Tank-type sand blaster

[rmaynard 15,509]

Years ago I bought a Harbor Freight 40lb tank-type sand blaster on sale cheap. It's been on the shelf ever since. Never used it. So my question is, has anyone successfully used one of these? I'm picking up another tub cart tomorrow and thought I'd try sand blasting with the tank since the cart won't fit in my cabinet blaster. 

 

[squonk 41,150]

I had a TP tools tank blaster years ago. Worked ok. As with all sandblasting. Dry media and dry air (and a lot of it)  is the key. Also plenty of nozzles. they wear out fast and lose velocity. I used carbide nozzles. 

Edited September 2 by squonk

[c-series don 8,720]

I have the same one. I’d say it’s a little finicky to use but once the media is flowing with the proper air/media mixture it works pretty good. The proper PPE is a must, eyes, ears and a good mask and hood. 

[lynnmor 7,307]

8 minutes ago, c-series don said:

I have the same one. I’d say it’s a little finicky to use but once the media is flowing with the proper air/media mixture it works pretty good. The proper PPE is a must, eyes, ears and a good mask and hood. 

Think NASA space suit, it is nasty experience doing open air blasting.  Find a place where cleanup won't be a problem.

[rmaynard 15,509]

Back several decades ago, I had a friend who introduced me to sandblasting. He too had a tank-type. He had an empty cardboard box that his new washing machine came in. He made a surround with it so that some of his media could be captured and reused. I know about PPE from painting with acrylic urethanes, so I will be careful. 

[JPWH 6,040]

Medium to coarse grit media works best. Fine grit clogs up too easy.

[BBQVultureWings 100]

  I have done Quite a lot of sand blasting, using a cabinet & a pressure pot set up with a dinosaur of an old ingersol tow behind compressor. Moisture is your biggest enemy. I did some Electrical work for a guy in exchange for 2 Industiral Air dryers. These were the really nice, large 1s (about $300-$400 each) I bought reducing fittings to make adapters for using a dryer at the blasting cabinet. Once i had the dryers in the mix, 1 at the compressor outlet & 1 at the pot inlet, I Never had ANY problems no matter what media i used. I would go to menards, home depot, lowes & other big box stores & get the manager to deal with me on all the bottom of the pallet bags of various media, Those are the 1s with holes n tears in them that won't & often don't sell, So they will more often than not  actually take what ever you offer them on it & even direct a forklift to load that pallet on your truck This really depends on who ya get on what day but once you find a smart manager that wants the floor space back & to be rid of damaged stock that probably won't sell, you now have a good source. I was successful with this about 80% of the time.. I saved a ton of money on blasting media that way. Yeah it is a pain to deal with sometimes but twice the media for 1/3 the price is worth it to me as I am short 1 money tree in my back yard. My former neighbor owns the equipment. I have blasted several vehicle body panels, Willys jeep frames, truck frames, engine blocks, boats, trailers, mini bike frames n fenders ( mostly Carl Heald Mini Bikes & the Super Trykes because, well, theyre RED just like Wheel Horse,,, Imagine that...) 

 Sand Blasting is not glamorous work & propper PPE is a Must, Eyes, ears, Face shield or a helmet, long sleevs, boots, Gloves & pants ....there are hoods for full mellon protection available also. For a pot set up the bigger the better when it comes to air supply from a towed unit is the best "no waiting for air to build up" but that is not realistic if your just doing a couple parts but if you're doing multiple large pieces or doing restoration work on the scale we were doing it made sense to buy that dinosaur towable compressor the lower frame was the fuel tank but it was all rusted out so we just dropped the fuel line into a 5 gallon gas can & ran it that way. I miss that machine because we never had to wait for air to build up.

The former neighbor sold that compressor after I moved because it was not getting used much. I still have 1 dryer, the other I left with him for the cabinet because in the summer, the condensation will cause all kinds of problems, winter is not so bad. A dryer will really help no matter which set up you run.

The dryers are what will make or break your day when it comes to actually accomplishing work vs clearing clogs & jams in the outlet for the sand.  Trust me, I learned the hard way  . Hope that helps