Sandblaster purchase - first impressions

[Gav 616]

Hi all,

 

I bought one of these from a chap in Hallam :

 

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/SANDBLASTER-10-GALLON-SANDBLAST-REGULATOR-SANDBLASTING-BRAND-NEW-/400487308623?pt=AU_Hardware&hash=item5d3ee75d4f

 

Thought I'd share my impressions after a bit of a fiddle with it. I've always liked the idea of abrasive blasting. It deals with surface rust decisively and leaves the metal surface nicely keyed for etching/priming. I'm also a bit of a fiend for doing things for myself rather than outsourcing. I find that at least with DIY you have sole control over the job..whatever the nature. If it fucks up...it's cos you were poorly researched/equipped. The quality of a job is therefore solely up to how much effort you put into it.

 

I'm starting an XA sedan project and although the beast is in reasonable nick - there are some rust issues. I'm expecting to have to weld some and figured abrasive blasting would form a part of my prep before welding.

 

So..I bought the so called 10 gallon unit. It's TWM branded. This mob brand a range of home workshop equipment such as engine cranes, stands and a lot of other stuff. It all comes from the same Chinese factory as a bunch of other brands. Look on Ebay....you see the same designs over and again...simply branded and coloured differently.

 

It comes from the box largely ready to operate. Tighten up a few things, connect to your compressor and off you go...or sort of anyway. Most of the attachment hardware...gauges, water separator, valves and hoses look to be standard issue items - so if the Chinese stuff fucks up...most of your replacement items could come from a place like Pirtek.

 

The abrasive discharge gun uses ceramic tips to direct the stream of media. These wear out quite quickly and are easy to replace.

 

Abrasive blasting requires a lot of air. My 12CFM McMillan compressor battled to keep up with demand and was pretty much operating at its limits. When you had pressure the unit performed quite well. Surface corrosion was whisked away with ease. Pitting corrosion needs a little more attention. Even with a small discharge orifice, pressure bleeds off quickly and after a minute or two I had to wait for the compressor to recharge the abrasive pressure pot.

 

So..as it stands...these units with an average compressor would be suitable for small jobs. Would I blast a door or guard using this? Not at this stage. Too time consuming.

 

You can sieve and re-use the blast media - which gets everywhere. I'd use plastic sheeting so you can more easily gather up blast media for re-use.

 

As things go, I have two options. Firstly, to either  get some type of manifold that allows two (or more?) compressors to feed into the unit  Second hand 12-15CFM compressors are cheap as chips.

Secondly, hire a single big fuck-off petrol driven compressor to see how she goes. Improving the air supply will enable better use of the equipment that comes in the box. I'm hoping 20-40CFM will allow the use of a discharge gun with a bigger orifice - so blasting panels/floorpans etc may then become a possibility.

[Rustydave 4]

I have had one of these for a while now

They work well but i found bits of steel still in the pot from some of the holes cut in making it .

I run two compressers at a time and that seams fine ,I use just a joiner .