor.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=93608

I started with the portable one (sucked, blasted myself more than anything), then the small bench one (too small for cases) and now have the one above. Go for the biggest one you can find, because once you have it, you will use it. When assembling the cabinet from HF, use plenty of silicone on all seams, or media will be everywhere.

Be sure you have a compressor that is big enough, and mount a water seperator at the cabinet or you will have gun plugging issues.

The al oxide media HF sells is great for blasting off paint, corrosion, and rust. The glass bead they sell gives a nice polish/brightening to bare aluminum.

I have blasted my cases, cylinder, intake, carbs, bedplates, pipe, various brackets, etc. The motor came out so good that I just cleared it after and like the shiny metal look instead of paint.

I don't think it wil work well for blasting a hull, however. You will need mounds of media, and using the portable gun doesn't work very well at all.

-Joe

 

[WFO Speedracer]

I have one from harbor freight that I modded quite heavily drawing off some of the expensive blast cabinets that I have used in the past.I installed a vacumn with a filter inside the cabinet for the vacumn so it only removes the dust not the media itself and a light.You can use a shop vac for this and I didn't have to cut any holes.Without those two mods you are just blasting away in the dark and can't see anything.I also got a bench cabinet and made my own stand to put it on to get it at the right level.I modded the pickup so it would pull from the bottom instead of the jackleg setup that came with it.I use media that is more agressive than glass beads,the glass beads don't last that long before they turn into dust.You do need a good size compressor or it will take forever and you will be waiting for the compressor to play catch up.The water seperator is a must have ,if the water makes it inside the cabinet you will bast no more till it dries out.

 

[RoyalFlush@PCB]

I bought this a few years ago...

Works sweet, but I need to get some aluminum oxide because the glass beads have seen their lifespan.

 

[2lick]

good info guys... I guess I have some thinking to do...

 

[demolition_x]

if you really want to do the hull you may want to see if they make an attachment for a power washer. i know boat yards have a power washer that sucks media out of a trash can and strips the paint away.

 

[WFO Speedracer]

I think they use either walnut shells or plastic media for blasting hulls with.

 

[2lick]

yeah plastic stuff is what i read about too...

 

[just joe]

I tried the walnut shells on a hull with a portable blaster and still have walnuts in my ears and paint on the hull. Just didn't work well.

 

[Speedfreak]

if you really want to do the hull you may want to see if they make an attachment for a power washer. i know boat yards have a power washer that sucks media out of a trash can and strips the paint away.

Just a heads up if the thought might have crossed your mind about just using a pressure washer to blast the paint off.... DON'T I thought that since the paint on my sons 300 sx would come off (kinda) with a razor blade then I could just get under it with the pressure washer and blow the paint off... Well that didn't work and now I have quite a few places that I have to grind out and fill in with bondoglass to make it smooth... Yea a modified 3100 PSI pressure washere with a small 0 degree nozzle will cut right through fiberglass..... And the 15 degree fan nozzle will just shread it bad enough so that it has to be ground down to get it straight... OOps Won't do that again...