Blasting media

[T56 Impala]

Okay, I'm new to this so I'll ask:

What is the best media for stripping paint?

Old grease and dirt? (My old tool box project)

Its the least physically dangerous? (I know glass is VERY bad for you if you ingest/inhale it)

Least expensive?

Easiest to work with?

 

[bugdust]

Okay, I'm new to this so I'll ask:

What is the best media for stripping paint? Depends on what type of paint and more importantly, on what material. I use Dupont StarBlast or Black Diamond for most stuff.
Old grease and dirt? (My old tool box project) I haven't had much luck with grease. Scrape it off as best as you can first. It seems like the media just bounces off the grease and if you reuse the media, make sure you filter it so the grease ball doesn't clog your nozzle
Its the least physically dangerous? (I know glass is VERY bad for you if you ingest/inhale it) It's all dangerous, wear a respirator if using a pot-style or at least a dust mask if using a cabinet
Least expensive? Plain old construction sand or play sand. Sand has many bad points though. High heat (metal distortion) and the amount of dust (silica) are the main ones. Black Diamond is about $7-8 for 50 lbs at TSC, construction sand is $3-4 at Home Depot

Easiest to work with? To me, it's all about the same.

Just my experience.

 

[terabyte]

i like aluminum oxide best

make sure the part is NOT greasy before you put it in there I put the parts through the parts washer first then go to media blast

 

[T56 Impala]

I did one of the inner trays of the box after I set up the blaster. I used 5 lbs of glass on it. It looks okay and should paint up well. I am going to try a different media (garnet mix from NT) on the rest of it. I'm doing this main due to cost. $10 for 50lbs! Glass is slightly more money...and I am running negative pressure in the cabinet (Vacuum) to keep dust down and increase visibility for the user. (ME!) The cost of the glass would add up quick by doing this.

Anyway, its too cold to work in the garage right now anyway. So, I'll post up some pictures soon.

One question, should I completely remove the remaining glass or is mixing okay?

 

[bugdust]

I've mixed glass beads with the StarBlast sand with no problems. Glass is expensive. I bought it to try on aluminum but haven't used it for that yet. Sand is soo much cheaper.

 

[krusty the clown]

cost isn't really a problem in a cabinet since it's used over and over, unlike an open blaster. glass beads gives a good finish for painting plus it's good for aluminum, etc. i keep glass beads in the cabinet, but i keep slag, sand, and walnut shells around for different purposes with with my other blasters.

 

[PJDiesel]

The term "glass" is being used loosely here. Glass is made from sand (sand+bad) The trick here is that the process of making glass super heats the sand and binds the free silica. Once it's "bound" it can't be broken or shattered and become a carcinogen ever again.

I use (about 176 thousand pounds a year) a 100% crushed recycled glass. The dust associated with it's use is considered a "nuisance", similar to what you would breathe while sweeping your garage.

That being said, we use a Bullard air fed helmet while blasting (common sense). Plus, during intense shop clean ups I use a 3M cartridge respirator.

This material IS (BY FAR) the least expensive you will find, I pay less for it now than what we used to pay for silica sand.
http://novetas.net/

Put it this way, if you lived nearby I would GIVE you a hundred pounds to check out.

 

[PJDiesel]

Oh, we are talking about a cabinet.

In that case I would recommend either bead, or plastic.

I've seen the plastic used in big (read, expensive) Empire cabinets at a media dealers warehouse. It is straight up wicked. We were cutting through 3/8" thick urethane.

Very expensive, but a ridicilous amount of cycles.

Here is a little chart (they change a bit from vendor to vendor)

http://www.kramerindustriesonline.com/finishing-guides/blasting-media-comparison-chart.htm

 

[T56 Impala]

Great chart, thanks!

You will have to forgive me before I get into this.

I need clarification about glass. The 5 lb "jar" I bought says, "Glass beads made from recycled.......". So it is glass. From my days learning about the body, and bad things that do damage to it, powdered glass is VERY bad for you if ingested.

It can cause serious bleeding if enough is "consumed" over a long enough period of time. The body does not break it down or get rid of it. It does not poison you perse, but it is not good for you. I must worry about my lungs when using any media or chemicals.

The glass I use, so far anyway, is consumable. As I said, I am creating a negative pressure in my cabinet to keep the dust out of the garage and me! It cost me about $11.00 for 5 lbs of the stuff. It worked great, but I need a cheaper consumable product.

My unit, well the instructions anyway, say not to use sand or silica. I'm assuming they don't want to be liable for the possibility of damage to a person, part, or the unit. I have also read that plastic should not be used in the type of cabinet I am using. I really don't know why, but I'll take it as fact unless proven wrong.

Remember, this is a very small home owner unit. I have no idea if that means much but it is not a big thing at all.

 

[PJDiesel]

I pay .06 per pound (in 3000lb totes). Comes out to around $2,900 for a full truck including all the fees for pallets and sacks. Full flatbed tractor trailer will hold 14-15 pallets, (14 legally).
So, 44K lbs, less than $3grand and it's lasts me around 3 months.

I gave a buddy of mine two 50lb bags of medium I had laying around (70 mesh) he was using black beauty in his cabinet, for what reason I have no clue.

Anyway, it seemed to work for him. The dust it does create is translucent, so it works well in a cabinet.


All that being said, you NEED to consider melamine, or some other plastic product. It lasts something like a minimum of 200 cycles. Essentially, you could buy 50 lbs. and not get anymore for a year.

http://www.kramerindustriesonline.c...ives&utm_term="melamine+media"&utm_medium=PPC

 

[Charles (in GA)]

For most home blasting projects, glass beads of some grade are probably most preferable. Not ground glass, it makes all kinds of dust, even in a negative pressure, vacumed cabinet. True glass beads make little dust, and unless the cabinet is leaking in your face, you won't be exposed to it, the vacuum and its filters should be removing it.

I have a TP Tools blast cabinet. It came with ground glass, I used it once, dumped it all out and threw it away. I bought a 5 gal bucket of 40/60 glass beads from MSC and later another one from Grainger. It works fine for most projects. If you need something more abrasive, there is a mix of glass beads and aluminum oxide. If you want to clean the metal surface of paint and most rust without affecting the surface finish, ground walnut shell works well. I wished I had two or three cabinets so I would not have to change out media. I stick with glass beads for now.

You need to clean the part of all grease, oil and any loose paint that you can blow off with a nozzle.

Charles