Media Blasting Cabinet Recommendations

[Perplexed]

I'm pretty sure I saw a thread about this on here at some point, but my search foo isn't working. I'm looking for a standalone cabinet setup to put in my shop for media blasting various parts. I'd like a solid mid-level rig up to 36" wide, but none of that cheapo Harbor Freight stuff, and my budget is about $500. I seem to recall there was one company recommended whose cabinets were painted white or a light gray, and their products looked promising, but I can't remember the brand name. I know that's not much to go on, but perhaps one of you folks will say "Oh, he's talking about _______." Thanks!

 

[bsmith918]

I have an Econoline that is super nice, but they are pricey. These are a good bargain. I recommend spending some money and getting a dust collector. It makes a huge difference.
http://www.tptools.com/780-TL-Top-Load-Abrasive-Blast-Cabinet,432.html?b=d*13227!r*PriceRange*%24250+-+%24499.99

 

[Shoot Summ]

Go over to Garage Journal, there are many threads over there with a lot of good suggestions.

After dealing with a small import cabinet I finally found a 36" Cyclone on Craigslist, paid $200 for it. Dumped another $300 into it changing the feed system, new gloves, and new gun. Really like what I have now.

I got some great advice from Mike at Tacoma Blasting http://www.tacomacompany.com/. He has the feed systems and guns.

I have also discovered that the most important part of a blast cabinet, is your compressor, make sure you have enough DRY air to blast.

 

[ronny]

I thought this was a thread about the main stream media blasting Obama's recommendations for cabinet posts. I should have known that couldn't be possible.

 

[761mph]

one thing most don't account for is a large capacity air compressor, the bigger the better
blast cabinets are air hungry, small roll around or pancake style won't be able to keep up and basically run constantly to try to keep up with less than adequate results

 

[SPCAS]

I'm using a bad boy blaster. Made in USA and best price was on ebay. So far been very happy with it
I think blasting speciaties in town carries econo line

 

[stick4]

I bought mine from Steve's Wholesale Tools in 2006 for $200 and probably have somewhere between 1,000 and 1,500 hours of use on it now. It's rated for a 12.5 cfm @ 90 psi compressor. I first bought their 5HP compressor then found that one wouldn't keep up so took it back and they swapped it for the 80 gallon 2 stage Porter Cable unit. (Great service at Steve's!)
At the old house the blasting dust got all over the shop. I have a separate room for the blast cabinet at this new house & that's made a big difference. IMO, if you aren't buying a pressurized blast cabinet there's not a lot of advantage to paying for anything above the HF/Steve's Whls red $200 cabinet. They'll all leak dust and your shop vac connected to the cabinet will also. George Townsend Co. has some good replacement gloves for when your originals wear out. (buy a tube of ShooGoo to patch holes and they'll last longer) I never blast with sand due to the lung hazards associated with it. I use #10 glass beads.

 

[jfssms]

I'm pretty sure I saw a thread about this on here at some point, but my search foo isn't working. I'm looking for a standalone cabinet setup to put in my shop for media blasting various parts. I'd like a solid mid-level rig up to 36" wide, but none of that cheapo Harbor Freight stuff, and my budget is about $500. I seem to recall there was one company recommended whose cabinets were painted white or a light gray, and their products looked promising, but I can't remember the brand name. I know that's not much to go on, but perhaps one of you folks will say "Oh, he's talking about _______." Thanks!

This member: yourshoesareuntied just set up one from Harbor freight, he heavily modified the seal's and such....I seen his work, no fears.

 

[bsmith918]

I bought mine from Steve's Wholesale Tools in 2006 for $200 and probably have somewhere between 1,000 and 1,500 hours of use on it now. It's rated for a 12.5 cfm @ 90 psi compressor. I first bought their 5HP compressor then found that one wouldn't keep up so took it back and they swapped it for the 80 gallon 2 stage Porter Cable unit. (Great service at Steve's!)
At the old house the blasting dust got all over the shop. I have a separate room for the blast cabinet at this new house & that's made a big difference. IMO, if you aren't buying a pressurized blast cabinet there's not a lot of advantage to paying for anything above the HF/Steve's Whls red $200 cabinet. They'll all leak dust and your shop vac connected to the cabinet will also. George Townsend Co. has some good replacement gloves for when your originals wear out. (buy a tube of ShooGoo to patch holes and they'll last longer) I never blast with sand due to the lung hazards associated with it. I use #10 glass beads.

I couldn't disagree more. I first bought a cheap HF unit and spent hours resealing it and getting it as airtight as I possibly could. I also replaced the gun and did a few other modifications. It worked poorly and still left dust everywhere. It also required the siphon system to be filled with a significant amount of media just to run. I then found a good deal on Craigslist for an Econoline unit. I only need to fill it with a couple of cups of media and it runs flawlessly. I leaves no dust in my garage. The spring loaded hopper is super quick and easy to swap media out, unlike the HF unit. The item to be blasted can be accessed from the front or side. Finally, and most importantly, the dust collector keeps it clear so you can actually see what you're doing. I still have the HF unit sitting in my garage reminding me of the horrible mistake I originally made.

 

[stick4]

If that one works for you then that's great. Point being my $200 cabinet has had well over 1000 hours of use and gets the job done fine.