I want to sandblast my 66 f100 but dont know a dam thing about sandblasting really.....i know that i will have to sand over it a few times to get all the pits out of it, but thats about it!
I found a 30 gallon sandblaster, that operates off of 165 psi but i dont know if that would be enough pressure to get the job done or what?

 

you will need 16 to 18 cfm to run a pot blaster and use a extra fan to cool the tank and help cool the compressor it helped a lot when I did my truck

 

as 429 unibody said you will need 16 - 18 cfm. of air and this will be the bottom of the need. 25 to 35 would be better. keep in mind of where you live also as the noise and mess a blaster will make may be a big factor. also if you live in an area where the humidity is fairly high all the time then you will want a pot with a water trap or your feed will be plugged all the time from condensation. I waited around an purchased an older model pulltype 120 CFM compressor for just a little bit more than a 35 CFM new.unless you find a used one youre looking at 2-5000 bucks for a good compressor. jsut my 2 cents. Dutch

 

make sure you reclaime your sand! you will be hurting if you dont its expensive.

 

If have not already done so, like to take this opportunity to welcome you to FTE!! As noted, need a compressor that can put out sufficient cfm. Used my small shop compressor that puts out about 6.9 cfm, the duty cycle runs about 2 min's and another 2-3 min's building up pressure, and it's running constantly. Sandblasted chassis on the 65, dispite using protective gear and taking precautions I was miserable for a week, the media will get into every oriface known to the human body. Also, need to factor in if neighbors live in close proximity the media can travel quite a distance and cause damage. Understand soda blasting may be an alternative but requires an adapter to the standard presssure blaster, or purchase a soda blaster unit. Just as a note, Eastwood is having a large discount today if in need of restoration supplies or items. Finally, thought I thoroughly flushed the media from every crack and crevis, however, on couple occasions the paint gun hit a pocket of media while applying the primer. If had to do over I would use a combination of a water pressure blaster, wire wheels with large grinder and mini grinder, sand paper, etc. For cleaning the smaller items and parts I now use the pressure sandblaster, in conjunction with a cheap HF 2 door sandblasting cabinet; oh yea, talk about getting the job done quick. Anyhow, if decide to go with the pressure blaster suggest look in the area for local media supplier, I was very lucky and happened upon a supplier that's within 50 mi's round trip, had been paying considerable more when added to cost of shipping. Anyhow, had an urge to chime in.

 

Just a stupid question; How do you reclaim your sand? And how do you clean it for re-use?

 

I operate mine at 100psi, just did a tailgate this morning. Mine is a 30gal. pot blaster bought for $150 at Tractor supply. CFM is the big thing, read the requirements on the one you're looking at. Blasting media can had as cheap as $7.99 for Black Diamond, 50lb. bag. You can lay down a tarp to catch a lot of it and this stuff will only go about three rounds before replacing. Just sift it back thru a screen to filter out the larger stuff.

 

the guy i use for my sand blasting makes an enclosed room and blasts away. then just sweeps it up and gets the big stuff out. if it gets to full of junk its unuseable but usually you can get a few uses out of it. with all this considered. i just payed him to do it. it was really cheap compaired to buying enough media to use. i think my cab to get sandblasted was 200 and everything else i could think of sitting around. (little stuff) im maybe in it a hundred bucks.

 

Lots of guys do the job on a giant tarp and then fold the tarp up to reclaim the sand. Also, do not use sand. It contains Silica which is a pollutant and harmful to your respiratory system and the environment. Even if you live in an area with lax laws on the environment, don't use sand. The compressor you will need is massive. 5-7hp 220v unit pushing 18 scfm at 90psi is what I mean. Also, if you live in the south or midwest, you have to dry your compressed air. There are many, many ways to do this, but it has to be done or you'll be cleaning out the water trap on your sandblaster every 10 minutes.
For media, I like crushed glass. It's about $9.00 per 50lb bag and it's fine enough not to pit the metal.
When y ou are blasting, you have to make sure the metal doesn't heat up at all. It will warp.
I did a cost analysis and decided to have it done professionally. For around 1200, I got the bed, cab, inner fenders, doors, fenders, and hood done. I'll do the frame myself, but the pros use expensive plastic media which makes the metal look brand new with virtually no pitting. Then, they follow it up with glass. You can see the results in my blog. The metal is gorgeous. I figured (without the electricity costs) that it would cost me about half to do it myself. Then, I have to clean up the mess, dispose of the old glass, and make sure I don't warp my own parts. It just made sense to have it done.

 

do not use sand.it will distort your panels, crushed soda bottles works best.no panel distortortion.

 

Young66, that should definitely be enough pressure to clean most rusty parts but it also depends on the area your blasting. You might want to turn it down and or use softer abrasive for sheet metal.

But also look at all the air requirements for the sandblaster and compare it with a compressor that meets the minimum requirements.

Feel free to ask me any questions. I have a whole site dedicated to sandblasting equipment with information and such. Let me know.

-eric

 

your probably better off just bringing it into the profesonals...(?) because they will most likely not cost very much to compaired to doing it your self. as somebody said use soda bottles beacuse silaca could warp the metal, but on a frame i wouldn't worry. my uncle owns a sandblasting/ painting bussiness and approximetly charges about $500 to sandblast and paint a car/ pickup frame, with industrial emron paint and a good primer, cant think of it. but also you need to take into the extra costs of the possible fines/ broken laws/ and what else might come along with getting your own blasting equiptment.