Sand Blaster

The new sand blaster in the hot shop has been refurbished by Larry Meeks and Steve McHugh.

Basic instructions for using the sand blaster:

1. Plug in the two cords in the back of the sand blaster (this requires crawling behind the sand blaster and plugging in cords on the north-facing wall).
2. Connect the air compressor hose to the sand blaster.
3. Empty the water trap (the plastic jar under the water valve) on the sand blaster.
4. Plug in the air compressor, unplugging the powder coat oven if necessary.
5. Flip both valves on the air compressor.
6. Turn the switch on the air compressor from Off to Auto.
7. Sandblast, using the foot pedal, for up to 20 minutes. After 20 minutes/releasing the foot pedal, all air is exhausted and the air pressure drops below 40 psi. The blaster automatically shuts off the grit flow, and the compressor stops running noisily.
8. The sand blaster needs to be above 40 to maintain the blast, so take a break if necessary, wait another 20 minutes, and then resume.
9. After using the sand blaster:
   1. Turn off the air compressor.
   2. Disconnected the hose and coil it up.
   3. Empty the water trap.

Warnings and Cautions

Limitations on blasting

• Blast toward the back of the sand blaster-- not back toward the window, or at the gloves.
  • Blasting at the window will break it.
  • Blasting at the gloves will wear down the gloves quickly and require replacing them.
  • Starting and stopping multiple times within a short time period will waste air pressure and give you less blasting time.
• The turn table must be used appropriately.
  • The turn table is not removable.
  • You can use a tool to anchor an item to the turn table to stabilize it while sand blasting.

Limitations on items

• Items used in the sand blaster are limited in size to approximately two feet square.
• Items to be sand blasted must not have rusty, oily, or greasy buildup or residue, and must be cleaned outside of the sand blaster first.