Skat Blast cabinet project

[misterfixit]

Long story short...I've been needing a blasting cabinet for a while. While getting ready to build one, I ended up buying a used Skat Blast cabinet

Trying to post pics but can't from my phone. It appears to be a red 960 with foot valve. It has been stored outside, on its back, and the interior rear panel is pretty rusted. Going to have to deal with the rust and paint it inside and out.

What's the best way to handle the rust?

 

[ChefRex]

Maybe blast it?

 

[misterfixit]

Maybe blast it?

Ideally yes, but that's not practical now. Because of the rust I'm taking the screen floor out so I can get to the places on the lower funnel. I plan on wire brushing all I can.

What I should have asked is what to treat it with prior to painting.

 

[ChefRex]

Then you're on the right path, I don't think I would bother to paint depending on how bad it is, get it up and running and then blast it, depending on how much it gets used it going to remove anything you paint it with from the abrasive.
I could be wrong but I believe they are powercoated.

I miss having access to one at work.

 

[misterfixit]

Now pics sometimes show up

 

[finn]

Blast it using its own gun, clean with pre painting prep, rinse with phosphoric metal prep solution like Ospho, Metal Prep, or similar.

An epoxy paint would be best, but understand that whatever you paint it with will be sacrificial.

Use a light grey paint, as it’s hard to see through the dust cloud, depending on the media you use.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Good luck! I got one with the same vacuum, the filters are no longer available from what I could find. Let me know if you have any luck!

 

[misterfixit]

Good luck! I got one with the same vacuum, the filters are no longer available from what I could find. Let me know if you have any luck!

Not sure where you looked or if these are in fact the same, but TP Tools has parts for the "Old Style" vacuums on this page:
Skat BLast Parts

 

[misterfixit]

I plugged in the vacuum and it fired up. Not sure how well it worked, but it came on so.....

 

[misterfixit]

Blast it using its own gun, clean with pre painting prep, rinse with phosphoric metal prep solution like sophomores, or similar.

An epoxy paint would be best, but understand that whatever you paint it with will be sacrificial.

Use a light grey paint, as it’s hard to see through the dust cloud, depending on the media you use.

Blasting isn't an option right now. The gun in the cabinet is bad, seems to be corroded all over. It was laying in the wet sand in the machine.
I took a wire wheeled grinder to it and then drenched it with the Oxpho rust converter. Plan is flat white Rustoleum inside and good ol' ordinary grey outside.
Not really a fan of the grey, but even less a fan of the red.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Its been a while since I looked. Seems as they have updated the website too! I'll have to get an order together, thank you.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Not sure where you looked or if these are in fact the same, but TP Tools has parts for the "Old Style" vacuums on this page:
Skat BLast Parts

I'm not sure but I would guess that Skat Blast and TP Tools are partners or one owns the other. I was just there on Saturday and picked up a new vac for my Enconoline blast cabinet that I recently bought.

I'd only worry about getting the outside of the cabinet cleaned up. Wait to do the inside after it's up and blasting as a test run.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Good luck! I got one with the same vacuum, the filters are no longer available from what I could find. Let me know if you have any luck!

Its been a while since I looked. Seems as they have updated the website too! I'll have to get an order together, thank you.

What's your filter look like ?

 

[gimpyrobb]

Its not horrible now, I blew it out with air and then washed it in a 7gal bucket with dawn. I'd still like to get a new one though, bag filters too.

 

[misterfixit]

UPDATE:
Not happy....
Got the cabinet cleaned, and treated the rust with Ospho (phosphoric acid) Rust converter. cleaned and rinsed after treatment and brought her into the shop. Managed to get her up on saw horses. I painted the inside of the cabinet with Rustoleum flat white with added hardener from Tractor Supply. Same stuff I used on my milling machine refurbish. Inside has lots of texture from the rust but it's fine, I can live with no problem.





Outside is another matter. Outside I painted with Rustoleum Gloss Smoke Gray with added hardener from TSC. Looks horrible. It's not the paints fault, except that its a gloss and shows every slight imperfection. The rusted areas show texture through the paint. The areas where the Ospho dripped and ran show through. Every dent and crease show through. And to be honest I don't like the color. I'm tired of gray.



What can I paint/spray/cover this with to give it some texture to hide the existing texture?

I'm considering a spray on or roll on DIY bed liner. I found on amazon you can get it in colors. I'm also considering getting some flat enamel paint in a color I like and adding sand and rolling it on to give it texture.

