Sand blasting cabinets

madmachinst · Oct 26, 2011

I need something about 24X34 inside work area. anybody have any reccomendations. I definately need foot operated and a blow gun would be highly appreciated. Of course I need something that comes with a vacuum.

autofrite · Oct 26, 2011

three day money back guarantee,one year warranty on parts.
seems pretty straight forward to me,i dont see where the problem is.

i have been tossing around the sandblaster idea myself,once i get mt bigger compressor i will be building my cabinet in a remote shed.i will be using a venturi type dust vacum to just blast the dust outside.

MwTech Inc · Oct 26, 2011

Look at TP Tools

Have used their cabinets for years, well made, good value and actually work.

3 cabinet owner

Ries · Oct 26, 2011

I bought all the working parts from TP, built my own sheet metal box, its 48" x 32" x 32", and have had it for close to 20 years now. Works fine, spare parts are available pretty cheap.
I would suggest going with carbide nozzles- the metal ones last about five minutes, the ceramic ones a few days.
And I would say that decent dust collection, NOT a shop vac, is essential.
I run locally sourced Starblast, which is a staurolite sand that is much safer than beach sand, as it has almost no crystalline silica in it, and it lasts a long time and is well worth paying extra for.
Starblast? and Starblast? XL Blasting Abrasives

L Vanice · Oct 26, 2011

I have been using my Trinco Master Model 36 blast cabinet with dust collector for decades. I use a mix of aluminum oxide and glass beads that Trinco calls TrinMix.

Trinco Trinity Tool Co. Sandblasting Equipment

Prices here: http://goldmachinery.com/machinery/trinco36.htm

Larry

wgnrr1 · Oct 26, 2011

Definately build your own. TP tools has the best selection on parts, and you can build whatever size you want. I built mine out of an old 265 gallon fuel barrel. Works great.

Good luck,
Josh

tfoley · Oct 26, 2011

I bought a TP Tools cabinet a couple of years ago and has worked great. I shopped around and though I did not need an abolute professional level machine I have been very impressed with the cabinet I got as compared to a Trinco and Empire they have at work. As MWtech said they are a good value and well made. I might also add the company really seems to take good care of their customers.

Tommy

FlatBeltBob · Oct 26, 2011

Fuel oil tank

For 25 years I have been using my shop built cabinet made from a 275 gal fuel oil tank .
Cut one end out and build a door , a window viewing panel another on top with a 4 ft flourescent tube . 2 hand holes with inner tube sleeves , and gauntlet gloves from TP .
A small furnace blower exhausts a 4" PVC pipe outside .
A bit of experiments to get the pipe legs the right height .
If you are right handed , make the right arm hole about 2" higher
FBBob

PeteM · Oct 26, 2011

I've been happy with a 36" Econoline cabinet

(abrasive blasting equipment manufactured by Econoline).

Both top and side loading, with your choice of nozzle sizes (12 cfm, 25cfm), a foot pedal, air blast etc. This has much heavier (longer-lasting) steel, more even lighting, easier window shield replacements, a strong parts shelf, and better sealing than a friends import.

I've also heard good things about TP Tools, referenced above.

It's pretty easy to build a solid cabinet, but a bit harder to get the flow and ergonomics right the first time in a home built unit. As Ries suggests buy at least the critical components if you're building your own -- and then check other designs for ideas on windows, collection box angles, blast media change doors, and the like.

Make sure you have enough dry compressed air. A 5hp Quincy is just barely adequate for my 12cfm gun, despite having a higher cfm rating. I'll often parallel in another compressor.

McMaster Carr carries this line (though not identified as such), along with all replacement parts from gloves to nozzles. Good way to get an idea of pricing.

Weirsdale George · Oct 27, 2011

I made a 46x32 sandblast cabinet out of OSB about eight years ago. It is a top load with side openings for progressively sticking long things through. I use a siphon-feed gun taken from a Sears portable sandblaster at 100 PSI. The working surface is expanded metal with a window screen 4 inches below that to catch flakes of rust so I can recycle the media.

