DIY Sandblast Tub

After realizing how much Denno-Liner, Bondo, and fiberglass there is on the floor of the bronco, and I was going to get it all sandblasted, I though:

I'm going to have to get the frame done at some point, and the engine compartment, and the underside of the body. What if I buy a cheap blaster and do it myself. I've got no experience but my best friend knows how. So I was thinking about Buying this at HF. Practicing first on other metal I have lying around, then giving it a go.

Yes? No? Stupid idea? Worth it to have a professional do it?

Thanks!

Jim

ObscureMachine said:

After realizing how much Denno-Liner, Bondo, and fiberglass there is on the floor of the bronco, and I was going to get it all sandblasted, I though:

I'm going to have to get the frame done at some point, and the engine compartment, and the underside of the body. What if I buy a cheap blaster and do it myself. I've got no experience but my best friend knows how. So I was thinking about Buying this at HF. Practicing first on other metal I have lying around, then giving it a go.

Yes? No? Stupid idea? Worth it to have a professional do it?

Thanks!

Jim

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This IMHO!

I have spent many hours behind a sandblaster as well as an angle gringer and various wheels/cups. If I ever have to do a whole bronco I will definitely be finding a shop or mobile guy to do it. They can do in an hour or two what takes many weekends with a home rig, plus you need a hell of an air compressor to keep up. Have you checked out the mobile guys that do the sand or glass and water mix. I think they only charge about $500.

I don't think sand blasting will remove it. Or I believe I've read that somewhere.

All accounts I've read n heard that mess is a pita to remove.

The biggest PITA is keeping your media dry. Here it stays so humid that the media picks up moisture from ambient air as well as all of the moisture in the compressed air. A water separator helps a lot but some still makes it through. Damp media doesn't spray worth a darn and you get constant clogs.

half cab said:

I don't think sand blasting will remove it. Or I believe I've read that somewhere.

All accounts I've read n heard that mess is a pita to remove.

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It is a pain. I ended up using the 3m stripper wheels on one I had that was undercoated. They do make urethane/epoxy stripping agents which should loosen it up pretty good.

I have been using that blaster for over ten years and it works good for general blasting. You need to make sure you screen your sand before pouring it in. You need a pretty good compressor to keep it going also. You need a good hood as well so you can see what your doing. By the time you do all that keep in mind you can have it professionally done for around 650 bucks. Drop it off and pick it up is all you need to do. They also have the mobile ones but I have never checked into that. That being said, that is a decent blaster for the money and I am sure you will get a lot of use out of it. Ken

You are gonna need about $2k in equipment and consumables if you buy it outright. And that might be low balling it. I pd $1.2k on a IR air compressor and $200 on HF blasting cabinet alone. With that much investment I made I can't do a complete bronco. It would take way too long and too much strain on my air compressor. I'd be glad to pay $500 and watch somebody strip my bronco body.

I bought one of those back in 1995 and have used it many times. They work OK if you use good blasting media. Tractor Supply sells the blasting media at the best price. You have to be very concerned of Silicosis. Do some searching on precautions when sandblasting. I was always outside, wore a quality respirator and hood and a painters suit and probably still made mistakes. I converted mine over so it also does soda blasting. But the soda media doesn't remove rust, just really good for blasting paint off and doesn't heat up the metal like the silica, meaning less chance to warp thin metal.

Years ago I paid a mobile sandblaster to come out and blast a D2 Caterpillar crawler I was restoring. Back then only cost me $350 and this guy was in a full suit with oxygen supplied helmet. If I ever need to do another big project I am going to have someone come out. It's hot, messy work which I now want left to someone else.

Now probably 99.9% of the time I have my tank sandblaster hooked in to a blasting cabinet I bought from harbor freight. The suction thing that came with the cabinet did not work well, so I stuck the hose from my tank into the cabinet and it works great. Just have to dump out the media and then pour it through a screen back into the tank. I also have a shop vac hooked to the cabinet to keep the dust clear as I blast.

Read the HF reviews on the blaster. That one that says you need bone dry media, well DUH, of course you do. If the media is dry this blaster works fine.

Also, you need some good, dry air supply. If the compressor is small it is going to run and run and never keep ahead of the air needs.

I'll just add my .02 to everyone else. Blasted a GM A body several years ago with my brother-in-laws professional set up. Media was a couple of hundred dollars alone. As others have stated, it's hot, messy and you need a respirator to boot. And that was working with a huge I-R compressor also. Small compressor won't keep up with large undertaking like frame or body panels. If you have small things to do in a cabinet, do it. Send the big stuff out, it will be about the same cost, if not cheaper, and you'll get it done faster.

Well-recommended shop quoted me $150 for the blasting (the floor and bed) plus $150 for prepping and masking. But told me I could bring it there and do the masking myself for no charge. So, that's my plan!

ObscureMachine said:

Well-recommended shop quoted me $150 for the blasting (the floor and bed) plus $150 for prepping and masking. But told me I could bring it there and do the masking myself for no charge. So, that's my plan!

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If there's as much bonds/glass/bed liner as you say, they'll back up on you. My 210 CFM media blaster can do in 10 seconds what would take 10 minutes to do on paint alone not to mention the other that needs to come off the metal. Don't waste your money on the HF pot. And be ready to pay them 4-500 at the minimum to blast it.

BTW, my sand/soda/wet blaster is for sale in northeast TX!