Sand Blasting Media Question

[hsach]

I just bought this vacuum sand blaster,http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IG73PSI/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1, hopefully it is good enough to do the underside of my body and the frame/axles/transfer case. My question is which media should I use on the Bronco? I am not sure if I should use the Black Beauty stuff or walnut shells. Also coarse, medium, or fine? I have a few spots of surface rust in the bed around the wheel wells, nothing bad but I can't sand it properly by hand. The underside of the body looks to be coated with years of grease and dirt but I don't see anything other than some light surface rust. I want to make sure I can get through the dirt/grease without hurting the body panels. I am not blasting the entire body since the rust in the panels has been fixed/replaced, just some spots I can't reach with my hand sander. I am hoping this vacuum blaster can handle this, I really don't want to send it out. Thanks for any help!

 

[Hozr]

Respiratory Respiratory Respiratory - Buy a good cartridge filter mask - they are cheap now.

Best option is to degrease and pressure wash most of the gunk away first.

Media depends on the material and what you are trying to remove as well as what your finishing plans are. If you are blasting aluminum don't use glass as it will impregnate the aluminum and ruin the paint/finish process. Steel is forgiving and sturdy so you can use a fairly aggressive media. If you are worried about rust spots don't as they will have to be fixed anyways.

For the paint and primer on the bronco the Black Diamond Medium Abrasive (Tractor Supply) was cheap and worked well. It lasted quite a long time and we reused it several times over.

Place a large CHEAP harbor freight down in the blasting are an you can reuse the media - just be sure to sift it through a colander or other lager grain filter.

Have fun, be patient. It takes a LOT of time and makes a huge mess.

 

[sykanr0ng]

You should also look into doing soda blasting, baking soda does not cause silicosis unlike sand.
Which does not mean you will not need a respirator, but it will be less hazardous to you and anyone around.

 

[doghows72]

I'll toss in my two cents here. I own a powder coating shop and we blast things all day here. I'll start by saying if you can remove the vacume part of that blaster. That type tip is used for spot blasting so you won't cover much ground with it. Other than that it should be fine.
Medias: the blasting medias do not contain any silicone. If you use playground sand or stuff from Home Depot then yes. Blasting sand does not harm you like the old stuff.
If you want fast removal use Kleen Blast or Balck beauty. The are very aggressive and will get the job done fast. BUT the surface will be to rough for a paint finish. If you are undercoating it will be fine.
Glass beads are just that beads. They impact the surface and could push foreign material into your metal and cause issues.
Soda blasting is for fiberglass, don't use it on metal. It does a good job but leaves a residue that must be washed off. Then tada flash rust start over. Plus if I ts not cleaned up well your paint, undercoat, or?? Will not adhear properly.
Hope that helps and I'm no expert but that has been my ten years of blasting knowledge. Use if for what ever it's worth.

 

[hsach]

I'll toss in my two cents here. I own a powder coating shop and we blast things all day here. I'll start by saying if you can remove the vacume part of that blaster. That type tip is used for spot blasting so you won't cover much ground with it. Other than that it should be fine.
Medias: the blasting medias do not contain any silicone. If you use playground sand or stuff from Home Depot then yes. Blasting sand does not harm you like the old stuff.
If you want fast removal use Kleen Blast or Balck beauty. The are very aggressive and will get the job done fast. BUT the surface will be to rough for a paint finish. If you are undercoating it will be fine.
Glass beads are just that beads. They impact the surface and could push foreign material into your metal and cause issues.
Soda blasting is for fiberglass, don't use it on metal. It does a good job but leaves a residue that must be washed off. Then tada flash rust start over. Plus if I ts not cleaned up well your paint, undercoat, or?? Will not adhear properly.
Hope that helps and I'm no expert but that has been my ten years of blasting knowledge. Use if for what ever it's worth.

Thanks for all of the replies! This will only be used for two small spots on the bed of the bronco where I can't get to with my DA sander or blocks. They are very small areas so I won't worry too much about the rough finish. I plan to Rhino/Raptor line the inside anyways. The underside will also be Rhino lined after it is cleaned so I should be ok there as well. Sounds like the Black Beauty stuff should work well for the frame and axles, I plan to go very slowly so hopefully the spot blasting will work out for me, I will see if I can remove the brush at the tip to speed things up but I want to keep the dust down since this is in my garage. I do have a Zip Wall with plastic sheeting around the Bronco but I understand blasting without the vacuum leaves a huge mess. I was trying to weigh the cost of sending this out for blasting versus buying one myself, maybe I made the wrong decision but the blaster was fairly cheap and the rest of the Bronco is in great shape and doesn't need any type of blasting. When I get it and try it out, I will update this thread in case anyone is thinking about going the same route.

