On Fri, 21 Aug 1998, Ken Landaiche <ken_landaiche@dlcc.com> wrote:
>
>I recently used a sand blaster for the second time to make some funky
>half-shafts look like new metal. A sand blaster is some tool for
>restoration! And I want one.
>snip<
>So what should I look for in sand blasters? I would much rather have a
>cabinet to contain the sand. But does that limit me too much? In the
>'70s I used a blast cabinet once at the university metal shop. What
>media might a restorer find need for? You know, tell us all.
>
>Ken Landaiche
>
>PS Should I have posted this to Sansblasters@autox.team.net?
>
I have a homemade blasting cabinet with a simple siphon gun. The cabinet is
made
of 1/2" plywood about 3'H x 2'D x 3'L, standing on plywood legs. It is a copy
of
one Tip Tools <www.tiptools.com> sells plans for. (Woodworking is another hobby
of mine so plywood was easy for me.) Works fine for small parts, brackets, etc.
Large items are brought to a local sandblasting company. I have a 1&1/2hp
Speedaire compressor, not large enough for long jobs. Buy a supply of ceramic
nozzles for the gun. They do wear and affect efficiency. Badly worn nozzles
will
ruin the gun. BTW, a friend was doing sandblasting as a side business for a
while. He wanted a large blasting cabinet. We built one about 4'H x 4'D x 6' L.
Worked great. (He had a 15hp compressor...)
There are various types of blasting media for different effects. I use either
alum-oxide for heavy duty blasting or ground glass ("recycled auto glass") for
medium blasting. Walnut shells or plastic media are available also, I haven't
used either so cannot report on them first hand. The expense of the blasting
media is tempered by the fact the cabinet contains and recycles it. I can
switch
back and forth by dumping it out the bottom into a 5 gal bucket.
Eric <ejrussell@sprynet.com>
Bridgewater, MA
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