Blasting cabinets, their purchase and use.

I picked up a really cool little Gesswein sandblasting cabinet off of Craigslist.

It started life at a jewelry store, so it's set up with tiny little 1/4" air lines for super delicate work. As it is, it can barely remove the paint from a beer can, but my plan is to upgrade the gun and lines to full size stuff so I can do small car parts in there. I have a friend with a machine shop and I use his blasting cabinet for the big stuff.

Three rules for blasting.

1. Don't use sand.

2. Don't use sand.

3. Protect your lungs. (Don't use sand.)

I have two of the HF cabinets, the bench top model and the floor model.  I set the floor model on a piece of plywood with some 1x3 screwed to the edges so the cabinet won't slip off. I also added caster wheels to the bottom of the plywood.  I use the space under the cabinet to store the dust trap that I use to catch the blast dust before it goes into my vacuum.  You must use some kind of vacuum to keep the rest of the room clean. Mine is in my basement with an air line running to my attached garage where my Craftsman air compressor is. 

Also to see into the cabinet I replaced the stock "window" with a sheet of plexiglass in a frame. I then cover the inside of the window with the plastic they sell to make "Storm Windows".  You apply the double faced tape to the frame, apply the plastic sheet, trim off the excess, and then heat the plastic with a heat source like a hot air gun or hair drier.

You need at least 10 CFM per minute @ 60 psi to be able to blast effectively or you will have to stop and let the compressor catch up every couple of minutes.

As other posters have stated, I wouldn't be without my two blast cabinets.  What I need now is an old electric oven so I can do my own power coating.

Don't know if this has been mentioned yet but i run mine with a shop vac and no filter, with a second hose on the outlet of the vacuum blowing outside.  The filter clogs almost immediately from blasting.  

I've got a fairly good size cabinet with an external vacuum setup. It has a flip top and side doors which are nice depending on what you are doing. In FL keeping the humidity out is almost impossible. I normally don't run a ton of silica so it draws better. When I have a lot to do I run my 80 gallon, twin cylinder compressor PLUS a Craftsman 30 gallon portable jacked into another part of the line. These things can use a ton of air. Mine is outside under the eave of the shop roof. They really make a mess. If you can figure out a way to have it outside, maybe under your covered open area your shop will thank you.

I've got a TP Tools setup. You can buy them scratch-and-dent on their eBay store.

Quality of the cabinet makes a lot of difference. Mine is inside my shop and doesn't make a mess whatsoever. I wouldn't have it inside of my shop near nice things if it was a messy operation. The vacuum keeps the dust contained. Good door seals and construction play into this too. I clean the vacuum cannister every few months. 

To power it, I have a Champion 80 gallon, two stage compressor (way back in the right corner of the shop by the blue welder). It works very well to run the cabinet. I worked the previous 60 gallon Ingersoll Rand to death a few years ago. The IR compressor couldn't keep up with the air demand. The Champion happily cycles on and off at about three minute intervals. 

It's vitally important to maintain the cabinet. The nozzles erode, even the ceramic ones. It happens so slowly that you don't notice it until you realize the compressor is working too hard trying to keep up. Buy something that you can always get service parts for. I see a lot of guys buy cheaper cabinets and then upgrade them with TP brand parts.

I have mine regulated to 90psi with no real air drying measures than a wall mounted Milton dryer. The secret to dry air is not working your compressor too hard and getting it too hot. When the compressor gets hot and starts producing hot air and it hits that cool tank and air lines, that's when you get moisture problems.

Yes, I spent a fair bit of money on my setup, but I worked up to it through years of using lesser equipment and the problems thereof. To me, a blasting cabinet is the single most essential tool for restoring cars, so I place a high priority on having a good setup.

Full disclosure, I have probably 3500 dollars invested in my compressor and blast cabinet. I'm not a rich man but having the ability to easily do good work made it a priority of mine to save and buy these things. Stuff like this lasts a lifetime, so when I parlay the costs out over the years it isn't that out of line and there is zero frustration involved when you have a good working setup.

In reply to Cousin_Eddie :

Good info and perspective - and most of all, cool shop!!

I am guessing that the jump from no blast cabinet  to a cheap one with a crappy compressor is bigger then from a cheap one with a crappy compressor to a $3,500 set up.

I am really kicking myself for not getting one earlier. It really is a game changer. And they can be had for cheap from HF and don't really lose much much used. If you are on the fence, buy a cheap one and then sell it when you upgrade later.

BTW: I don't know if my gun was worn, but it would stick open. I bought a $19 off of Amazon and it made a huge difference in the removal of paint when using glass beads.

In reply to Cousin_Eddie :

Huge thanks for that insight, and another thumbs up for that garage. The bikes in the loft are impressive.

And thanks to everyone else for your input. I picked up the floor mount HF cabinet and 50lbs of glass beads. I'm going to stop by HD and grab the parts to build the water bath filter and the rest of the filtration system. Once I get it all working it'll get wheels so I can store it inside where it's dry and roll it outside to use. I'm going to link back to this thread from the Grosh thread which is where I'll go over putting this together and using it.