Hey guys, the rain let up enough yesterday and gave me a sunny day for sand blasting. I was able to blast the whole front section of my car. It feels good to finally get the blasting started. Here are three photos - one before blasting, one after blasting and one after priming. The smart guy that I am I chose the same color primer as the blasted bare metal Oh well, I'm excited to get going again on Friday. Today was a rain out. Tomorrow looks like a rain out. So, Friday looks to be the next day I can continue. The photos show just the driver outer fender, but I did the whole front clip. Rob

** for full size, click the attachment button**

after blasting...

after priming...

Great job.

I'd spray Permatex rust inhibitor on before I'd prime it. I put that stuff on the front of my Dart or any where I blasted it down to bare metal and it sat for a few years and never even tried to rust.

Im jealous

Cheater! I did those locations on my car by hand.

Looks nice, and any progress is always a good thing. Make sure you spend some time cleaning the sand out of the framerails etc so it doesn't end up in your paint job later on.

Thanks guys. Yeah, there will be sand in the frame rails, cowl and rockers for years to come. After I cleaned the bare metal I took an empty spray gun and sprayed with just air pressure the whole section with the exact same pressure I would be priming at. That usually knocks any loose sand free from the car that was in the twilight zone during cleaning and saves me from later on. The primer I'm using is by Clausen and it's called "All You Need" It's the newer version of the popular "Z Chrome" Rob

Looking good Rob.....Go gently!

Looks nice. What kind of blaster did you use and what kind of media did you shoot with. Inquiring minds would like to know.

I use a pressurized blaster I bought from a company called TIP. It has a patented pistol grip style of a handle and is different from any other I have ever seen. It works great. However, the manufacturer and TIP had a falling out about 10 years ago and TIP doesn't carry it anymore. In fact, I don't even know how I will buy replacement parts when the time comes. The media I use is "00" sand form the local building supply. The batch of sand I am using right now is about 9 years old. I keep recycling it and it is now almost a fine powder which lets me blast sheet metal without any distortion - I also turn down the pressure. Don't try this if you are not very experienced using a pressurized blaster - your sheet metal will be toast. Rob

Good info - I have a pressure pot TIP '99er I bought years ago. You can get replacement parts from Brutt Mfg. thru the link below. What compressor and cfm are you using - I am shopping for a compressor for mine.

http://www.san-blast.com/

Larry, wow, thanks for the link That is the company for sure but the handles on the listed blasters are different than mine. Maybe they changed them in the last 15 years. As far as pressure goes, my gauge broke years ago when I accidentally sand blasted it while trying to build up pressure. So are you ready for a laugh - I close the main valve on the out put of the air compressor and open it the width of a 7/32nd drill bit. Yes, I stick the drill bit in there for the right measurement. Now, when I blast sheet metal - quarters - I also turn down the inlet to the sand blaster to 1/2 open. Not very scientific I know, but it has worked for me that way for years.

EDIT: I use an Ingersoll Rand compressor that holds up to 120psi on a 60gal tank, but I use much less pressure when blasting.

So how do you manage to recycle the blasting sand. I assume you are blasting outside. The few times I blasted with my pressure pot, it just went everywhere.

I put down an old pool cover that is huge on the driveway just outside my garage. Then, I position the car (or better yet, the part of the car I'm blasting) facing the closed garage door. All the sand ends up on the tarp every time. However, the tarp (pool cover) is huge 18' by 36'. I started out with 6 bags of new sand in 2002 and I now have the equivalent of one 100lb bag left. I store my sand in different containers depending on the consistency of the sand. I did just by two new bags to use on the rougher parts of my front end. Rob

Looks real good. Thanks for the pic's and information.