I want to strip the paint from the frame of my bike and would like to use a media blaster. Is this thing from HF worth it or should I spring for one of the $100+ units? I will likely use it again after this so getting something that isn't a total POS is probably a good idea but I like the price of this particular POS.
Cheap siphon blasters are OK for small projects. A bike frame should be fine. If you plan on doing much more, spring for the pressure blaster.
Wear in the nozzles will dramatically increase your air consumption. Have extras on standby.
Lessons learned while blasting the bus.
Water blaster, wonderful to use, reasonably quick, not durable.
Siphon pot, does a great job but agonizingly slow. Call it 3 sq ft per hour.
Pressure pot, holy crap, be careful or the steel will be gone too. Fast, twice as powerful as the siphon pot, goes through sand super fast. The only way to blast a large area.
For what you are doing, a siphon pot will probably work fine. If the bike is powder-coated, it's going to take a while. If you see a lot of blasting in the future, get the pressure pot.
Sandblasting also uses a lot of air. A pressure pot uses even more. Make sure your compressor is up to the job.
I have a 60 gallon 3 hp compressor, no worries there.
Can I use whatever material with the siphon and pressure pot? It is an AL frame so I want to use something that won't damage the frame. It is just a crappy paint job so it should come off pretty easy.
Step 1) Get a 40x40 trap spread in working area. blast in the middle. Step 2) Tyvek suit and duct tape cuffs. Step 3) Wear a real respirator Step 4) Find old motorcycle open face helmet with clear shield.
Make sure you have dry dry air.
Bought this 20 lb. HF pressure pot for <$60, more off w/ coupon. All steel w/ heavy hoses, it doesn't feel cheap like a lotta HF stuff.
http://www.harborfreight.com/20-lb-pressurized-abrasive-blaster-68994.html
Need dry air, especially w/ siphon pot, a slug of condensate will plug the hose and nozzle every other minute. Good filter/ separator on compressor outlet usually solves that. Blow down compressor tank before and during use. Start w/ dry media too. Water is the enemy.
I'm prolly done w/ siphon pots.
singleslammer wrote: I have a 60 gallon 3 hp compressor, no worries there. Can I use whatever material with the siphon and pressure pot? It is an AL frame so I want to use something that won't damage the frame. It is just a crappy paint job so it should come off pretty easy.
If all you are doing is removing paint, I would be tempted to use aircraft stripper instead. One thing worth noting is container says to not use it on aircraft (yup really). Someone else said that because aircraft are made out of aluminum. I say its because of the liability of everything to do with a damn airplane.
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