For media, I really like Black Magic Slag -- quite aggressive and seems to last a long time.

JRIowa · Oct 27, 2011

I've been shopping also. If you've got the time to build one, TP has all the stuff for a reasonable price. If you want to buy a ready to run unit, I think these guys make the best for the price.
The Premier Series : Sandblasting Cabinet : Sandblasters
JR

stephen thomas · Oct 27, 2011

I've had a Tips presure blaster for about 25 yrs. Also got the plans set for a cabinet.....never seemed to get around to building one. Finally bought a TP (same company as the pressure unit, just evolution of corporate name, etc) cabinet about 5 yrs ago. I'm happy enough with it.

They make similar cabinets in several ranges of steel. Mine has 14 ga body & 11 ga doors. Don't chintz on size. You need room to work and turn the work. Get doors on both ends so long work can be passed through. Get a good vac/cyclone system up front. Mine is 58 x 34 x 36h, seems small when working. Just "about" adequate for bike (MC frame)

If the option had been available, I'd definitely have looked into the Badboy Blasters JR linked to. Their L series and Magnum series give more area and the option of blasting from 2 or more sides in one set up, for a good bit less than i paid. The BBB's don't look as tall, though, but might be less of a factor with the ease of working all around it. That is another big factor with a cabinet, can you reach where you want to be, without stopping, opening the doors and shifting the work.

smt

MichaelP · Oct 27, 2011

I second L Vanice's opinion on Trinco Master cabinets. They're built better than the TP ones and, after having a negative experience with TP, I went with Trinco and never regretted it.

Eric U · Oct 27, 2011

Three times (Grizzly cabinet and two bench-tops) I tried to do blast cabinets on the cheap and finally bought my Trinco Master 36 after 8 years. What a difference! Much better ergonomically and function-wise than anything else I've tried. The included vacuum works well. Buy quality and cry only once.

Eric U

Laurentian · Oct 27, 2011

Empire Abrasive Equipment Company USA
CANABLAST | Welcome Canada

rcoope · Oct 28, 2011

We had a very disappointing no-name cabinet from KBC tools up until last year. Actually the cabinet was OK but the gun, the dust extractor and the sand feed were terrible. We had to abandon it as the all-plastic fan mount in the extractor was self destructing. Fortunately we had one of those "Can you spend down this budget by the end of the quarter which by the way is tomorrow" things so we bought a Mod-U-Blast E4824. See http://www.modublast.com/pdf/E-Series.pdf We love it. The feed, gun, and dust extraction work perfectly, as you'd expect and all the little details like better lighting, less scratch prone windows (with tear-offs) no sand leakage, and quieter operation are all there. You have to have a really bad sandblaster for a while to truly appreciate a good one!

Incidentally, my friend acquired and rebuilt a similar cabinet around the same time and learned discovered that having a good dust extractor is actually very important to prevent "bridging" in the sand hopper, where the sand sticks together and forms voids which cause feed problems. There's certainly more to these cabinets than meets the eye.

Robin

Toolznthings · Oct 28, 2011

I second the Econoline unit. When i bought mine ,McMaster-Carr had the best price and they stock all the parts. I switched to double strength window glass for the window. Lasts way longer than plastic/film guard and is cheaper.

Brian

ken moss · Oct 29, 2011

I have used a number of blasters and the ones I like the most are Zero blast and peen brand Ken

rflyer · Jan 23, 2012

I have built my own. The only thing I suggest is no matter what cabinet you have get one of the metal glass protectors. You won't have anymore problem with your viewing glass getting etched or having to replace the plastic stick on ones.

Charlie

MichaelP · Jan 23, 2012

rflyer said:
I have built my own. The only thing I suggest is no matter what cabinet you have get one of the metal glass protectors. You won't have anymore problem with your viewing glass getting etched or having to replace the plastic stick on ones.

Charlie,

How do those metal protectors look and work? Is it some sort of a screen/mesh?
Are they sold separately? Any suggestion on where to buy them?

Thank you.

Mike

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