Initial Z Posted March 25, 2006 Share Posted March 25, 2006 I’m almost at the stage in my restoration/modification where I need to blast my Z to get it all cleaned up for body work and paint. I have been looking to get a sand blaster to do the job my self and save some money but I’m not sure what to get. I don’t want to spend over $200 if possible (including shipping). In my search I found on ebay lots of adds such as this one... http://cgi.ebay.com/20-GALLON-HIGH-PRESSURE-SANDBLASTER-TANK-SAND-BLASTER_W0QQitemZ4450234920QQcategoryZ43570QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Have any of you used a blaster like this? Would it work for doing an entire car? Well thanks for the help in advance. Nate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
U.P. Z Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 That should work just fine. You definately want a pressurized blaster, just make sure you have enough air to run it. A smaller tip helps reduce air usage and then use the finer grade sand. And moister is an enemy to sandblasting so be sure to have a good moisture trap. You might find you can only do so much at one time before your compressor gets hot and starts pumping out alot of moisture. Once water gets in the blaster tank it clogs up the sand. And make sure you wear a respirator, you don't want silicosis! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DemonZ Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 That looks like the ticket. The pressure type works much better than the syphon kind. Look into preventing inhilation of silica dust. It's really REALLY nasty stuff. It goes in the lungs and doesn't come back out. Buy the best respirator you can afford. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 That looks like a rip off, $65 for shipping? Wonder what Harbor Freight charges: http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=40925 If it were a good quality vs cheap *** quality thing that would be one thing, but these look like the same unit... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
U.P. Z Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 Didn't see the shipping price. Maybe try some local industrial supply shops. I've seen them under $100 and no shipping. I think there's a pic of mine on the front page of my site. I can't even remember what I paid it's been so long but for $200 you might get something like it. the nice thing is the top is inverted so you just dump the sand into it without a funnel and then there's a plug that pulls up and seals with air pressure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK-Z Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 Didn't see the shipping price. Maybe try some local industrial supply shops. I've seen them under $100 and no shipping. I think there's a pic of mine on the front page of my site. I can't even remember what I paid it's been so long but for $200 you might get something like it. the nice thing is the top is inverted so you just dump the sand into it without a funnel and then there's a plug that pulls up and seals with air pressure. To add to this , most industrial shops sell used ones that are usually inpected before they sell it. Could save you alot more. Also when spraying, wait till the compressor stops before you do spray. If you continually spraying, you might burn out your compressor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Initial Z Posted March 26, 2006 Author Share Posted March 26, 2006 Thanks for the info guys! One more thing is there a consensus on what kind of media to use? And what diameter nozzle to use with that kind of media? Thoughts on effectiveness, price, availability? How much media can I expect to go through on my Z? I was thinking I would use walnut shell because it's not harsh on the metal and it's biodegradable (I'm planning to do this outside). Thanks, Nate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK-Z Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 Thanks for the info guys! One more thing is there a consensus on what kind of media to use? And what diameter nozzle to use with that kind of media? Thoughts on effectiveness' date=' price, availability? How much media can I expect to go through on my Z? I was thinking I would use walnut shell because it's not harsh on the metal and it's biodegradable (I'm planning to do this outside). Thanks,[/color']Nate If you want to go walnut for those reasons, then I recommend soda blasting media (course baking soda used for blasting). It barely even scuff the metal underneath. And its easily removed with water or solvents, unlike sand and walnut. Great for removing paint down to the metal. I don't know about nozzle size but I use a 30/70 mix of media. I also like using slag mix. It shouldn't cost you more than $15-$20 for the media I use, but I'm not sure about walnut or soda (I sometimes happen to find a bag of soda in my trunk after I visit my dad's work:mrgreen:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
U.P. Z Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 I used silica sand to do the underside, inside, engine bay, basically everything except the outer body panels. It's cheap and cuts well but you wouldn't want to use it on the body panels or you will warp them if. I've never used walnut shells or soda so I can't speak about that. I just DA'd the paint off the exterior and blasted some parts like the rear hatch(except for the lower flat section), cowl, headlight buckets and lower corners. I use slag(blackjack) in my blast cabinet and it works very well too. Whatever you use, if you're doing the whole car expect to go through alot of media. And I would size the tip and material according to the air that you have available. The tips are going to wear and get bigger as you go so it doesn't hurt to start with like a 1/8" tip. You'll use alot less air, the only problem is they will plug up more often as a larger chunk come through the line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLOZ UP Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 I also need to media blast my car--outside. Thanks for the info! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Some-Guy Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 iam going to have to get one of these too man I dont have any tools anymore my wife is going to kill me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SportZ2 Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 A 5hp compressor is the lowest you can go with that setup and even then it's still weak. I T-d two 5hp compressors together amd that helped. Also do not fill the tank with media more then halfway. The finer or more consistant media works best. If using any kind of sand, it will sometimes clog up at the lower valve making it a pain to clear. I found that having a 25 gallon trash can and a big kitchen sifter helped to cut down on the clogging. Copper Slag works excellent and has no dust in it. The problem with CS is, it's black and if you don't plan to recapture the media you will have black stuff all over the place. My neighbor was not very happy with me since a lot of it blew over into his yard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackBeaut Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 That's pretty much identical to my blaster, certainly does the job. I've been using fine sand for most stuff, just recently switched to glass beads to clean up some gearbox housings. Think I'll give copper slag ago at some point as the points made about sand breaking down are very true and not very pleasant to experience. Can be a pain to set the flow up using the ball valves, and every now and then it just decides to quit spitting the media out and you have to fiddle with it, at which point it'll be fine again for a while. I use a kitchen flour sieve to recycle the media so haven't suffered a blocked valve anywhere yet. I also made a large cabinet out of plywood (about 3' square base by 5' tall) which I do the majority of my working in to minimise media loss. Cheers, Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 Jon is right. That thing looks exactly like the Harbor Freight unit. I picked up the same unit for $40 or $50 on sale at HF. Sure beats the $150 that ebay dildo wants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JIM73240Z Posted March 29, 2006 Share Posted March 29, 2006 has any one used glass beads for media? just curious. jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK-Z Posted March 29, 2006 Share Posted March 29, 2006 has any one used glass beads for media?just curious. jim Silica is glass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
U.P. Z Posted March 29, 2006 Share Posted March 29, 2006 Silica is glass. Glass beads are different than silica sand and are typically used in blast cabinets. They will last much longer but also cost much more. Not something you would spray out of a portable blaster. http://www.kramerindustriesonline.com/blasting-media/glass-beads.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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