 

[dave67fd]

do the underside of my body and the frame/axles/transfer case

.

If that was your only one time plan for the blaster you may have been better off sending it out. Did you get any estimates prior?

The Black beauty is good stuff but I would go with the fine abrasive.
I would also like to think you have a fairly large compressor and several extra blast nozzles.
Be ready for a complete and total mess especially If your doing inside. Make sure you seal off the area completely and have some sort of exhaust system as well as the proper respiratory system. Doing outside is much less of a hassle IMO. I don't save the media as it's cheap enough.
Doing all that you mentioned is going to take you a long time. Compressor, blaster and media size mainly determine how long it will take.

It will take you just as long or longer to get all the sand out of area of the frame and elsewhere.
Good luck with the project.

 

[hsach]

.

If that was your only one time plan for the blaster you may have been better off sending it out. Did you get any estimates prior?

The Black beauty is good stuff but I would go with the fine abrasive.
I would also like to think you have a fairly large compressor and several extra blast nozzles.
Be ready for a complete and total mess especially If your doing inside. Make sure you seal off the area completely and have some sort of exhaust system as well as the proper respiratory system. Doing outside is much less of a hassle IMO. I don't save the media as it's cheap enough.
Doing all that you mentioned is going to take you a long time. Compressor, blaster and media size mainly determine how long it will take.

It will take you just as long or longer to get all the sand out of area of the frame and elsewhere.
Good luck with the project.

I have plans to use this blaster in the future, not just the Bronco. I did call around about having it done professionally but each place was $1000 or higher. Honestly, it wasn't so much the price as it was having to trailer everything there. I do have a large compressor, 60Gal but only the nozzle that will come with the blaster, not sure if they make other sizes for it. I have the bronco behind a Zip Wall and I will open the garage door when I blast. I know it will take a long time to do it this way, heck I have been dragging my feet for almost two years now so speed is not necessary. If it doesn't work out I can always send it out or have a mobile blaster come onsite, at least I can report back and let other know if this is a good option. Thanks again for all of the advice guys!

 

[doghows72]

What CFM is the compressor motor? I ran a 7.5 hp with an 80 gallons tank and it barely kept up with my small blaster.

 

[hsach]

What CFM is the compressor motor? I ran a 7.5 hp with an 80 gallons tank and it barely kept up with my small blaster.

I can't remember the exact number, but it fell inline with the sandblaster I bought. I am hopeful it is up to the task, fingers crossed!

I bought some Black Beauty Medium grade, but after reading a reply above I decided to look for some Fine grade. Found it on Amazon for $12.50 for a 50lb bag and when I put it in the cart, shipping was around $100 I will try the medium on some test metal first to make sure it doesn't hurt the thin steel of the bottom of the bronco. I am sure the medium grade will be fine for the frame and axles.

 

[doghows72]

You might be able to buy locally. I pick mine up at the local sand and gravel company up here. Or look up KleenBlast I think,they have a depot in Vegas if that's where you are.
Good luck I hope it all works out for you. It's definately easier than doing it by hand!!

 

[Crawdad]

I too will give my opinion. Whoever quoted you a $1000 for what you want done is full of chit. For what you want done should only take a half hour or so. I know labor cost differ from state to state but labor should be no more than $200 an hour. I have a look cal powder coating guy who charges me $90 an hour. If you can drive your bronco there Id ask one of those guys. Be there when blasting is complete and throw some enamal primer on and you may be done with what you want done. I have a sandblasting pressurized can along with a blasting cabinet and my 5hp 80 gallon IR barely keeps up. I get all my media from HF. Good luck with your fix.

 

[hyghlndr]

I bought some Black Beauty Medium grade, but after reading a reply above I decided to look for some Fine grade. Found it on Amazon for $12.50 for a 50lb bag and when I put it in the cart, shipping was around $100 I will try the medium on some test metal first to make sure it doesn't hurt the thin steel of the bottom of the bronco. I am sure the medium grade will be fine for the frame and axles.

Put down plastic, collect the used stuff, strain and re-use. The course grit will turn fine after one or two uses. I use the medium then keep the "old" for finer parts.

 

[Timmy390]

Whoever quoted you a $1000 for what you want done is full of chit.

That was the "I'll do it but I don't want to" price. Like with SO many places now days, shops and such work off contracts and taking on side jobs takes away from the contract work. Contracts pay big money so to pull people off contract work and do side jobs has to be more than worth the shops time and effort hence the $1000 price tag.

I tried to get some work done at a local machine shop and they turned me away because the job wasn't worth their time.

