Hello, I want to use a sandblasting cabinet I have to explore different finishes. Could somebody with a little experience or knowledge give me some starter information about media, pressures and anything else that would be helpful for me? Thanks so much!
In my experience, it requires a good-size compressor to blast for any length of time. You need fairly high pressure (100 PSI +) and a lot of volume as well. But I’m used to doing this for sculpture. Perhaps with a scaled-down rig made for jewelers, a smaller compressor would work. The choice of abrasive depends on what you’re trying to do. For cleaning, glass beads or crushed walnut shells work well. For more aggressive surface removal on metals, aluminum oxide, garnet or graded nickel slag will work. If you’re removing glass or stone, use silicon carbide grit. Whatever you do, don’t use actual silica sand - it releases a lot of free silica which can damage your lungs in short order.
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I have a pencil type air eraser that will use various type abrasives. It needs a smaller compressor.
I use it to clean some pieces and create a unique texture. Following is a link to what I have. I have thought, from time to time, that I might buy a media blasting box. As pointed out, pay attention to the air flow and pressure needs…Rob
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Thank you! That’s really helpful to get me going.
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