Bluntly - the blast gun I use was less than ten bucks at "Any Auto Parts".

It took a while to get my method down, the biggy is just to NOT bury the pickup tube in the sand bucket. It plugs up fast, and all you need is a little bit of flow to do one heck of a job!

Shown in image 1) is the basics:
A tarp to catch as much sand as possible, the blast gun and compressor line, most important is PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT!!!

Sand will go everywhere, and how... It will rain sand, and also get in your eyes if you don't have safety glasses or goggles of some kind. Goggles fog, I know. But to a degree you can use the old divers trick: Spit on the lenses and rinse them with water just like a facemask.

A hood or balaclava is a wonderful thing. It's easier to shake out than your hair, and it will also filter the dust out that you and I don't need to be breathing.

Gloves are a good idea, and the hat you see here is mainly to help keep sand from doing an end run around my glasses.

Finally - an air nozzle is needed to blow the sand off the finished work, although the gun itself can also be used for that.




Sand FLOW in one of these "inexpensive" siphon-type blasters is a common problem. They quit, clog, and generally drive Ya nuts...

Here's a notion for Ya though - don't jam the pickup tube down in the sand bucket and ignore it. If you do - it will ignore everything. Instead sweep the pickup tube across the top of the sand in the bucket, just deep enough to suck in sand at a steady even rate, this will almost guarantee a clog-free time of it, and if it does clog - cover the end of the blast gun nozzle with a rag and back-blow the sand out of the pickup tube while pointing the pickup tube in a safe direction. It will clear the whole works in a split second.

True, it makes it a two-handed job, but it also makes it work as continuously as you can ask for...




Try to plan your blast direction so as to hit the target as nearly at 90 degrees as you can, but in tight spots just take your time. The results will exceed the image below - most of which was cleaned in less than two minutes. As you can see it got right down to the steel, and this thing was an absolute rust bucket.

A big one is to give your compressor a rest if it isn't a big commercial one. My neighbor just turned in a forty gallon upright rig that had the compressor blow out completely, it had gotten so hot from use it busted a connecting rod... Check the crankcase temperature on your compressor every so often. If you can fry an egg on it let that puppy cool off for a while! Take down as much scale and loose rust as you can with a wire wheel and a drill so that you don't have to use the blaster as much - the purpose of a sandblaster is to get into places a wire wheel just can't go...

One thing you can also do is to try to have a light finger on the trigger. You don't have to spray WOT constantly, this will spare your air usage to some degree, and that means you get more out of a session at a time.

Contrary to popular belief, these little ten-buck blasters can do a lot! Sand is not real expensive (it's cheaper if you live in a desert) - eighty pound sacks are still only about four to six bucks. PLUS you can reclaim some of it.

Finally, keep your sand dry. Wet sand won't go anywhere...



*I'm not gonna mention what this frame IS except that it's a trailer, and practice for the G-II chassis sitting next to it.

 

A few additional tips for ya:
If you run the sand through a window screen 90% of the clogs will be eliminated.
People will think I am weird(er), but I also have actually put trays of sand in my oven to dry them out, it makes a huge difference. Water separator in the air line close to the gun is a must-

I like to steam clean what I'm going to blast, getting the grease off makes it far easier since the sand will just stick to the grease and build up.

FWIW, Don't sandblast your hand either. Leather gloves, long sleeve shirt, hat and a full face respirator are best. Be very careful about breathing the dust, sand pulverizes into silica dust, and silicosis is very bad.

 

To see what a sandblaster at 120 - 150 PSI can do, try testing it on a raw chicken drumstick. It fairly closely simulates human skin, flesh, and bone...

And I wouldn't advise using the air nozzle to dust yourself off after a blast session either - 120+ PSI is enough to drive lots of things right into your skin (including solvent, which is why OSHA passed a rule in the seventies limiting the airflow in air nozzles).

I'd wear a space suit if I could, I was having flashbacks about a time I was standing the gate watch during a sandstorm in Jebal Ali....

 

Some good results and good tips. Thanks.

 

That's what we're here for - if I can't make something work, I know that all I have to do is ask!

 

good write up, i have the same blaster... have used it for everything from my falcons body, capri's 8.8, to my dad using it to do etching.

i usually tip the bucket, put the tube next to the sand, then set the bucket down and let the sand slide back over the tube, but i will try using the two hands.

and i have found that not only does not running it wide open all the time help with your compressor, but i have foud that it helps with the flow of the sand

 

Remove as much oil and grease as you can before sand blasting. Not only will it make it easier to sand blast, you can also drive the oil and grease into the metal, causing problems with paint adhering properly. I usually use diesel fuel to clean off heavy build up, then some warm soapy water (dishwashing soap is the best to use) and a stiff brush. Rinse off and let dry for a while. Sandblast, clean again with a good metal prep and degreaser, then prime.

I also always run my sand thru a window screen. Found it really cuts down on clogs to begin with. Doesnt matter if its siphon or pressure pot blaster.

 

You can find these sand blasters for 10 dollars are local auto parts stores?? I think i might have to get one if so! Sounds like it works well for the money. Especially with the few tips yall have suggested! Thanks

 

That's pretty much what i used for years. A bucket-o-sand and the siphon. I altered the pail with a hole at the bottom for the hose.
I also used the sifted sand trick, and heated damp sand in an old electric frying pan.

This summer I was driving past a yard sale and stopped. He had a new in the box bottle type blaster for $75. I checked the catalogs at home and saw it was half price, then forgot about it. The next day it was still there and he took $30.
I welded on two wheels and a cross handle to wheel it around.
It blasts much faster than the Bucket-o-sand, and uses sand in no time. All my protection had to be upgraded as well. Sand flies everywhere with force.