Re: Soda blaster vs Sandblaster costs??


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Posted by Marty on Thursday, November 29, 2007 at 20:39:05 :

In Reply to: Soda blaster vs Sandblaster costs?? posted by John on Thursday, November 29, 2007 at 20:07:14 :

John,
Walnut shell, soda, plastic media...they all work great to remove paint but they don't touch rust.
You need to do it in stages for the best results. I personally prefer walnut shell first but many prefer plastic, corn husk, etc etc. Black beauty is similar to silica sand. It will remove a certain amount of metal & although this I find gives great paint adhesion...it also distorts the metal to a certain degree...a small degree if you know what you're doing...run low air pressure & blast at a steep angle.
After you initially go over it & blast with plastic/walnut, then I use black beauty, silica or fine slag glass to go after any rusty areas.
Never blast areas that can easily be sanded with a DA sander. Roofs, back of the cab, door skins...just dust them carefully if you use any form of abrasive. It won't look warped until you apply a coat of gloss :)
Power Wagon's are forgiving because the steel is so thick but even PW's...the big flat areas can be warped quickly if you blast straight on with 120lbs of air.
If you don't have any of the equipment, you really need to decide if you want to buy this equipment. It depends how many trucks you plan to restore. For starters, plan on a minimum $1500 compressor. If it doesn't put out 18cfm, it won't cut it. 5HP 2 stage compressor minimum. Then, a pressure unit can be had for a few hundred dollars, a few hundred for protective gear & a few hundred worth of media. Is it worth it for one truck? No...I'd have a shop do it.
You know something...we have 3 huge sandblast units here at my disposal & I still send things out to be blasted now.
Plan on $1000 for every part of your truck from frame to body parts to shocks & engine parts if you so desire.
The mess to clean up is huge & it truly is the worst job on the planet. Ever had sand/slag glass in your underwear? :)
That's my advice for what it's worth.
I've done more than my share of blasting & it's just not something suited for the home do it yourselfer.
By the way...same machine whether your blasting sand, plastic or walnut...just adjusted for each different media.
I don't think anyone actually uses soda anymore.



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