A couple of SandBlaster Questions

[Normsthename]

Hi
I am new to the forum, I was drawn here by a Google search and found the Blasting Tutorial. Very Interesting!
I need to blast an old Lambretta Scooter, the frame and panels etc the metal is very sound.
I already have a Clarke Sand Blast siphon Fed Cabinet.
Not brilliant but it does work......just
Obviously I need larger capacity so that I can do the scooter.

Questions
Today I ordered one of the 20 Gallon Sandblasters off of Ebay (Kmsdirect)
I will be using it with a Clarke 3 Phase 5.5HP 200 Litre Compressor with 23cfm, will this be enough for the Sandblaster?
I have ordered some J-Blast Supafine as recommended on this site, how fast would it strip a scooter?
Will I see much speed difference between the Clarke siphon fed and the 20 Gallon sandblaster?
My siphon cabinet would take hours and hours to do a small amount.
I have read about people using Tungsten nozzles, are these a direct replacement and where can I order those from?
I have also seen reference to a Ball Valve that needs replacing from time to time, where are these available?

Thanks in advance

Andy

 

[malcolm]

Welcome Andy

23cfm? I blasted my chassis in the tutorial with about 15cfm. You'll be going quite a lot faster than me.

The syphon guns waste a lot of air (probably more than half). With the pressurised blaster all of the cfm is used to blast so my guess would be much less than an hour for a Lambretta frame. rtbcomp on here has a 20 gallon blaster too (it was he that recommended them to me) and he also blasts bikes - he'll probably be able to tell you exactly how long it should take.

I replaced a ball valve on mine. Local compressor supplier from the yellow pages helped me. It's 3/8 inch. But I had to move mine around as the new ones were the wrong size for the bottom valve which is the one I'd snapped.

 

[rtbcomp]

I will be using it with a Clarke 3 Phase 5.5HP 200 Litre Compressor with 23cfm, will this be enough for the Sandblaster?

Ample!


I have ordered some J-Blast Supafine as recommended on this site, how fast would it strip a scooter?

Never timed myself, depends what's there already. If it's the original paint very fast, if it's been powder coated you won't strip it.


Will I see much speed difference between the Clarke siphon fed and the 20 Gallon sandblaster?

Yes - statement of the year!


I have read about people using Tungsten nozzles, are these a direct replacement and where can I order those from?

You need a couple of fittings, trawl through the sandblaster threads, it's all there.


I have also seen reference to a Ball Valve that needs replacing from time to time, where are these available?

As Malcolm says, standard items. I get mine from Duncan Rogers Engineering.

 

[Normsthename]

Thanks Malcolm
If it takes me about an hour I would be very very happy
It would take me hours and hours in the siphon fed cabinet.
I am thinking about modifying my Blast Cabinet to use the 20 Gallon Blaster gun in that.
Then all the media will collect in the hopper and I can empty it to reuse it

Andy

 

[Normsthename]

Thanks rtbcomp

Will I see much speed difference between the Clarke siphon fed and the 20 Gallon sandblaster?
Yes - statement of the year!

Thats sounds very encouraging, can't wait to give it a Blast!

Andy

 

[rtbcomp]

Thanks Malcolm
If it takes me about an hour I would be very very happy
It would take me hours and hours in the siphon fed cabinet.
I am thinking about modifying my Blast Cabinet to use the 20 Gallon Blaster gun in that.
Then all the media will collect in the hopper and I can empty it to reuse it

Andy

You wouldn't get the bits in the cabinet anyway, you need the space to move them around as you blast them.

I use a 10 gall pot with glass beads in my cabinet and a 20 gall pot in my blast room.

 

[Normsthename]

Sorry, I should have made myself clear...
I still want to use the cabinet for small parts because it keeps the mess down.
I was thinking about replacing the siphon fed gun with the 20 Gallon Pot one
I need to make up a temporary Large 'Blast Cabinet'
I have a metal hinged case that the scooter came in, it measures approx. 1500mm x 700mm x 600mm, I also have 2 x Plasma Cutters
I was toying with the idea of cutting the Hand Holes and window holes in the box, and using the parts from my Clarke Cabinet.
Does anyone know if I can buy these parts separately?

