Help buying a media-blaster Options

[Literati914]

First of all, budget.. I'm thinking a HF model.. but which one?

I've come to the conclusion that with two project cars, I've got too many large-ish items that'll need to be media blasted. So, I'm thinking about purchasing a blaster, instead of paying someone to do it. I already have a small blasting cabinet (that I hate), that I can deal with for small stuff.. but I have various wheels, frt and rear control arms, cross members, sheet-metal, etc..

I do have a 25gal 5hp (8.2@40 - 5.6@90) direct drive compressor AND a separate 25gal tank (That I used to know how to run in tandem w/the compr. - but need to relearn). I also have an old 6-man camping tent that I plan on using for blasting (may be able to re-use some media, besides keeping the crap contained in general).

Not trying to blast the body, only medium large stuff. Anyone used an economical unit that they can recommend?


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[iankarr]

It depends on what you’re blasting. I’d only use soda on anything near the engine, for example. I set up a great compressor (2 stage 5HP 65 gal), bead blasting cabinet and soda blaster to clean parts for my bumblebee, so my recommendation may sound surprising, but….if I were you, I’d send the parts out to a blaster who’s set up to do this for a living. A few reasons: 1) mess, 2) cost of media and gear, 3) safety (they have the right respirators), 4) time. Or maybe just buy a soda blaster for the delicate work you don’t want to entrust to someone else. I’m all about DIY, but after doing a bunch of blasting, for me, it’s worth sending out.

[mgarrison]

I dealt with the same dilemma. Here's what I did, and the link to my build thread (page 5 towards the bottom)...

I was really struggling trying to figure out how to get a wire/fiber brush down into all the nooks & crannies in the frunk area, and the area under the gas tank. I thought I had found a flexible extension for my drill, but then received an email that it was no longer available from the supplier! headbang.gif

At that point I gave up and got a abrasive blaster from HF. I decided on the 110lb model since it was only $20 more than the 40lb model. After reading reviews, I stopped by Tractor Supply and got 100lbs of the Black Diamond fine blasting media (coal slag). It's $9.99/bag for 50lbs. The HF media is $24.99/bag for 50lbs!

I have a 2HP Kobalt twin cylinder compressor that's plumbed in to another 32 gallon tank left over from my old compressor that died. So, 62 gallons of 150PSI air, theoretically...

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...43765&st=80

Mike

[rhodyguy]

Continuous Duty Cycle rating for the comp is pretty important. The comp has to be able keep up with the tool. CFM.

[Literati914]

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At that point I gave up and got a abrasive blaster from HF. I decided on the 110lb model since it was only $20 more than the 40lb model. After reading reviews, I stopped by Tractor Supply and got 100lbs of the Black Diamond fine blasting media (coal slag). It's $9.99/bag for 50lbs. The HF media is $24.99/bag for 50lbs!

I have a 2HP Kobalt twin cylinder compressor that's plumbed in to another 32 gallon tank left over from my old compressor that died. So, 62 gallons of 150PSI air, theoretically...

Mike

Great info Mike !! Like I mentioned I'll not be doing body or panels, just the items too big for my smallish cabinet, and I'd be doing it in a contained space (large old tent).

Is coal slag gonna be ok for aluminum wheels and/or fan shroud (magnesium?), stock transmission (magnesium?) ?

No trying to be tone deaf to you other guy's suggestions - I appreciate all info and experience! I'm gonna have to do this 'cause hiring it out is too costly, and I'm not in a huge hurry to get it done quickly and once my projects are done I'll probably recoup some of the investment if only a fraction.




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[930cabman]

It depends on what you’re blasting. I’d only use soda on anything near the engine, for example. I set up a great compressor (2 stage 5HP 65 gal), bead blasting cabinet and soda blaster to clean parts for my bumblebee, so my recommendation may sound surprising, but….if I were you, I’d send the parts out to a blaster who’s set up to do this for a living. A few reasons: 1) mess, 2) cost of media and gear, 3) safety (they have the right respirators), 4) time. Or maybe just buy a soda blaster for the delicate work you don’t want to entrust to someone else. I’m all about DIY, but after doing a bunch of blasting, for me, it’s worth sending out.

+1, Ian nailed it again. Several years ago I went for the HF unit and it works to some degree, but these days I have made pals with a local metal prep service. Its value

[Superhawk996]

It depends on what you’re blasting. I’d only use soda on anything near the engine, for example. I set up a great compressor (2 stage 5HP 65 gal), bead blasting cabinet and soda blaster to clean parts for my bumblebee, so my recommendation may sound surprising, but….if I were you, I’d send the parts out to a blaster who’s set up to do this for a living. A few reasons: 1) mess, 2) cost of media and gear, 3) safety (they have the right respirators), 4) time. Or maybe just buy a soda blaster for the delicate work you don’t want to entrust to someone else. I’m all about DIY, but after doing a bunch of blasting, for me, it’s worth sending out.

+1, Ian nailed it again. Several years ago I went for the HF unit and it works to some degree, but these days I have made pals with a local metal prep service. Its value

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

Ian is right. Small cabinet and only do the small stuff.

Ingersol Rand 3hp 60 gallon tank single stage compressor doesn’t allow for 100% duty cycle and media efficiency falls off when pressure and flow drop.

[mepstein]

Just bought a big blaster. Pressure fed and suction fed in the same unit. The air supply is really important. The spec on the blaster is usually the minimum needed.

Blasting inside a tent sounds miserable.

[Literati914]

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Blasting inside a tent sounds miserable.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/lol-2.gif) Oh my God, I can only imagine.. we've got rain and unbearable humidity constantly this spring/summer.. so yeah, that would suck. Nice blaster btw.


