(Premier Login 58custom) Forum Owner from IP address 75.32.28.156
I have been using a guy near work to blast parts, but I have a number of things to blast now and am weighing the idea of buying my own. I know I will have more stuff to blast in future, and can find reasons to blast even more.
I guess I would want to use both glass beads for things like intakes, valve covers, dizzies etc. and sand or other abrasive for brackets, headers blah blah. So, what do I need? I have a decent compressor. I have some dirty parts. I need something to go in between those two things.
Is Harbor Freight the place for this stuff or what?
yeah, that'll free you of the limits of a cabinet, they're always 1.5" too small. guy i know, Hairball George told me he partitioned off the 1/2 part of his 2 1/2 car garage with plywood and that was his blast cabinet during a restoration project. i don't know if he actually went in there while balsting or had gloves and a window or what, i never saw the operation.
glancing at your link i caught the warning about routing the exhaust out of the space, sounds like a good idea, or are you going to run a recovery $ystem? you could build it outdoors and disguise it with a rabbit hutch on the backside.
another blasting system i am slightly familiar with used a recovery system indoors in a garage shop, there was some dust and sand about. not rediculous but it was the price of doing business, nothing compared to the parkerizing fumes. when that compressor fried they upgraded to a real nice screw type compressor/drier system.
"Enlightened statesmen will not always be at the helm" ~ James Madison
George was the Moderator for the 48-60 FTE forum, and then sadly had to take a leave of absence. He was a hoot. His cabinet was one I'm looking at doing this Summer. Another option I've been considering is one of those small metal storage containers (like you see on ships) modified with a built in exaust fan, floor grate, etc...coupled with the typical gravity blaster. Blast fenders, hoods, etc..., and then shut the doors for storage (for my rider mower, lol) If ya have the yard space that is. For soda blasting residue removal, Holdtight 102 is the ticket, as I've been told.
Morning Tom, I myself have a new Blasting Cabinet and I use the median you"ve mentioned, One thing I would suggest is to get a BIG cabinet, I got mine from Harbor Frieght and while it does 95% of what is asked from it I cannot put large object in it. I've used mine to clean up anything from a burn't intake valve(for closer insp.) to a very well rusted up frying pan. I love mine with the exception of "to large of items".
I have one of those portable Campbell-Hausfield?? ones.
January 14 2009, 9:18 AM
With a decent compressor I can do rims, headers, intakes etc.
I use it outside & put up rolled plastic against the garage wall & ground. I recover most of the media & clean it with some handheld mesh screens. Cheap & effective as long as your neighbours are oblivious to noise & dust.
An old welding helmet & gloves, shiek yerbouti head scarf & coveralls complete the look.
for header-sized items and smaller...why couldn't someone bisect a 55gal drum, like they do for grills?
the floor is already perfectly shaped for media collection, then a hole at the bottom that feeds back into a cheap sandblaster unit like the one from sears;
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00916706000P
(by the way, the essential parts can be had individually for less)
a cheap droplight hanging from the lid, and some plexi for a window, and you're done. best of all, just like a grill, it can be made on a cart for portability.
if you really wanted to go hollywood, you could insert a 2ft section of straight sheetmetal between the halfs, and it would be 4ft tall.
with my $120.00 Harbor Freight model CP 42202. It's useable space is about 26" X 18".
It needed some early mods because initially it would leak everywhere, even with the dedicated vacuum I added and exhausted outside through a hose.
I took it apart, seam sealed everything. re-weatherstripped the door and bought several pieces of window glass cut to fit from local hardware. I found the protective plastic for the glass would get real cloudy very quickly so I prefer to change a $9 piece of glass every 25hrs or so. (25hrs of bead blasting is a looong time!)
I use aluminum oxide in it mostly. Glass bead wouldn't be as hard on the glass window, but it doesn't cut as well on the corroded parts I've taken off my old girl.... or the other rusted, pittted items I find it so useful on.
Another thing I've found helpful is to thoroughly degrease any part and knock off large chunks off rust first. This way the media stays useable longer before I have to sift out the chunks.
If I had a large enough workspace I might appreciate a bigger glass bead cabinet but for me it's just as well to take the sandblaster outside to do larger pieces.
This message has been edited by dbelus from IP address 71.244.125.180 on Jun 24, 2009 7:38 PM
