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Dustless Blasting or Sand Blasting not a good idea?


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I'm wanting to get the 260Z blasted to expose all the rust and what not.... I've heard that the metal is so thin that more times it will warp the metal. 

 

Should i just manually strip the car or go ahead and get it blasted? I'm worried about the car being jacked and requiring a load more body work that I need. 

 

Jon

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I had mine blasted at a place that specializes in classic cars.   No damage resulted, but I imagine it could have if it wasn't done right. It is kind of a PITA though to have all the hollow areas of the car filled with blasting media....

 

What choice do you have though?  I cannot even imagine trying to strip an entire car by hand.  There is also acid dipping, but relatively few places do that, and the process brings risks and concerns with it as well.

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They removed the undercoating on mine, but it wasn't dustless.  Judging from the endless amounts I have vacuumed and blown out of the frame rails, it was a mix of walnut shell, and plain old sand.

 

If you can find a place, I would recommend that they epoxy prime as soon as the blasting is completed.  Otherwise, depending on your climate, the steel can begin rusting almost immediately.

 

When they say "dustless" blasting, they still use some sort of blasting media, it is just mixed with water to keep the dust cloud down.  But the water has the added benefit of keeping the panels from overheating.  The only part I don't understand, is why the freshly blasted metal is not instantly rusted by the water.

Edited by Ironhead
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Most sandblasters don't use sand anymore unless the operator is in a full fresh suit, glass beads, crushed glass, copper slag and soda blasting have come along way. Just make sure who ever does it knows not go anywhere near the open panels on the roof, quarters, doors etc.

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11 hours ago, grannyknot said:

Most sandblasters don't use sand anymore unless the operator is in a full fresh suit, glass beads, crushed glass, copper slag and soda blasting have come along way. Just make sure who ever does it knows not go anywhere near the open panels on the roof, quarters, doors etc.

 

So what your saying is that I should not let them black those areas?

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1 hour ago, FairladyGTR said:

 

So what your saying is that I should not let them black those areas?

No, not with sand. Sand is great for the bottom of the car, inside the car but not the roof, door jambs and engine bay but all the open panels are only 20ga metal that is not supported by folds and curves, the sand hitting that thin metal heats them up in a very localized way.  The metal expands but doesn't shrink back so you end up with a surface that isn't smooth anymore and will take a lot of filler to flatten it out.

That is one of the reasons why soda blasting has become so popular, the grains are so small and have such low mass they don't cause the metal to heat up in the same manner.

The best way is to take it to a place that does a lot of cars, they will understand, industrial blasters may not.

This forum is fantastic, the membership includes many professional body guys that have seen it all,

https://www.autobody101.com/forums/index.php?sid=f044bf1f351a02abe241234902095df9

Edited by grannyknot
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Also angle of force is important as well. If you see them blasting straight on at high pressure then that would be concerning. 

 

Co2 blasting was a thing mentioned when I looked into this a long time ago, no material to get stuck in cavities. Depending on your means and the state of the car having it dipped is an option in some places. 

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Clearly it can be done if the place takes care and knows what they are doing.  All the panels on my car received no damage and I had the entire thing done.

 

It was a place that sort of specializes in classic cars though (American Stripping Company in Sacramento).

 

I considered dipping, but my main concern was that it removes paint even on the inside of frame rails and pinch welds, etc, places where rust preventative might be difficult to re-apply, but rust could most certainly be a problem.

 

Now acid dipping combined with dip-priming seems like it would be ideal....but I never found a place that did dip-priming.  I think it is pretty much OEM only.

Edited by Ironhead
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  • 4 weeks later...

I completely regret having parts sandblasted. Then again, if the user isn’t an idiot, you should be fine. Ended up costing me a fortune because the hood, hatch, one door, and a quarter were warped from excessive heat.

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Media blasting is the best way to go in order to remove all rust. But only if the place doing it are experts that know the correct angles, distances and pressures to use and avoid anything other than the edges of the roof, doors and bonnet. It must also be epoxy primed asap after, same day or next day at latest.

 

 

 

Regarding a question above about dustless blasting and rusting, there is a strong rust inhibitor added to the water used and also sprayed on after. I still do not trust it though so will not use it on mine.

Edited by EF Ian
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  • 2 weeks later...

I myself had my Z dustless blasted. It worked well for the most part, but the hood and hatch were both wavy afterwards from him blasting straight on which was a huge bummer. Then, I had the enormous job of cleaning the sand off. The problem with dustless is they mix water with the sand to stop "dust". It works great for that but becomes a muddy mess and dries that way, meaning you then need to brush/wipe it off afterwards. It was terrible getting out of the interior crevices, I still have sand fall out of the cracks ha.

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I had mine media blasted last week (plastic/rubber powder). We've chosen with blasting company not to use sand because of risk to warp metal. Result is good, no warpage at all. I cannot be happier so far with the outcome (including very few rusted spots for 49yrs old shell :) )

Surface finish after media blast was very good. We can clearly see differences in metal & previous repair attempt (with rivets 😢 )

 

Next question would be "how long it would take to get rid of media inside car now.

 

 

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