Im open to ideas.

 

[moemc]

I have that same unit! Everything about it appears identical as far as I can tell, but mine was gray from the factory. I have no idea about painting it.

My only gripe is that the suction port on the left side has no baffling at all. So you lose a lot of media to the vacuum. If I ever do a project with it, I feel like I would want to baffle that or put a lip on it to hold a filter that is inside the cabinet and can be dusted off as I go.

 

[misterfixit]

I have that same unit! Everything about it appears identical as far as I can tell, but mine was gray from the factory. I have no idea about painting it.

My only gripe is that the suction port on the left side has no baffling at all. So you lose a lot of media to the vacuum. If I ever do a project with it, I feel like I would want to baffle that or put a lip on it to hold a filter that is inside the cabinet and can be dusted off as I go.

I'm excited about the unit. I just want it to look decent.

How do you like the gun? What size compressor are you using? Reason I ask is the gun with it is corroded and the oriface is large. I'll have to replace the gun, and I'm trying to decide if I want to get another like it with the pick up tube, or put a metering valve on the bottom and get a BNP style.

 

[moemc]

Im pretty sure I am still using the original gun they provided, but I have a tungsten carbide tip in it. The orifice is quite large. I have a big rotary screw compressor and run the cabinet all day for a day or two, a few times a year. I can get a pic of the gun and measure the oriface. I used to run it on an average piston compressor. I can check the specs on the sticker. I had to switch just because of noise. It worked fine on the old compressor just drove me nuts because it would run continuously.

My cabinet is strictly for clean aluminum, and uses glass bead only. This is because it’s used for anodizing prep, and any contamination would ruin the anodizing. I run it too high of pressure because I’m impatient. So I go through media faster due it pulverizing earlier at higher velocity. It still works fine when pulverized but the texture is very different, and not great for all products… plus it starts gettting pretty dusty once badly pulverized.

 

[OccupantRJ]

UPDATE:
Not happy....
Got the cabinet cleaned, and treated the rust with Ospho (phosphoric acid) Rust converter. cleaned and rinsed after treatment and brought her into the shop. Managed to get her up on saw horses. I painted the inside of the cabinet with Rustoleum flat white with added hardener from Tractor Supply. Same stuff I used on my milling machine refurbish. Inside has lots of texture from the rust but it's fine, I can live with no problem.





Outside is another matter. Outside I painted with Rustoleum Gloss Smoke Gray with added hardener from TSC. Looks horrible. It's not the paints fault, except that its a gloss and shows every slight imperfection. The rusted areas show texture through the paint. The areas where the Ospho dripped and ran show through. Every dent and crease show through. And to be honest I don't like the color. I'm tired of gray.



What can I paint/spray/cover this with to give it some texture to hide the existing texture?

I'm considering a spray on or roll on DIY bed liner. I found on amazon you can get it in colors. I'm also considering getting some flat enamel paint in a color I like and adding sand and rolling it on to give it texture.

Im open to ideas.

I think the color bed liner will do the trick for you.
I also linked this thread to the Abrasive blasting thread for more possible input.

 

[GeoBruin]

I know this isn't what you want to hear, but if you want it to look good, you need to prep for paint. That means removing the rust, sanding, priming, etc. It's a lot of work, but that's what it takes.

 

[OccupantRJ]

I have a method I use for refurbishing shop tool type larger items that have experienced rough storage before refinishing. If you can’t get a good enough “normal” finish on something, do something creative and make it different. Aka custom. The bedliner material may knock the rushing air sound down a tiny bit also.

 

[misterfixit]

Small update:

Just looking at prices it appears doing a bed liner type treatment is about $100 plus supplies like brush/rollers sprayers etc.

I'm trying a cheaper option. The cabinet is already covered in Rust-Oleum oil based enamel with a bit of Majik brand hardener. I'm not sure what type of issues it might cause to paint over that with a different paint. So, I bought a quart of Rust-Oleum green with a satin finish. I like the color better than gray or red. To that I'm adding play sand. I did it 2 ways, one worked.

The first test I did was to pour 4oz of paint into a mixing cup, and add 1 oz of play sand. The granular stuff. Mixed it well and poured that into a roller paint pan. Tested on a piece of metal I had degreased and it looked great. Good color, good texture on the 6"x6" plate. Seeing the success I took it immediately to the cabinet and started on the underside behind the cone. It became quickly apparent that it was a disaster. The grit sank in the paint causing it not roll on and clump up horribly. Total failure.