Tim

 

[hsach]

That was the "I'll do it but I don't want to" price. Like with SO many places now days, shops and such work off contracts and taking on side jobs takes away from the contract work. Contracts pay big money so to pull people off contract work and do side jobs has to be more than worth the shops time and effort hence the $1000 price tag.

I tried to get some work done at a local machine shop and they turned me away because the job wasn't worth their time.

Tim

Exactly this! Several places gave me this type of answer, I could tell they were not that interested. I noticed this same attitude when I contacted body shops about my rust repair, I am so glad I found Dave Virga to take care of the rust. He is out of the Sacramento area and was happy to do any type of body/paint work on the bronco. It was a bit of a drive for me, but my local places just left a bad taste in my mouth. I am sure if I told the sand blasters I wanted the entire body, frame, and axles blasted they would have taken me more seriously. Who knows though. I probably would have had better luck with a mobile sand blaster, if this doesn't work I will look for one.

Good to know that the Black Beauty will turn into fine after a few uses. Also, I will check my local Harbor Freight. Thanks for the tips!

 

[Timmy390]

Good to know that the Black Beauty will turn into fine after a few uses. Also, I will check my local Harbor Freight. Thanks for the tips!

Tractor Supply has it too.

Tim

 

[allenfahey]

Thanks for all of the replies! This will only be used for two small spots on the bed of the bronco where I can't get to with my DA sander or blocks. They are very small areas so I won't worry too much about the rough finish. I plan to Rhino/Raptor line the inside anyways. The underside will also be Rhino lined after it is cleaned so I should be ok there as well. Sounds like the Black Beauty stuff should work well for the frame and axles, I plan to go very slowly so hopefully the spot blasting will work out for me, I will see if I can remove the brush at the tip to speed things up but I want to keep the dust down since this is in my garage. I do have a Zip Wall with plastic sheeting around the Bronco but I understand blasting without the vacuum leaves a huge mess. I was trying to weigh the cost of sending this out for blasting versus buying one myself, maybe I made the wrong decision but the blaster was fairly cheap and the rest of the Bronco is in great shape and doesn't need any type of blasting. When I get it and try it out, I will update this thread in case anyone is thinking about going the same route.

I wouldn't use Raptors' primer. I would use an epoxy mixed as a sealer. After it flashes off spray the Raptor. U-POL products are low end, low quality products.

 

[hsach]

I wouldn't use Raptors' primer. I would use an epoxy mixed as a sealer. After it flashes off spray the Raptor. U-POL products are low end, low quality products.

Thanks for the advice. I know when I get to that stage I will have a lot of questions.

 

[hsach]

Quick update.

I got the blaster last night and did a few tests on different metal. I used the Medium grade Black Beauty, and people were correct about it. It is very aggressive and will leave the metal rough. Not a problem for frames but if you are going to paint the surface you will want to use a finer media.

First test on the gas tank skid plate. The results were quick, I barely had to move the nozzle around before the bare metal was exposed.


Second test was on my old floor pan, the results were immediate. It blew through the paint and old primer instantly. It left the surface rough so I would not use this on the thin metal of the body unless it was going to have Rhino/Raptor liner over it. A finer media will need to be used on surfaces that will be painted.


Third test was on my Dana 44. It has blue paint on it and the blaster took it off quickly. Since this isn't a flat surface, the vacuum attachment doesn't work well. Not a big deal, you just have to use it like a regular blaster and not worry about collecting the media.



I didn't test this out for long periods, but my compressor had no issue producing enough air to run this thing. I turned the PSI up to 110 as recommended. I know this will take longer than a non vacuum blaster but hopefully the cleanup won't be as bad. I am going to check out Harbor Freight to see if they have some finer media. If I find some I will blast a couple of spots inside the bed and show the results here. So far I am happy with this sandblaster. Thanks again for all of the advice in this thread, I will keep it updated as I try more stuff.

 

[Justafordguy]

Looks like it's going to do a great job.

 

[hsach]

Another update. I decided to try some finer media so I found Black Diamond at Harbor Freight. It was $10 for a 50lb bag of their coal slag. The stuff worked great! It cut through the surface rust, primer, and paint easily while leaving a noticeably smoother finish than the more aggressive Black Beauty media I tried first. Here are some pics.

This one is an old floor panel. The middle blasting spot was done by the Black Beauty media and is much rougher. The two spots on either side are using the Black Diamond coal slag.


These are my front fenders. They both had exactly the same amount of surface rust on them and it took about 45 seconds to completely clean the edge of the driver's fender.



The blue paint came off the Dana 44 quickly, either media would work well for an axle or frame. The Black Beauty is much more expensive though so I will stick with the Harbor Freight Black Diamond coal slag.