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bead blasting starter kit....

fastcarsgofast
I have a small compressor and wanted to start bead blasting. Nothing big, just to strip off old finishes and such. What is the best (most cost effective) way to get started?
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7 comments

Date Votes
  • bigtire
    Go to Harbor Freight and get a small Abrasive Blast Cabinet for $90. I have one and it's great for small parts. Don't forget the silicone blasting media too. If you already have a compressor, that's all you need.

    http://www.harborfreight.com/garage-shop/blast-cabinets/abrasive-blast-cabinet-42202.html
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  • ern98
    What bigtire suggested is what I did and what I found out was that air flow can become a problem. At 125psi the CFM from my compressor was inadequate to run the bead blaster that I bought form Harbor Freight, for more then a few minutes with out the pressure droping off to noneffective levels. I added a couple of secondary air storage pressure bottles which helped. But even so I still spend more time waiting for the system to pump back up then actual time blasting on things like a M98 receiver or trigger guard. I have since been on the look out for a much larger compressor and tank system.
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  • bigtire
    That small cabinet is rated for 10 CFM at 100lbs. It'll get you started but like ern98 said you might spend more time waiting than blasting if your compressor is too small.
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  • EhlerDave
    Hey a question I can help with.

    For small parts I use a cup gun blaster they work fine on lower CFM comps. Mine runs on 35-40 psi. A good abrasive I have used for years when working was a product called Starblast. It does not break down so it can be reused if caught. I do a lot of my blasting in a cabinet with the cup gun and just recycle the starblast. It is light enough that with the cup guns it will not hurt your fingers yet will cut glass like a torch. 1 single layer of duct tape will stop the abrasive so it is easy to blast just what you want. It leaves a good anchor pattern for most coatings. I know the pattern will buff out easy for bluing.

    I saw a place (cant think of the name right now) that sells starblast on the net, in 25lb buckets, that would last a long time.
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  • Spartacus
    another route is to go with a "sandblast" set uo with a pressurized media tank. i got mine from a local store, but harbor freight has 'em too. mine can hold 25 pounds media and once its pressurized, the compressor has no trouble keeping up. acts like a reserve tank.
    anyway, i use it to strip to bare metal with 90 grit AL oxide. about 60 seconds blast time for a full refinish prep on a 1911.
    dscf0316u.jpg
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  • mrbruce
    If you plan on reblueing or painting the blasted parts dont use any silicone media..
    Hard to get stuff to stick to it after using it...
    seems like it pounds right into the metal and causes problems...
    Aluminum oxide is your best bet..
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  • oneoldsap
    What mrbruce says is so, glass beads don't work for any finish prep other than bluing either !
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