ScottAndrews
Well-Known Member
OK, so some of you know I just installed my manifest destiny 80 gallon compressor. I did this mostly for painting, but I thought I would also uyse it to soda blast my various cars.
I have been working on a 1973 Bronco Frame off restoration for my son.
Well, Lats weekend I set up the blaster and started working away on the hood. It was clealry ewffective, but somewhat slow, and OMG what a huge amount of dust!! I mean HUGE.. Looked like my house was on fire.
So I talked to the guy who owns the balster. He tells me there is a water spray setup for it, and brings it over. I set that up. It sprays huge amounts of water.. so much that I will have a flood in my garage.. SO O make some coo little copper nozzles and se the thing up to create a fine mist.
I start blasting.. I blast and blast.. My compressor cvan keep up, but only at about 40 LB (We are using a large 3/16 nozzle). SO I blast a little wait a little blast a little , etc.. 3 hours later I have finished 1/4 of the hood. Yikes! Went through 100 LB of soda too. Fortunately the wate is keeping the dust down to a modest and manageable level.
I move to the rocker, door sills and lock pillar.. Whoosh.. pristine metal in about 15 mins. So I go back to the hood.. 3 more hours, 2 bags of soda and I have the hood 1/2 done.. Yikes!
I finally ran out of soda, and it's Memorial day weekend.. My drivewy looks like the Bonneville salt flats, and the neighbors are looking worried..
So I go to OSH, spend $15 on a mega pack of 180 grit wet-or-dry and go to work the old fashined way.. water and sand paper. 2 hours later the entire rear quarter is down to bare metal. No noise, no dust, just some tired upper body muscles.
While I was meditating and becomeing one with the old paint on the bronco, I realized something.. I am sanding off old gold paint, then grey primer, then gold paint again, and then more grey primer followed by red primer...FIVE layers of paint, and probably each of those in 2-3 coats! Lets see, thast would be somehting like 12 coats of paint.. No wonder the blaster was laboring! and no wonder This bronco has no rust!!
So may conclusions re soda blasting.. It does an absolutely amazing job on odd shaped panels that would otherwise be horrible to sand. On flat panels, especially panels with several layers of paint, and a lot of surface area, wet sanding is actualy faster, quieter and cheaper.
I think when I use this on the E9, I may wet sand most of the main panels (yeah yeah.. water OMG.. I am not planning to wet sand the wheel wells.. so it should be fine.. ). Then I'll DRY blast the door openings, wheel wells and orher hard to sand parts (and just put up with the dust).
So, Soda Blasting is a qualified success, but it is not a magic bullet.
S
I have been working on a 1973 Bronco Frame off restoration for my son.
Well, Lats weekend I set up the blaster and started working away on the hood. It was clealry ewffective, but somewhat slow, and OMG what a huge amount of dust!! I mean HUGE.. Looked like my house was on fire.
So I talked to the guy who owns the balster. He tells me there is a water spray setup for it, and brings it over. I set that up. It sprays huge amounts of water.. so much that I will have a flood in my garage.. SO O make some coo little copper nozzles and se the thing up to create a fine mist.
I start blasting.. I blast and blast.. My compressor cvan keep up, but only at about 40 LB (We are using a large 3/16 nozzle). SO I blast a little wait a little blast a little , etc.. 3 hours later I have finished 1/4 of the hood. Yikes! Went through 100 LB of soda too. Fortunately the wate is keeping the dust down to a modest and manageable level.
I move to the rocker, door sills and lock pillar.. Whoosh.. pristine metal in about 15 mins. So I go back to the hood.. 3 more hours, 2 bags of soda and I have the hood 1/2 done.. Yikes!
I finally ran out of soda, and it's Memorial day weekend.. My drivewy looks like the Bonneville salt flats, and the neighbors are looking worried..
So I go to OSH, spend $15 on a mega pack of 180 grit wet-or-dry and go to work the old fashined way.. water and sand paper. 2 hours later the entire rear quarter is down to bare metal. No noise, no dust, just some tired upper body muscles.
While I was meditating and becomeing one with the old paint on the bronco, I realized something.. I am sanding off old gold paint, then grey primer, then gold paint again, and then more grey primer followed by red primer...FIVE layers of paint, and probably each of those in 2-3 coats! Lets see, thast would be somehting like 12 coats of paint.. No wonder the blaster was laboring! and no wonder This bronco has no rust!!
So may conclusions re soda blasting.. It does an absolutely amazing job on odd shaped panels that would otherwise be horrible to sand. On flat panels, especially panels with several layers of paint, and a lot of surface area, wet sanding is actualy faster, quieter and cheaper.
I think when I use this on the E9, I may wet sand most of the main panels (yeah yeah.. water OMG.. I am not planning to wet sand the wheel wells.. so it should be fine.. ). Then I'll DRY blast the door openings, wheel wells and orher hard to sand parts (and just put up with the dust).
So, Soda Blasting is a qualified success, but it is not a magic bullet.
S
