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I'm looking to buy one of those small el cheapo Harbor Frieght media blasters. The one I'm looking at is about $20 and it is a total loss type (not in a cabinet). The reason I wanted to try it is that I am restoring an old Greeves and I need to do some repair work on the frame which is bronze welded. Some of the areas I am working on are rusty and I have to get rid of all of the rust before I can even think about repairing with sifbronze. Also I wanted to clean the crankcases, g/box cases and the head and cylinder (cast alum) with media. Has anyone used one of the Harbor freight guns and are they any good? What media should I use? I was thinking of using sand on the frame and maybe glass bead or walnut shells on the cases.
I cant imagine how fast you are going to go through a hopper of media. In a cabinet it seems like I go through 25lb of glass every 5min or so, which isn't a big deal when I can keep using it over and over and over.. I would say in your gun you'll be out every 30seconds. Its a different story when you are blasting large sections of stuff without re-use.
I have one. I use it to blast little zinc alloy parts such as petcocks etc. with common baking soda. Also makes (already cleaned) carbs look bright, shiny and uniform on the outside.
It's a toy ... not meant for anything larger than a "spot" if you are using sand or bead.
Get a regular gun, if not a complete cabinet. You can use a regular blasting gun outside of a cabinet in a total loss fashion. Just stick the pickup hose into the box of media
On the alum the glass will leave huge poors that will be a paint in the ass to fill! use the alum oxide 60 grit... the walnut shells have an oil in them that will screw stuff up when you paint.
On the alum the glass will leave huge poors that will be a paint in the ass to fill! use the alum oxide 60 grit... the walnut shells have an oil in them that will screw stuff up when you paint.
I'm no expert, but I just blasted with both glass and walnut. I didn't have pitting in my allumn after the glass, and they painted fine after the walnut. Maybe I just hit the lottery.
Walnut is fine for painting. Glass bead is fine for painting. Aluminum oxide is too harsh for aluminum parts, it'll change their shape if you blast too hard.
People tell all these urban legends about media blasting, but it's really simple. Blast using the proper abrasive for the substrate/finish you want, and then clean the snot out of it.
A lot of people don't even clean parts properly before they paint, and then want to blame something else.
John, I have a blaster similar to what DeanJ has. If you use plain old sand, search a little bit into silicosis - sand particles get shattered when blasting, and the silicon dust can end up in your lungs. And if you ever, EVER use baking soda outside, make sure it's in an area where you want all the grass to die.
Thanks for all the info guys. Didn't know the soda kills grass! I have been looking around and I think I will buy this Eastwood kit http://www.eastwood.com/eastwood-small-job-blasting-systems.html# which comes with both soda and alum oxide so I can try both.
Most people make the mistake of using their full compressor pressure (120+psi), that's what causes the damage. If you blast at 60-80psi it greatly reduces the chance of damage. None of the medias mentioned will do any damage if used properly. The higher pressure also pulverizes the media making is almost useless for reuse multiple times.
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