Who knows a lot about sandblasting?

Soltesjoey350

Soltesjoey350

21 years young, 1972 Honda CB350.
So I have a little sand blaster that my dad gave me, he never uses it. I went to pick up play sand from home depot since that's the finest grit I could find. I hooked it all up and it just doesn't work great.

It feels like the sand clumps up too much, not allowing the nozzle to spray it out. It will come out every once in a while, but won't spray out consistently.

I'm thinking another problem I might be having is the compressor I'm using. It's not the best compressor, but it's not one of the little hand held ones either.

Is there any tips from someone with experience has on one of these?

Joey
 
First of all, is the sand dry? I mean DRY. Play sand has to be desert dry to work well in those. Second, its a good idea to run it thru a screen to get those pesky stray pebbles out that do slip thru at the batch plant. Third, how many cfm is your compressor? If its putting out 5cfm, you should get at least somethin out of it. I would recomment going to either tractor supply, or harbor freight and grabbing a bag of aluminum oxide to try in it (else at a mask tho) because it is much more moisture resistant than sand. Hooking a shop vac up to the side of the blast cab will also reduce a lot of the dust. Good luck, and ill help any way I can.
 
Mr.E said:
First of all, is the sand dry? I mean DRY. Play sand has to be desert dry to work well in those. Second, its a good idea to run it thru a screen to get those pesky stray pebbles out that do slip thru at the batch plant. Third, how many cfm is your compressor? If its putting out 5cfm, you should get at least somethin out of it. I would recomment going to either tractor supply, or harbor freight and grabbing a bag of aluminum oxide to try in it (else at a mask tho) because it is much more moisture resistant than sand. Hooking a shop vac up to the side of the blast cab will also reduce a lot of the dust. Good luck, and ill help any way I can.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure about the sand, it was inside though... It doesn't feel wet but I guess it still could be. Will try to strain it next time I try to use it and see if that helps at all.

As for the compressor, it's an old Campbell and hausfeld, I think it's rated at 7cfm. That's enough?

Thanks for the quick reply

Joey
 
Before using play sand, you need to dry it. The sand absorbs moisture constantly. My step dad throws the sand in an old metal trash can and sticks it on the firepit for awhile. At least u til the sand is all too hot to touch. Works great.
 
Go to TSC and buy a bag of black diamond media.
It's 7 bucks and works like a champ and you don't need to worry about it being damp or your compressor blowing a little water and clogging your lines etc.
 
Yep, couldn't remember what tractor supply calls their stuff. Other thing, if there is a blockage in the line,you can cover the blast tip and squeeze the trigger. It will force air back thru the suction wand and usually blow the blockage out too. Just takes a burst or two.
 
I second the black diamond media. It is so much better than playground sand. Almost perfectly uniform in size and is pretty much moisture resistant. Otherwise, get glass bead media. It's a bit more expensive, but will last longer without dusting too much, and the finish on aluminum with glass bead is gorgeous. 7cfm is enough pressure, however, to get epoxy paint and chrome off (relatively easily anyway), I'd say you need 10-12. Last but not least, DUST MASK!!!! I can not stress that enough, unless you have a dust capture and filter system, it is crucial that you wear a dust mask anytime you blast and have good ventilation in your garage/shop area. Silica poisoning is not something to play around with.
 
If your running some form of moisture control on your compressor you may get moisture coming through the lines as well causing issues.
 
Thanks for all the replies guys! Gives me a ton of stuff to go off of. I appreciate all the info!

Joey
 
No problem amigo.
And dont expect anything stellar with the small compressor.
You need upwards of 50-100 cfm to do any real blasting, but you should be able to do short bursts with a small pattern well enough.
Blasting a frame would suck, but small parts should be okay.

My compressor is 20cfm at 175psi with a 80 gallon tank and It still runs constantly while blasting and I am limited to a relatively small spray pattern.
 
Jewbacca said:
I second the black diamond media. It is so much better than playground sand. Almost perfectly uniform in size and is pretty much moisture resistant. Otherwise, get glass bead media. It's a bit more expensive, but will last longer without dusting too much, and the finish on aluminum with glass bead is gorgeous. 7cfm is enough pressure, however, to get epoxy paint and chrome off (relatively easily anyway), I'd say you need 10-12. Last but not least, DUST MASK!!!! I can not stress that enough, unless you have a dust capture and filter system, it is crucial that you wear a dust mask anytime you blast and have good ventilation in your garage/shop area. Silica poisoning is not something to play around with.
Click to expand...
Quoted because Silica poisoning WILL fuck you up.
 
SONIC. said:
No problem amigo.
And dont expect anything stellar with the small compressor.
You need upwards of 50-100 cfm to do any real blasting, but you should be able to do short bursts with a small pattern well enough.
Blasting a frame would suck, but small parts should be okay.

My compressor is 20cfm at 175psi with a 80 gallon tank and It still runs constantly while blasting and I am limited to a relatively small spray pattern.
Click to expand...
Lmao looks like I will either be buying a bigger compressor or borrowing a buddies then because I have a few panel on my 71 bus I wanted to sandblast!

And thanks for the safety warnings too guys I'll be sure to wear a mask from now on!

Joey
 
Hey one more thing! An in line moisture trap will be a great investment too if you can get one. Especially for play sand, soda, walnut shells, etc. Little pricey for a good one, but it beats spraying mud and your parts flash rusting.
 
Mr.E said:
Hey one more thing! An in line moisture trap will be a great investment too if you can get one. Especially for play sand, soda, walnut shells, etc. Little pricey for a good one, but it beats spraying mud and your parts flash rusting.
Click to expand...

I think my dad said he had one! Is that the attachment for the compressor to trap the moisture that it produces?

Joey
 
Aircoolin said:
I think my dad said he had one! Is that the attachment for the compressor to trap the moisture that it produces?

Joey
Click to expand...

Yes sir.
 
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