The I took fresh paint. In a fresh tray with a fresh roller and painted a test piece. As soon as I got it covered I took some sand in my hand and shook it around. Looked good. I immediately got a seed spreader
I put sand in it and the started painting. As I covered one major area I used the spreader to add sand on top of the wet paint. Had no trouble getting the grit to stick to the vertical surfaces. Spreader have a better random distribution than I could do by hand.

I think this is gonna do what I need. I'll have to let it dry and then recoat with paint.

 

[misterfixit]

Small update:

Just looking at prices it appears doing a bed liner type treatment is about $100 plus supplies like brush/rollers sprayers etc.

I'm trying a cheaper option. The cabinet is already covered in Rust-Oleum oil based enamel with a bit of Majik brand hardener. I'm not sure what type of issues it might cause to paint over that with a different paint. So, I bought a quart of Rust-Oleum green with a satin finish. I like the color better than gray or red. To that I'm adding play sand. I did it 2 ways, one worked.

The first test I did was to pour 4oz of paint into a mixing cup, and add 1 oz of play sand. The granular stuff. Mixed it well and poured that into a roller paint pan. Tested on a piece of metal I had degreased and it looked great. Good color, good texture on the 6"x6" plate. Seeing the success I took it immediately to the cabinet and started on the underside behind the cone. It became quickly apparent that it was a disaster. The grit sank in the paint causing it not roll on and clump up horribly. Total failure.

The I took fresh paint. In a fresh tray with a fresh roller and painted a test piece. As soon as I got it covered I took some sand in my hand and shook it around. Looked good. I immediately got a seed spreader
I put sand in it and the started painting. As I covered one major area I used the spreader to add sand on top of the wet paint. Had no trouble getting the grit to stick to the vertical surfaces. Spreader have a better random distribution than I could do by hand.

I think this is gonna do what I need. I'll have to let it dry and then recoat with paint.

 

[GeoBruin]

That is not what I meant by sanding...

 

[finn]

The ambient dust in my shop would be attracted to a rough surface like that and I suspect it would be difficult to keep it clean looking. Smooth surfaces can be wiped with a damp, or even dry cloth every few weeks or longer and clean up nicely.

 

[misterfixit]

The ambient dust in my shop would be attracted to a rough surface like that and I suspect it would be difficult to keep it clean looking. Smooth surfaces can be wiped with a damp, or even dry cloth every few weeks or longer and clean up nicely.

Very valid point. Will likely do that to mine here. Seems everything has competing priorities and needs. Like the man said. "You pays your money and yous takes yer chances".

 

[finn]

Yup. Not trying to discourage you. It’s just something I have run into. Maybe if I had better control of the dust, I wouldn’t have that problem, though. Everything seems to get coated with black soot, or, more recently, sawdust.

The sawdust I understand, and is temporary as I don’t enjoy woodworking, although sometimes projects require it. I’m not going to invest in a dust collection system for the limited use it would get.

The soot may be from the oxy acetylene torches or mig /Tig welders, or grinding dust. It’s a pain to clean off of textured tools. Can’t even vacuum it.

 

[moemc]

since it’s mostly flat, maybe it would be easier to vinyl wrap it?

 

[misterfixit]

Yup. Not trying to discourage you. It’s just something I have run into. Maybe if I had better control of the dust, I wouldn’t have that problem, though. Everything seems to get coated with black soot, or, more recently, sawdust.

The sawdust I understand, and is temporary as I don’t enjoy woodworking, although sometimes projects require it. I’m not going to invest in a dust collection system for the limited use it would get.

The soot may be from the oxy acetylene torches or mig /Tig welders, or grinding dust. It’s a pain to clean off of textured tools. Can’t even vacuum it.

since it’s mostly flat, maybe it would be easier to vinyl wrap it?

No discouragement felt.

I think, at least for now, it is what is going to be. I'm about to go give it another coat of green and have a look at it after it dries. Unless something goes really wild, I'm going to leave it be at that point. I do still have to paint the back, but I'm not worried about a texture there. Just need to match the color.

I'll get some pics up after it's done. I think this painting texture thing with the sand is "OK". I don't think I would paint equipment like a lathe or other machines with it. In fact I know I wouldn't. But, a cabinet, maybe a workbench or desk body that had imperfections to hide I think would be fine.