Thread: Cheap grit blasting options? - cleaning up steel bullbars.

Your Stanley compressor will not do very well with any sandblaster. i have a 5.5HP 140l compressor now and it holds about 80psi whilst blasting with the smaller sized guns in the red hafco cabinets.
If you plan to use a hopper you need somewhere to blast, and i would want to be in a full suit. Blasting is the worst job i can think of, i'd rather pay someone no matter how expensive!

The powder coat that is still in good condition will be very difficult to remove. I had a Kaymar Rear Bar stripped a while back which was put in an acid tank for a few days before it was removed completely. This was done by my brother who does zinc plating. That was after I spent a few days trying to burn the powder coat off with a large LPG torch. A small compressor and sandblaster will not achieve much. Maybe look around for someone who can put it in an acid tank for you, or get it professionally sandblasted and repaint yourself.

Originally Posted by WelderMick

I've got a bullbar and rear bar on my Hilux, both powdercoated steel made by ARB. Both are getting rusty and require a bit of refurbishment. I pulled the rear bar off this arvo and the rust was deeper than I first thought, and into some tricky crevices. The bullbar is going to be the same and in both cases the original powdercoating is not doing much good (never did actually but I won't gripe any more about that).

My original thought was to take them around to the local sandblaster/powdercoater but I know from experience that a full strip, sandblast and recoat not going to be cheap, so looking at what my other options are.
I've also got a few other rusty jobs to deal with soon, so am now considering buying a cheap sand blasting kit. Speed doesn't worry me as I can get most of it with wirewheel/flapdisk/grinder.

I've got a karcher pressure washer - so maybe a kit like this ? http://justtools.com.au/karcher-wet-...g-kit-2638-792
Also a small stanley air compressor (190LPM FAD, 50L), which I know will be slow - but something like this possibly? - https://sydneytools.com.au/torin-tor...aster-37-litre
Best media?
Any suggestions or user reviews?
Also after any recommendations on strippers to remove the existing powder coating.

Thanks
- Mick

Hi Mick,
I'd be inclined to get them professionally blasted, as any money saved, would be spent on electricity and consumables. Plus by the time you've got one end done, and the other nearly finished, you'd have to start again as surface rust would be there.
Powder coating will very quickly block the flap disk and the wire wheel will require a few of them. They work well on unpainted surfaces.
To the best of my knowledge, there is no stripper to remove existing powder coat, apart from grit blasting and fire (burning it off).

I've got a karcher pressure washer - so maybe a kit like this ? http://justtools.com.au/karcher-wet-...g-kit-2638-792
Also a small stanley air compressor (190LPM FAD, 50L), which I know will be slow How many weeks do you want to spend on it???

Once you've got it blasted, give it or get it primed with a top grade primer, especially in all the nooks and crannies. This will help to seal them, as powder coat is electrically charged to attract it to the metal, resulting in corners not getting a good coverage, unless it is put on fairly thick, which then causes problems by cracking easily. It can then be painted in your favourite colour/s, allowing you to touch up when required. If you want it powder coated, get them to put a coat of zinc rich primer on first.
This is basically from what I've been told, by a couple of powder coating businesses.
Kryn

Geez, where's the can do attitude guys?

Seriously though - thanks, it sounds like a few of you have tried this sort of thing and maybe this one is best left for someone else to do.

- Mick

Been using steel shot to remove paintwork (mostly on the welds and hard to reach places) on the trailer. Garnet is ok for lite surface rust or easy to remove paint, but not much else in my humble opinion.

Bit hard to get a large, heavy trailer to the sandblasters, so its the best way for this project. Not practical to contain media for reuse, so it will set me a back a few bob to blast back to bare metal. Will have to do in sections and undercoat as I go.

Something like your job, well as previously stated, just take it to the sandblasters.

When was working on armoured vehicles years ago had access to a facility big enough to blast a tank, but it was a proper purpose built facility and one had to suit up properly to work in there.

I've done powder coated wheel centres in a blast cabinet, by the time one was finished, and looking at 7 to go, decided my time could be better spent elsewhere - anywhere else! I think a caustic bath had them finished in a few hours and not expensive....if there's anything up that way?