Andy

 

[rtbcomp]

You might find it easier to make a tent, working in a cabinet is a real pain. It's messy but if you can get up close and personal with what you're blasting the job is easier.

You will need some personal protection equipment though, the hood that comes with the blaster isn't up to much. If you do use it, cut a clear 2 litre pop bottle up and tape it to the outside of the visor to protect it, pop bottles full of pop are cheaper than new visors!

I do all my blasting in a 8 ft x 6 ft "blast room."

 

[eil]

I need to make up a space for blasting ive got the room, but if you were starting from scratch again how would you do it/set it up.

 

[rtbcomp]

The system I've got is fine, a room for the rough stuff and a cabinet for beads, a pot dedicated to each.

I'd make my own cabinet, top opening, illuminated from the front.

The room would have a grid floor with a means of scooping the grit out from underneath and I make a machine for sieving the grit, it takes a lot of time & effort to do it manually.

I'm going to clad the walls with stainless sheet taken from scrap dishwashers, you need all the light you can get.

Use low voltage lights, you don't want to clout a mains light with a piece of metal!

The major area for improvement would be ventilation, I use a Clarke dust extractor, but it clogs quickly, I'm going to make my own filter system eventually.

 

[eil]

Would your extractor fan be high or low, or both. do you leave a door open or shut yourself in and air fed mask type set up. cheers

 

[rtbcomp]

Would your extractor fan be high or low, or both. do you leave a door open or shut yourself in and air fed mask type set up. cheers

Extract air from as low down as possible. Dust falls under gravity, so trying to raise it to the roof will cause it to suspend in the air. Also if you're right handed you tend to blast right to left, so extract dust from the left so the flow into the outlet doesn't oppose the blast from the nozzle.

The room should be sealed to keep dust under control, I use a Scorpion airfed helmet & mask Look Here

You can put a flap vent near the top, opposite to the outlet.

You need to change the air quickly and filters to handle a large volume are expensive. One idea I had was to have an extractor that could cope with the air fed into the room and an additional re-circulating filter. The latter could be fairly crude, if any dust got through it would be picked up again next time round.

 

[Normsthename]

I did toy with the idea of building a custom cabinet.
I used to do 2D/3D CAD Designing Electrical Enclosures upto 30+ metres long, so a simple cabinet should be nice and easy
I also have an Homebuilt CNC Plasma machine so I can cut out all the apertures and Glove Holes etc and I have a TIG Welder to put the lot together
I have been trying to find a source for the spare parts but had no Luck so far

Andy

 

[eil]

Im currently building my Ahem! spray booth so thinking about it same principle ? correct.

 

[rtbcomp]

...I have been trying to find a source for the spare parts but had no Luck so far

Andy

What parts in particular?

Forget the long gloves, make some elasticated cuffs to slide your arms through. I wear rubber backed cotton gloves.

The glass window can be made from windscreen or coffee table glass, you may even get a coffee table off Freecycle.

I use 12v Halogen lights (Ikea, Freecycle)

 

[rtbcomp]

Im currently building my Ahem! spray booth so thinking about it same principle ? correct.

Most likely - I've never done a spray booth. I'd be very wary of electrics in a spray booth though!

 

[Normsthename]

Forget the long gloves, make some elasticated cuffs to slide your arms through. I wear rubber backed cotton gloves.

Good idea!
I found a supplier for some gloves, they were £15.66......
I saw another blast cabinet that used large Jubilee Clips to fix the gloves to a circular flange inside the Cabinet which could be easy to replicate

Andy

 

[eil]

my garage is on two levels, garage runs to the back road, and my pit is on the garden level so I walk into mt pit from garden but go up steps to the garage if you get my drift, oh all the fans for the exhaust in pit for downdraught, all intrically safe fan mtrs

 

[rtbcomp]

Good idea!
I found a supplier for some gloves, they were £15.66......
I saw another blast cabinet that used large Jubilee Clips to fix the gloves to a circular flange inside the Cabinet which could be easy to replicate

Andy

Use one of these to make a flange One of These

The trouble with long gloves fixed to the box is that you have to put your arm right into the box to get them on, and on mine you hit the opposite side of the box before my fingers are all the way in.

 

[wyn]

I also have an Homebuilt CNC Plasma machine

Hello Normsthename,

That cnc plasma sounds very interesting

Do you have any pictures/ details ?