Protecting yourself during polishing....

[chaotik]

I am wondering what everyone (especially guys that do it everyday) use to protect themselves during sanding and buffing aluminum....i.e. face mask, filter , etc.

I know when I get done, I am covered in the wonderful black stuff!!

Any help and advice would be great!!

MIKE

[mpierich]

Howdy,

I got some full-body Tyvek hazmat suits ($5 apiece) with hood - they last me almost 6 months apiece if I'm careful with them. That way I can work in my street clothes and not carry the nasty stuff into the house when I'm done (don't forget to wipe your feet! ).

For breathing I wear a $40 respirator (NOT a dust mask) with replaceable cartridges. Home Depot has them. I blow out the cartridges occasionally with low pressure air (too much pressure will blow the media right out of them).

I don't usually wear eye protection but I do wear glasses already, so unfortunately they take the brunt of whatever flys in my face. I should wear goggles or a shield over them. I do wear a face shield when at the high-speed polishing wheel but not when using the die grinder or other hand-held tools. If I didn't wear glasses I would use goggles all the time. The face shield is an excellent idea for the stationary wheel - especially for a newbie who is going to lose control of the piece occasionally. Anything that's grabbed by the wheel is going to be going about 80 mph, and you don't want that hitting your face!

[chaotik]

Yeah...thats what I figured...I need to get one of those respirators from HD... Have been using the "better" quality dustmasks, but I still felt I needed something more.

I know HD has a few different versions of masks...so I guess I will go look for one in the $40.00 range like you said....should be for particulate matter I assume.

Keep the recommendations coming!!

[sswee]

The respirators I used have replaceable particulate pads that cover the cartridge. They help the cartridge last longer, and are cheaper to change out than the cartridge.
SS