sand blasting info wanted

[rn-85]

im doing a bit of panel beating and would like to know what people use for their sand blasting. i have a $20 sandblaster and am concidering using beach sand, (does that matter?). also perth street car did a artical on soda blasting, it's where they use bicarbonate soda to strip back paint. i can post the artical if you want.

has any one used any of these options? what works best?

[SEXY 16]

i believe walnut shells are good for blasting
blast at low pressure as panels nowadays are easy warped
if in doubt ask somone in the industry

[WDE_BDY]

I used sodablasting, bloody messy. Not to mention the dickheads used an acid wash to clean it off (should just be hosed off) and made a real mess of my car. Had the underside of my Starlet shell sandblasted and it worked well, but the sand sits in all the crevices.

Callum

[Lukey-KE20]

Your local Supercheap should have sandblasting sand for about $15 for about a 1.5 litre bucket. It's garnet I think.

Be warned it is very messy. Make sure you cover up because it will get everywhere.

Also if you just have a small compressor it will get very frustrating especially if you are planning on blasting a reasonable amount. Dual piston, belt driven with a large tank is the way to go.

The other thing you can do is blast on a tarp. You can sweep up what you've used and use it again. It's not as sharp but is useable for a couple of passes.

[smokem1]

i have a $20 sandblaster and am concidering using beach sand, (does that matter?).

lol

Do not use beach sand!, (then again you should and tell us what happens ) i'm sure sand isnt even used anymore??, you want a light class blast, not sure what medium, anything heavy will rip holes straight through your panels like they butter dude,

I have a bit experience in this field but all heavy blasting eg steel shot, garnett on structural steel columns/beams etc.

Ring around blasting places, they should be able to give you the right info.

If you still need info. come Monday (i just knocked off ) i'd be glad to talk to some ppl i know in the industry and get back to you.

ive contemplated blasting my ride too.

GL

[Lukey-KE20]

Garnet should be fine with a home job compressor. The don't have the high pressure or duty cycle of industrial jobs. Just don't concentrate in one area.

Also agreed, go to local sand blaster.

Oh - and don't use beach sand

[V-Na]

Tip on sandblasting: Earth the car so that you don't build up huge amounts of static charge on the panels and hurt someone.

[rn-85]

-dont use beach sand?

is that because of the salt content in the sand and that eather getting into the metal or settleing in all the nocks and cranys and then causing rust.

or is the sand to course? and then garnet would have a better and more even effect. wouldn't it?

[Kagetsu]

No, silicosis can occur if you use beach sand... (ie, you could bugger your lungs)
I'm into the heavy industrial blasting, one of our workshops do it.
My suggestion for light blasting, especially if it's on panels, don't use something as course as garnet. You're asking for trouble, not to mention the amount of pressure you need to get it to work properly, will damage the panel surface. The key to the blasting isn't how much paint it removes, but how much profile you get afterwards. Dare I say it you want almost no profile on the surface of a car, garnet when used under high pressure applications can give ridges up to 200чm (about 0.2mm) which is huge. This may not sound like a lot, but it's enough to make the surface of any gloss application look like sand paper. You'd need a filler to build it up, and the prep work would take a long time too.
Even at low pressure, you could end up destroying it, but being careful sometimes works.

My suggestion is use finer powders. If you're using a hand held blast pot, you'll need a bit of pressure to get it working right, but should be alright for the job.

But it is incredibly messy. Wear goggles, and if you've got them, overals as well. Nothing stings quite like garnet blast burn, although, I can say from first hand experience, steel grit burn is worse (because it really burns).

Also, make sure it's nice and cool when you're doing it, but make sure it's dry as well. Nothing worse then blasting something and finding it blooms (light surface rust) because of moisture content. If you have a Hygrometre, use that and check the humidity levels.

And for god sake, wear a respirator at least.

EDIT:
Basically what I'm saying is, don't Sandblast, but if you ARE going to Sandblast, take every precaution you can. It'll be faster, and safe prep time by just using a stripper. (not the woman kind).