Best Media Blaster for Under $200 (Preferably)

[Rockin'70Stepside]

I am going to start some major media blasting on my truck and was wondering if there is any certain blaster that is recommended that is less than $200.

[midniteblues]

I use a hf pressure pot.

They do have a learning curve to them but once you get dry air ,strained media and the valves set rite they work good.

I wore out all the valves and replaced them with quality peices and installed a replacement deadman valve it runs great better than a new one.

Yes it only cuts a narrow swath.
I used that and my small cabinet blaster too blast practically my entire 67 and I'll do my 71 when I'm ready.

I have about 30-35 50# bags of crushed glass ran through mine, and that's scooping it up and reusing it.
I lay out a 12x20 tarp to catch some of the media. I can usually get about 3 cycles out of a bag depending on how much blows away or the tarp don't catch.
The glass breaks down quicker than other media but it's local and cheap and it cuts pretty good.

[dfwright]

My experience is almost exactly what midniteblues has already posted. The harbor freight pressure pot is inexpensive, but be prepared that the entire blaster is a "wear component", including all the valves, hoses and controls.

The real trick is having dry air and lots of it. The bigger the compressor, the better, and multiple stages of drying will make blasting go so much better.

I've also changed out the air/sand control valves and put in a deadman valve for the handle, and used this setup to blast my entire truck. I also have a HF cabinet blaster for the smaller stuff.

[Rockin'70Stepside]

Thank you both for your replies, and I will look into getting a blaster soon.

[Arnulfo]

I have never media blasted a car before but have read that if you dont know what are doing, you can warp your body panels. Wondering what technique you men that have done it use?

[dfwright]

Originally Posted by Arnulfo

I have never media blasted a car before but have read that if you dont know what are doing, you can warp your body panels. Wondering what technique you men that have done it use?

Well, that subject will likely start an ideological battle, but I will tell you what I think -- and so you can take it for what that's worth...

Go slow, and use lower pressure. The professionals use very high pressure and very high flow rates, which very likely cause heating and warping on delicate panels, especially areas like the hood.

It takes a lot longer to get the old paint and rust off when you are using 80-90PSI, and doing a little here, a little there, but I still find blasting superior to any other method I've used.

It is a risk you have to consider when deciding how you want to proceed. Areas like the cab, where the metal is thick and supported, there's probably very little chance of doing much warping. With the hood, the likelyhood is much higher. I blasted my hood. It took a long time because I used very low pressure 60-70lb, and went very slowly. I had no problems with warping. Others have reported that they have had issues. It's definitely something to weigh carefully before jumping in.

[davepl]

I bought the (bigger) Harbor Freight unit and then when it wore out I replaced the gun with a quality Skat unit. But the original that comes with it will work until it doesn't.

I also replaced the plastic window with glass and had 10 or so sheets cut in that size so I can swap over time. Along the way I've cut a round hole for a shop vac to keep the dust down and added a better light, but the core box remains.

The only real downside I can think of to the cheap cabinets is that the lighting isn't great.

By the way, in case you didn't know, NEVER USE SAND. Or any silica-based product, it'll give you lung cancer or something bad (silicosis?). I didn't know that and just bought a bag of play sand from Home Depot. Bad mogo. Get a proper blasting material and save yourself.