Well I have been to Bethlehem today,of course the one in Connecticut. I went there to buy a fender for my truck to learn to do body work. Well as you can see I will get to learn a lot. Got it for $30. I am sure this piece will let me learn many aspects of metal work; tin knocking, welding, even some simple fabrication; and then prep and paint. The guy had a yard and house full car parts, pretty amazing place/person. I am open to any feedback / advice on how best to approach this learning project.
Small blaster I did my whole truck with a 40 lb pot sand blaster I bought from Harbor Freight for cheap. Took a while but you can do it. Start on the inside and get a feel for it if you haven't run the blaster much. Merry Christmas Papy
sandblast Thanks Mike, good tip on starting on the inside. I think the one I got came from Eastwood. I need to think through where to do it as to not make too big of a mess. Bit looking forward to working on the fender and learning. Life is good. Happy Holidays!
Blasting Rusty Bits It's not overly difficult to set up an " Easy Up " typ of tent thing using cheap tubing and clear plastic , this keeps the dust and mess down , you really should run a face mask with external air supply should as silicosis is a nasty death . Also , use glass beads not sand , sand is extremely abrasive and heats up the metal and causes warping much easier than does glass beads . Take your time here , test it out on other le$$ valuable bit first , you'll really like media blasting once you get dialed in to it . Never , EVER blast anything that goes into the engine ! rods , valve covers , oil pans , steel timing gears etc. - don't do it ! .
what size glass beads Thanks, I found a source in Connecticut for glass beads. Now I wonder what size? I will have to look at my Eastwood blaster manual. The source http://www.afidirect.com/component/option,com_virtuemart/page,shop.browse/category_id,15/Itemid,26/ shows media sizes as - 05, 06, etc. I found a reference to 08 as the most common size. Time for more research.
media Eastwood sells a glass media that says, "70-100-grit size" but the shipping cost is outrageous.
Coal slag Nate is right on sand. Don't do it. Silicosis of the lungs is nothing to fool with. I used fine coal slag. It's hard,cuts rust, does not shatter (causing excess dust?)and it sells around here for 15 buck a 100lb bag. I had to sweep it up and I'm cheap so I screened it through an old window screen and reused it. Glass is probably better if you can find but the slag will work. I started 9 years ago in the basement shop and I'm still sweeping up coal slag the tent sounds like a lot better idea! Papy
media I found a media distribution company here in ct. They recommend Black beauty fine. Any thoughts? see http://www.reade.com/products/2-alu...i-roofing-granule-mil-a-22262bsh-cas68476960- Denis
Black Beauty Black Beauty is coal slag from Reed Mineral. That's what I have and am using. It's pretty safe no free silica you still need a good mask as plenty of dirt and rust will get airborne. Find an old window screen and sieve out the large pieces and keep using it until its powder. Good luck Papy
Hey Denis. I've used the Black Beauty, and an 80# Harbor Freight tank, to do my entire project thus far. Paying about $8.00/ 50# bag, (they're easier to handle.) No warping. I set up an outside area using plastic tarps, including the floor, to make easier clean-up for re-use. It's working well. So far, I've used about 800lb of media. I expect to need only about another 150 to 200lb. I reuse most, and make up with new to help with the effectiveness. Sounds like you're on the right track with your plan.
