Harbor Freight Sandblasters
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From: Keweenaw Bay, MI
Harbor Freight Sandblasters
I am thinking about buting one of them 40# pressurized sandblasters from Harbor Freight. Does anyone out there have any experience with that blaster? It is a model 34202 and, the price is right! $74.00.
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From: Moro Bay, AR
While these pots are much better than the siphon pots, the smaller ones will use up the sand rather quickly. I have the 10 gal pot, and it will run through a load of sand in less than 10 minutes.
Jeff
Jeff
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From: Northern California
I have the middle sized one from HF and it's worked great, used it a lot and it's a big time saver. I use about 1~1.5 bags of 50# 30 mesh sand in at a time and it handles it just fine.
The valves tend to wear out and need replacing as well as the hose where it connects to the bottom of the tank. The water filter is cheap crap, but I replaced it with a better one.
It goes on sale all the time, great deal.
The valves tend to wear out and need replacing as well as the hose where it connects to the bottom of the tank. The water filter is cheap crap, but I replaced it with a better one.
It goes on sale all the time, great deal.
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From: Northwest Fl
As mentioned the valve is the weakest part of the blaster, get extra ceramic nozzles when you order. I think mine is the 80# model and it has done a good job for me. A better hood would be nice if you going to be using it on a big project. A good cartridge dust mask is critical if you care about your health.
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From: North of Tulsa, Oklahoma
I've seen the similar model on sale for $49. I bought one for $75 back in 1998 and still use it. They are awesome little contraptions. A tank full of media should last more than 10 minutes. The only time I can see it emptied in 10minutes is if no ceramic nozzle or too big of a ceramic nozzle is used on the output end. I get my "-80" sand blasting sand in 60 pound bags at my local hardware store for under $4 a bag. Also check out Steves Wholesale Tools. They are just like Harbor Freight.
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I picked one up today at Harbor Freight. I just got done putting it together. The ball valve that everyone says wears out is an easy replacement. They have them there also, on the shelf.
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From: Austin USA
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Originally Posted by mantta
I picked one up today at Harbor Freight. I just got done putting it together. The ball valve that everyone says wears out is an easy replacement. They have them there also, on the shelf.
You can also get them at yer local Home Improvement stores. That's what I did. My compressor is a 2.5hp 20 gallon Craftsman. I would recommend a belt driven(quieter) compressor with a HUGE tank if you plan to blast a truck frame or do a lot of high volume parts blasting.
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I have a big enough air compressor, it is a Coleman Powermate 7 HP with a 60 gallon tank. It is rated at 10.3 cfm @ 90 psi. It will fill up from 0 pressure to 135 psi in 4 minutes.
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Thats good news. Mine cranks out 13.1CFM at 90; 60 gal tank, I had feared that it might be a low for any sand blasting. I'm not planning on doing any frames or anything, but it sure will be easier than sanding a bunch of smaller things.
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karljay was right on target. I have a 90# unit, and the same compressor as mantta. You will see that that compressor is not really enough, but will be OK. It'll blast great until the tank runs out, then just OK from there on out. You'll see on larger jobs. What ever you do, don't throttle the ball valve at the busniss end of the hose. You'll wear it out FAST! I ruined mine in about 5 minutes. That valve is an all-or-nothing valve. I replaced mine with the hose squeezing type - works much better. After owning this setup for 4-5 years, I subbed my last truck frame blasting job out to a commercial blasting guy. You can certainly do it, but you'll also find out how much 'fun' it gets to be... Good luck, you really will enjoy having this setup.
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Fine black beauty, yes - well one of these cheap cloth filters. I save the respirator for painting. And like huntsman said, get a better hood, with extra lenses - the don't last long. Also get some foam ear plus or muffs. Otherwise you'll be digging sand out of your ears for a week. Sand blasting is one of the comfortable things I've ever done.
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