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Originally Posted by toxic
So from reading the site it's a pressure tank for the media with a control valve on it?
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Sounds like it..
I'm not knocking another person's deal or product, but I've been restoring cars, including sandblasting, for over thirty years and I can tell you, one doesn't need "tricked-out widgets" to achieve the proper finish, or "tooth" on the metal, one only needs a proper sized/rated compressor, a pressure sandblaster (100lb capacity min.) and a load of experience.. which comes with time!
An idiot with a sandblaster is just as dangerous as an idiot with a gun or a back-hoe, an SUV, etc.
Most folks make the mistake of trying to "bore holes" with a sandblaster, then bad-rap sand for warping their panels.. done right, one can sandblast the "Garnish Molding" (inside, around the glass trim) and produce a perfect "Satin Finish" on the metal, and not damage the parts.. one only has to use Blasting Sand (not playground sand) that's been run thru the blaster about four times, then turn down the air at the pressure tank to 40 or 50 psi, set the "Sand/Air mix" so it's not all air, nor "heavy" with sand-- when blasting, you will hardly see the sand being sprayed-- then hold the nozzle about 12 to 18 inches away from the surface and at a "low" 50 to 60 degree angle relative to the surface being blasted.. you will see the layers of paint & rust literally disappear before your eyes.. On multiple layers of paint, DON'T try to remove all of them in one pass.. this can overheat, and warp, the panel.. Keep the nozzle moving.. if possible, place a bare hand on the backside of the are being blasted.. if you feel the metal getting warm, move the nozzle a bit faster.. Simple, huh? Also.. NEVER sandblast off "tar" undercoating.. this only drives the oils into the "grain" of the metal and will guarantee that the paint will peel off immediately AFTER the car is completely finished!!
I start out with between 500 and a thousand pounds of #4 Blasting Sand (only "Silica Sand"-- white "ash tray sand"-- is "finer", aka smaller in grit size. It is also more expensive and has a higher risk of causing silicosis!), purchased from the area Contractor Supply house (about $8-$10 per 100lb bag) then I blast the "hard parts" like the chassis, suspension pieces, cast iron items like the differential, etc., sweeping up and "filtering" the sand-- I call this "Recycling the sand"-- a couple of times as required (one must have an enclosed area with a smooth concrete floor!), then blast the body shell, doors, hood and trunk lid.."recycling" the sand as required.. by this time that 500 to 1000 pounds of sand has the texture of a very fine grit powder, that's when I blast the "delicate" items like the windshield trim, nuts, washers and bolts (especially if one is trying to preserve the original fasteners as well as the "Head Stamps" on the bolts.. Brit cars of the '50's/'60's used "BEES", "Rubby-Owens" "R-O", etc. and these are near impossible to find!!).
It's as simple as that.. No need for "exotic" slags, powders, "magic elixirs" or "secret plans" to build a pressure blaster that all claim to prevent metal damage, etc.
Of course, it should go without saying, but it doesn't, given the number of idiots who don't understand what "Taking Personal Responsibility" means, that one MUST take proper safety precautions.. Personally, I "suit-up" in a Tyvek "onesie" (hood to booties jump-suit I get from Grainger), mid arm length rubber gloves--I pull the suit's sleeves over the gloves, a dual cartridge respirator with dust pre-filters, and a Blasting Hood.. I even make my own "Tear-Offs" for the viewing lens.. a local plastics supplier has Lexan in various thicknesses, I get 0.020".. a 3'x3' sheet of the Lexan makes a lot of Tear-Offs for the price of a couple of viewing lenses.. I just tape them on with masking tape, after they are so "frosted" that I can no longer see clearly (about two hours), I replace the tear-off.. Is that too simple, or what? I use the same Lexan on the Viewing Window of my Bench-top Blast Cabinet... I also use the same Pressure Blaster in my Bench-top Blast Cabinet, which is a small "cheepie" (plastic!) H-F unit (about 24" wide, 18" deep and 12" tall), and I've used it a LOT over the last ten years.
Many folks do as Shakespeare said.. make "Much Ado About Nothing".. just use Common Sense.. Ben Franklin said something like that..
On the "enclosed area", this needn't be a super-tight, seperate building, although that would be nice.. I go to a home improvement store and buy a box or two of 20'x100' 4mil clear plastic sheeting and 1"x2" Furring Strips and simply enclose a corner of my 1500 sq ft shop to use as the Sand Blasting Area.. I try to cover the ceiling and walls in a seamless fashion, this greatly reduces the fine dust filtering out into the rest of my shop.. I simply lift up the sheeting to roll in a car body on a rotisserie or a "rack" of suspended body parts, and sandblast away..
Being in Texas, we have the luxury of having several low humidity days in a row.. this allows one to blast, clean off/out the sand (use a shop vac) as nearly complete as possible.. I then use bits of masking tape to cover all the bolt/screw holes (to keep the dregs of sand from getting into the new paint!), wipe down the parts with PPG's DX330 Cleaner/Degreaser, Tack Off then, using an HVLP gun, prime with PPG's DP Epoxy Primer.. I use the same proceedure for parts to be Powder-Coated.
This is the "system" that I have worked out over the years, it works well for me and I have no doubt that some enterprising folks could improve on my "system".. I just hope they are willing to share their improvements with everyone else..
Charles.