Contaminated media [was: polishing skills]

ooooo… so how can you tell if your blasting media is ca-ca??(a
technical term impling an undesired effect)…I have garnet grit
(80) and would like to know at what point I should dump it or,
even better, clean it and how… thanx crux

Crux-- Fresh media cuts faster and deeper and has less dust. Is
your media taking longer to produce the desired depth of cut or
finish? If it is it’s probably past its prime. As far as
cleaning, you can sift it for larger particle removal, but that
doesn’t mean that your going to improve the cut rate. If the
cutting face of the media isn’t present any more it won’t give
you the desired finish, usually you get a dull flat finish
instead of a crisp one. Considering that you can purchase Al.
Oxide in 80lb bags at $45 a bag, granted garnet grit is a bit
more expensive, why bother trying to clean it beyond a certain
point. Leslie