Media blasting Cabinet problems

peewee2you

peewee2you

Well-known member
For all those that do and use a blasting cabinet, I recently purchased a cheap Harbor Freight box, and works well enough as intended, however recently I encountered a problem with it not disbursing the glass bead material of which I am using 100psi and worked great from the start.

I noticed that the media wasn't coming out of the tip and notice an extra amount of moisture coming out on the item being blasted, I bled tank and have a water seperator at the tank before the hose, although after that is about 40 ft of hose before it gets to the blasting cabinet, could it be because of the winter cold that I need another seperator at the cabinet end before it goes thru the gun?

Please let me know what you suggest or have experienced, so I can keep moving forward to my renewed parts.
 
Peewee,

Usually the pickup is not picking up (!) ... either because there's no medium around the pickup or something is clogging it. Bits of paper, gasket or even leaves get in there.

Put your finger firmly over the tip and squeeze the trigger. This blows air back through the pick up and clears it, not unusual.

If you are running out of bead, add more medium, rap the blaster to shake medium down. and/or blow bead back toward the pickup. Poor design can make forming a pocket in the medium an aggravating problem.
 
I have a moisture trap right out of the compressor and just a few feet before the gun. Still in this weather with an unheated shop it cloggs occasionally but easy to get going again. Also, FYI, that Harbor Freight cabinet will start leaking dust in short order and you will have everything in the shop covered in no time. Be smart and wear a dust mask. Ask me how I know this. Or I should say, ask my doctor.
 
Another problem you have created is in using such a long hose. You will have more water condensation with a rubber hose. It is best to run pipe to as close as you can to the cabinet and then a shorter hose section to connect to the cabinet. Cool weather and compressed air do not make good companions to start off with. A good water separator at the cabinet is also wise. When blasting I frequently open the drains in my plumbing to extract the water and in the winter it's very frequently.
 
most likely the gun is clogged with a small piece of dust, paint chip, ect might have to clean it.
 
Some things to consider.

I live in Florida. Moisture? Humidity? The state flower is Mildew.

Some of us run water separators, some do not.

Cold air holds less moisture than warm air. Relative humidity is one thing, absolute humidity is another.

The Harbor Freight cabinet I used for a short time while replacing my old cabinet ... was a leaking, poor-feeding (wrong slope on sides) mess.

Peewee's problem may be moisture. of course. I posted the 2 easiest things to check.

Long hose/line helps cool the air ... then the separator will work better placed at the blast cabinet.

(Anytime I'm up North in the winter, it's so dry I can shoot a 3 inch arc of static electricity to any door knob ... just like Bubba's work.)
 
Hey Guy's thanks for the feedback, yeah she leaks like a siv, but budget constraints, need money for parts lol, I do wear a mask and goggles, not as young as I once was or some would say. I have unclogged it several times at least I believe so, I am going to add another seperator at the cabinet, in the future I can possibly run a double connection off the compressor and have the cabinet close to the compressor.

Peter aka peewee, I don' know ask the Mrs....
 
I have found over a period of years that the gun nozzle will wear out and will have to be replace on a regular bases. When the nozzle wears it reduces the suction and you reduce the amount of abrasive material. Buy a good gun and several tips made out of ceramic material, they las a lot longer. Gordon
 
One thing not mentioned yet is the silicone they put inside the hopper to seal it comes loose and frequently clogs the pickup. I haven't had the moisture problem, but the garage is heated to at least 45 deg and that may be enough. I hooked an old shop vac to my cabinet exhaust and that helped the dust quite a bit. I also bought an Eastwood gun to replace the Harbor Freight one; it works a lot better and I can get parts for it.
 
Basically I have the same setup as everyone else with the exception of a dryer that removes all the moisture so there is no problem with my blasting cabinet. HRP
 
I built my own Blast Cabinet out of plywood...used TP plans and made it bigger. Three things I did to improve it were to install a large piece of sheet metal across the back of the inside, bought carbide nozzles, and added a Harbor Freight blower to exhaust the dust to the outside. When I turn the air/lights/fan on, not only does it not leak, but it stays dust free so I can see what I'm doing. I've had it for years, and it works flawlessly...plus I can put huge stuff in it. Even with the cost of the fan, it was way cheaper to build than buying even a small one...
 
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My Harbor Freight benchtop blast cabinet,did not come with silicon to seal the seams.After breathing some of the dust,I calked all the joints.Doctors have found nodules in my lungs,maybe,or maybe not,related to this.To blast a brake drum,the gun will be too close to the window,requiring frequent changes of the plastic film covering.I tried using a more agressive media,than the glass beads,but it would not feed,requiring a larger feed hose,and gun.I would have been better off to pay to have my parts blasted.I would feel guilty selling it to someone else.I did have a vacume attached to it.
 
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I also put a dessicant canister(made for paint guns) right at the entrance to the bead blaster. Cuts down on moisture alot. My shop is always kept at 50 degrees in the winter unless I build a fire, so moistere in the air is always a problem.
Oh by the way, it's -40 outside right now.
 
I made a ******** for the hopper, I took a pancake fan from an old computer, mounted it sideways and taped a washer off center --now I don't have to kick it while I am blasting.

At 100 lbs pressure you ars making dust out of the media too fast, try a lower pressure, I have good results at 45 lbs with the crushed glass media.
 
Kurt in NJ said:
I made a ******** for the hopper, I took a pancake fan from an old computer, mounted it sideways and taped a washer off center --now I don't have to kick it while I am blasting.
Click to expand...

That's a great idea, I think I'll steel it and make one for my cabinet. --Thanks!
 
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