Sand Blasting Cabinet Question

I sold my 62 cadillac and made a few bucks and I am concidering buying a bench sized sand blasting cabinet. Does anyone out there have an opinion on brands or whether it is a worthwile investment?

 

If you just want a small one try ww grainger or northern !!!

 

If you want a cabinet ,,,get the plans from Eastwood and build a cabinet big enough to handle large parts,,,,money well spent!HRP

 

I have a floor model. It seems like it is big enoug for most things I want to blast. But my compressor ****s. It takes FOREVER. I'm buying a 2 stage 80 gallon upright after the first of the year. So what size compressor do you have now?

 

Django is right.... with out a good 2 stage compressor it dosen't matter what size cabinet you get.

 

I seen on at Harbor Freight for under 100.00 bucks ths other say. Looked pretty nice.

 

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Django is right.... with out a good 2 stage compressor it dosen't matter what size cabinet you get.

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I agree, I have the HF floor model and I'm glad I didn't spend big bucks on a fancier one. I also use a 2-stage 80 air rig...don't have room for a seperate compressor room so it's nice not to have to listen to that compressor running all the time in the garage

 

I have 2 cabinets:

The small benchtop sold at HF/Northern/Homier. It is plastic and IMHO not worth the h***le. Why you ask?:
1. The glove attachment point is molded into the cabinet and has a slight taper. Making it difficult to keep the gloves in place while attaching the clamps.
2. You still need a dust collection apparatus: Shop vac dont cut it
3. The light switch is DANGEROUS!!! A CHEAP POS FROM CHINA that will overheat quickly.
4. CAB visiblity ****S
5. GUN ****S

1. I also have the floorstanding version from Homier ($99.00) at the local sale. I made many mods to it and functions as well as the one from www.TPTOOLS.com, but at 1/2 the price. My mods are shown here: Cab MODS

 

You are not gonna get much of a compressor for $100.00 ,,,

Good air equipment,compressors,air tools can't be cheap and last very long,,,,,My 2 cents worth. HRP

 

Currently I have a wimpy 1/2 horse 80 psi compressor.. but I am looking at 33 gal 140 psi one.. will that have enough to make the sanblaster effective.. Thanks for your replies.. Hodad

 

Air Consumption dialouge

 

hard to imagine one too big, I am always trying to stuff something in the box that once in I can't do anything with

I have a mid sized floor model from HF, it's just big enough to bast an early ford 16" rim or a big block tunnelram but I wish it were bigger,

be cool to have one that could take body parts, like a fender, door or tailgate, ya know?

Paul

 

banzaitoyota, EXCELLENT sites.
I have the same cabinet as you do. (still not big enough!!)

The sealing problems can be partly solved on these cabinets by retightening the hopper bolts a couple of times after first ***embley. (the gaskets compress)

Size of compressor; as HRP says, You can never buy too big. (capacity; both CFM and pressure) Even though I wanted a bigger one, budget restraints kept me to a vertical 60 gal. 5 HP, 20 CFM @ 90 PSI.

Air lines; keep small (I.D.) lines to a minimum. The bigger the air lines (I use 3/4") you can install, the better.

Dry air for blast cabinets. There is a BIG difference between Moisture SEPARATORS and AIR DRYERS! Air dryers use a desicant to "soak up" moisture. (HF sells them, but the desicant costs as much as the dryer!)

Compressor LOCATION; if shop space is at a premium, consider a shed outside the shop. Mine shop has an unheated second story and mine is upstairs. Contrary to "old wives tales", compressors can stand the cold. It can get down to -40 DEG F in my part of the world, but other than going to a lower viscosity oil in the head, (if it stays cold) it runs just fine.

 

Digger Dave: I used sealant on all my joints during ***embly.

BLACK IRON pipe with drop legs is your friend in helping to condense moisture out of the air

 

got this one from hf..199.00..

big enough for rims,, intakes , a arms..

 

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Digger Dave: I used sealant on all my joints during ***embly.

BLACK IRON pipe with drop legs is your friend in helping to condense moisture out of the air

[/ QUOTE ]

After the gaskets finished compressing, I used some silicone sealer too.

Where I live the moisture (humi***y) can get very high. I use "drops" at every outlet AND the air dryer. (sand tends to clump in the hopper without the dryer)

Because it can get so cold, I ran a line down from the compressor (second story, unheated) to the dryer in the shop, (heated) then back up to the blast cabinet. Unless the dryer is in a warm location, the desecant can freeze into a "block" when moisture hits it.

 

"Build it and have fun" I built one for a buddy of mine a long time ago,,i used 3/4 inch plywood to build the Box, and air duct sheet metal to line the box with,,,it was 6ftx3ftx3ft in dimension,,mounted my own gauntlet and gasket setup,,and we where away for the races,,,,So dont be shy,,,if ya need a bigger cabinete,,,build it,,,you can stuff whole fenders in there and end the frustration for good.

 

The small harbour freight one is a piece of JUNK. Spend a little more and get a larger one. You will be glad you did. After a year the gloves on mine fell apart (DRIED OUT). It never picked the blast media up correctly. The top seals poorly, etc. etc. etc. I will be taking mine to the next swap meet!!!!

 

Look for the biggest compressor you can afford...then buy a BIGGER one! I've got a bench top blaster from Harbor Freight...$69.00 on sale...cheap China **** but it works...door gaskets leak media..I caulked the left one shut and only use one. Buying a floor model MADE IN USA next...screw the cheap stuff.

 

harbor freight makes a descent one and inexpensive

 

Guys the $99.00 Cabinet from HOMIER is the exact one for 199/299 at Harbor Freight and Northern Tool.

Yes the TIP is nice but I dont have a grand to sink in a bead blast cabinet