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[bbrock]

Well... I blasted my whole frick'n chassis on a rotisserie in an HF garage tent using an HF 40 lb. blaster on a 5HP 80 gal. compressor. Time consuming? Yes! Fun? Hell NO! Satisfying? yes. Would I do it again? Sure, but consider that I live in the sticks where it is a royal PITA to haul chassis or parts down to the valley and wait weeks for one of the few guys who can do blasting to get around to it.

I will continue to use the blaster for small parts/projects. Even with my compressor, I spend a lot of time waiting for my compressor to catch it's breath. It can keep up for a long time running full on, but I try to keep it to a 50% duty cycle or less and found the pace was nice to let you take frequent breaks to do something else. This is true for parts large and small so you will need to be patient with your two small compressors in tandem. To give some examples: I blasted my windshield trim for painting in about 1.5 hours. About 2.5 - 3 hours to do the rocker covers and front and rear valances.

+1 on Black Diamond. I bought a few bags form my project and it worked well. Unfortunately the nearest Tractor Supply Co. is a 300 mile round trip so I mostly used crushed glass from a local lumber yard. The glass was cheaper than HF prices but not as cheap as the Black Diamond. I thought the glass blasted better than the slag and also recycled better, but if I had Black Diamond easily available, I'd have gone with it.

[mepstein]

We live in the sticks but I guess we aren’t that far out.

[Literati914]

Well, when a larger used blaster pops up local for cheap, I'm gonna snag it. May have to do a little in the morning and a little in the evening, but I've not got all that much to do when compared to a whole chassis (that I'm seeing is actually even do-able with some patients).

Question: Why is pressurized necessary? I mean I have a blast cabinet (something like 24"x24" squared) - why not just fill it up with fresh media and use it's siphon hose to shoot at the items outside it's cabinet? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)



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[bbrock]

We live in the sticks but I guess we aren’t that far out.

Ha ha. It's more than 2.7 miles just for me to hit pavement! Worth it though. I woke up to the sound of elk bugle grunting to their calves through the open window this morning. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[mepstein]

Well, when a larger used blaster pops up local for cheap, I'm gonna snag it. May have to do a little in the morning and a little in the evening, but I've not got all that much to do when compared to a whole chassis (that I'm seeing is actually even do-able with some patients).

Question: Why is pressurized necessary? I mean I have a blast cabinet (something like 24"x24" squared) - why not just fill it up with fresh media and use it's siphon hose to shoot at the items outside it's cabinet? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)
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Increased productivity. Generally, you will be able to clean surfaces about 3 to 4 times faster using direct pressure as opposed to siphon blasting. More aggressive force than siphon / suction blasting. Pressure blast cabinets deliver abrasive media at about twice the speed of siphon blasting cabinets.

Also, siphon blasting requires a minimum amount of material before The siphon gun will work.

Here's a good comparison video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGVrAGSBr0M

[Literati914]

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Increased productivity. Generally, you will be able to clean surfaces about 3 to 4 times faster using direct pressure as opposed to siphon blasting. More aggressive force than siphon / suction blasting. Pressure blast cabinets deliver abrasive media at about twice the speed of siphon blasting cabinets.



Also, siphon blasting requires a minimum amount of material before The siphon gun will work.

Thanks for educating me on that!
What about the aluminum and magnesium items, should I look to run a different media thru it for those pieces? ..or just turn down the pressure maybe?


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[mepstein]

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Increased productivity. Generally, you will be able to clean surfaces about 3 to 4 times faster using direct pressure as opposed to siphon blasting. More aggressive force than siphon / suction blasting. Pressure blast cabinets deliver abrasive media at about twice the speed of siphon blasting cabinets.



Also, siphon blasting requires a minimum amount of material before The siphon gun will work.

Thanks for educating me on that!
What about the aluminum and magnesium items, should I look to run a different media thru it for those pieces? ..or just turn down the pressure maybe?
.

Just start with lower pressures. The media is also like sandpaper. Use the correct media and pressure for the finish you want to produce.

[76-914]

A cabinet is a cabinet. How well you can see what your blasting depends upon how well it is lit it and how well it evacuates the dust. A really good blaster has this covered. You can add lighting or increase vacuuming power to a cheap cabinet as well. The main tool is the gun. The HF gun is anemic at best. Buy their cabinet but toss their gun. TP Tools sells a great gun that runs about $90 IIRC. You won't be disappointed. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[mate914]

I have and use a Texas Blaster. It will do soda, sand, mixed compounds, and coal ashes.
Can handle 10cmf-90!
I like the idea of using my compressor for smaller things. Or renting pull behind compressor like the state uses in construction, for doing a whole car in a few hours.

Matt (IMG:style_emoticons/default/flag.gif)

[mepstein]

A good cabinet is worth the money. You will find projects to blast and refinish. A mediocre cabinet is a pita. Guns clog or don’t drawl media. Cabinets leak and fittings pull away and visibility is poor. A foot pedal is nice for a lot of blasting.

[djway]

I have blasted two complete cars and all the associated parts plus much more. I did all of that with a harbor freight tank and a harbor freight cabinet. Both I made new media control valves. I also used the special high wear tips. Had no issues at all. I think I used garnet for the media on the bodies and I mostly use aluminum oxide in the cabinet.
Make sure you have a good water trap.
For large jobs you need CcccccFfffffMmmmmm.
I also used the HF tent.
Some window screen over the face shield makes it last longer.
I use a respirator.
Good luck.