Replies

1. 
   bill_1010 | Apr 24, 2002 12:34am | #1

   Be prepared for a mess. 

   What are you planning on Sandblasting? if smaller items are your goal go ahead and get a small sand blasting cabinet (grizzly sells them) they pretty much remove the mess part of sandblasting.

   Unless you decide to use glass bead media, you will have to make sure the sand stays completely dry and you clean your machine out each time you use it or clogs will happen. Clogs arent pretty.

   There are gravity feeders (great for small jobs) or siphon feeders (your basic setup)

   wear enclosed/sealed safety goggles and mask if you dont use a blasting cabinet. Gloves are also a must.

   If you have a strong enough compressor that can handle the CFMs you will have great results.

   Dont Buy too much media incase it does spoil (gets wet) and i cant stress enough cleaning out the gun and hose after each use.

1. 
   BuckOlmsted | Apr 24, 2002 01:09am | #2

   I'll be doing small projects such as a tree stump for a coffee table base and other similar things. I have plenty of space to do this outdoors. What I was really looking for was some advice on particular models or what to look for or what to stay away from, etc. Which do you think is better, gravity feed or siphon? Your advice on the gloves and goggles was great.

   Buck

1. 
   RickL | Apr 24, 2002 01:23am | #3

   Check out http://www.tptools.com

   You can learn a lot from their site and reasonably priced stuff as well. Doesn't anyone go to the library anymore? Still a great source.

2. 
   PlaneWood | Apr 24, 2002 01:42am | #4

   Sears Hardware sells a cheap one that might get you started.  I just wish it had a long wand.  You will need to build a box large enough to contain your pieces.   Put a funnel on the bottom of the box to collect the used sand.  The sand can be used many times.  Put a large piece of glass or plastic on the top for visibility.   Wear goggles, a breathing mask, and leather gloves.

   PlaneWood by Mike_in_Katy
   PlaneWood

1. 
   fdampier | Apr 24, 2002 06:07pm | #5

   I started out with a small sears siphon type gun and when that did such a poor job,  (The compressor ran out of air and needed to catch up every 3 minutes {that was a 5 horsepower vertical 65 gallon tank }) the gun clogged frequently and recycling sand took more time than sand blasting did.  in addition my long sleeve shirt, ball cap and jeans weren't up to the job of protrecting me and they were terribly hot besides. the googles I wore exposed my face to a hellofa beating so I wore a bandana as a cheap face protector and sudt mask....(don't do that, buy the proper resperator)

     All that to clean a fist sized area. bigger gun and the compressor just ran out of air faster. Then I went to one of those pressure pots.  with both compressors hammering away I could get less than a minute of effective blasting then the sand would just some out and kinda hit the objrct and dall to the ground, removing nothing.

     Luckily I sell construction equipment and brought home one of those diesel engined air compressors (185 cfm) then with a lot of sand I finished the project.  total expense, ? Figure well over 600 bucks by the time I bought the leathers, equipment, resperators, and  sand. I live on a lake so I just hauled the sand to the beach and solved the disposal problem.  I had an estimate of $175 before I started.  Guess I showed them!