Sandblasting restoration or hand sand?

[Joseph Aguzin]

Does anyone use sandblasting or do most people hand sand? Can anyone show their sand blasting setup. Recommended sizes, Minimum CFM, any dos or don'ts?

[Lane Shirey]

I use 2 Scat Blast cabinets. One has recycled crushed glass, coarse grit for stripping paint. It’s dusty but has sharp edges that rip paint off.  It’s pretty cheap too. 
My second cabinet uses glass beads. More expensive but best for brass or lighter finishing.  I usually reblast the parts with beads that I’ve stripped in the other cabinets.  I think this grit is around 120  
I can’t recall where I have the pressure set. Too low and it won’t work. Too high and you’ll destroy your glass media.   You should have a pressure regulator and air dryer right next to the cabinet.  They need dry air or the media will clump. I have a 60 gal Ingersoll rand compressor.  You need one with a high duty cycle and as much cfm as you can afford.  A good blast cabinet used a lot of air.  Mine both have the medium tip size.  My compressor cycles a lot.  
 

hope that helps..

[Joseph Aguzin]

Lane, thank you, that information is helpful.

[Dan Hilton]

Hand sanding, wire wheel, and chemical strippers are all methods to accomplish the same thing.  What separates media blasting from them is the speed and thoroughness of the job.  Media blasting can get in the nooks and crannies of detailed castings which can be challenging using manual methods.  Media blasting leaves the cast surface completely clean and ready for the next step.  Parts look as it they were just cast.

All of the points Lane brings up regarding the equipment needed are spot on.  The compressor should almost be the first investment and possibly the largest of the two because it's the real workhorse in media blasting.  Most media cabinets will work but the better ones keep the media better contained, have better filtration systems, and have other amenities that make it more robust.

Just some inputs...........Dan H.

[Bill Dunlap]

I have one of these. https://www.amazon.com/LEMATEC-Multipurpose-Sandblasting-Connector-Prevention/dp/B01M0CRUUM

I don't blast much. I usually burn off paint with a torch, or wire wheel them. So when I blast, I use beach sand (free and very effective) and blast outdoors. Alternatively, you can use reverse electrolysis which is also a cheap way to strip, but takes too much time for me.

Cheers,

Bill

[Steve Sherwood]

I have a bead blaster set up. I run a 60 gallon compressor with a refrigerant type of air dryer. I run my compressor regulated at a 100psi. One thing that is important is the CFM. You can run a compressor at 100psi, but if the CFM is let's say 5cfm, it will not work very well. My compressor runs at 12 CFM at 100 psi. 

[Jim Kovar]

2 hours ago, Bill Dunlap said:

...I use beach sand...  ...free...

Hey, Bill, send me some of
that free beach sand,...

some of that warm sun-shiny
good weather...

and a (or a couple of )...

Instruction sheet not needed!

 

[Bill Dunlap]

No worries! Expect them soon. But, unfortunately, weather here sucks at the moment with tons of rain and wind and temps in the low 60's. Spring is coming soon, though.

[Trevor Andersen]

I'd like to media blast but the equipment needed to make it work better than other methods is probably worth as much as my entire fan collection. I end up with methods similar to what Bill mentioned.

[Jim Kovar]

4 hours ago, Bill Dunlap said:

...unfortunately, weather here sucks at the
moment with...   ...temps in the low 60's.

                  

[Jim Roadt]

Fortunately, for me , there is a shop near by that has industrial size sandblasting equipment for public use.  $2/ min 15 min minimum.  I have never used the full 15 minutes on any fan.  Check to see if any such shop exists by you or drive to Butler WI

[Lane Shirey]

9 hours ago, Jim Roadt said:

Fortunately, for me , there is a shop near by that has industrial size sandblasting equipment for public use.  $2/ min 15 min minimum.  I have never used the full 15 minutes on any fan.  Check to see if any such shop exists by you or drive to Butler WI

Jim, that’s a great deal! Didn’t think most places would have that kind of deal due to liability. 

[Steve Sherwood]

On 2/27/2023 at 9:21 AM, Joseph Aguzin said:

Does anyone use sandblasting or do most people hand sand? Can anyone show their sand blasting setup. Recommended sizes, Minimum CFM, any dos or don'ts?

These types of systems are for commercial use. You can have a hobby type system a lot cheaper.

[John Fengel]

I thought I would post some pictures of my sandblast cabinet that I've had for over 5 years. It's a Harbor Freight brand and I've modified it as shown in the included pictures. It came with lighting installed, but after using it a couple of years, I replaced the 2 Fluorescent Tubes with a 2' LED light. During assembly I applied silicon to all the joints and haven't had any problems with media leaking.

I used to get frustrated with the gun itself trying to get the media to flow through the siphon tube. I tried a bunch of modifications but nothing worked well so one of the first things I changed was the gun. I don't have a large compressor but I found a gun on McMaster that was designed for lower CFM. That helped but I still had problems with the media flowing smoothly. Last year I was again looking at modifications on YouTube and found a media metering valve someone put together using metal pipe fittings. Then I found one that someone had made from PVC and decided to go that way and it works great, no more surging. (picture below)

The next thing was the wasted media collecting in my vacuum. I have always used "bags" in the vacuum to help protect the motor and filter. I installed a "Dust Deputy" and a "Baffle" over the outlet port of the cabinet. This helps stop the excess loss of media and what does escape is captured in the bucket below the Dust Deputy which I just discard.

Other things I changed was the glass in the viewing area. I used to use a plastic film designed for blast cabinets and this worked but required frequent change. In place of the screws and nuts securing the glass I installed "Rivet Nuts" and this makes it easier to change the glass. I then got a piece of 1/4" Tempered Glass to replace the original glass. I also use a piece of Double Strength Glass, which is exposed to some indirect media blasting, with the Tempered Glass and so far I've not noticed much degradation.

For media, I use Glass Beads and found it will remove most surface rust. Like I said, I don't have a large compressor so I blast some and then take a break to let the compressor rest as it's over 20 years old. I regulate the air to about 60 PSI and use an inline moisture trap. I've included some pictures below. 

John Fengel

Edited March 1, 2023 by John Fengel

[Jim Roadt]

Went to sandblast store today one complete fan well under the 15 minute minimum 

Sadly it is not open on Saturdays 

[Paul Carmody]

I use reverse electrolysis on real rusty stuff.It leaves black oxide that buffs off with steel wool.That's the black spots left in pits ,not rust through.The paint even came off the base and steel blade ,then cleaned with steel wool.

 

 

Edited March 14, 2023 by Paul Carmody