Sandblast Cabinet

The red sandblasting cabinet in the garage is from Harbor Freight.

http://www.harborfreight.com/abrasive-blast-cabinet-68893.html

It's a good cabinet for the money, but with the usual HF pitfalls. The cabinet isn't sealed properly, so you'll notice that abrasive leaks out of the cabinet. When opening the door, as well, the design of it accumulates some media, so be prepared for leakage.

MEDIA:

Inside the cabinet is Black Beauty Coal Slag media. It's Rockwell Hardness is 6, so it will do a good job on steel to remove paint and rust. On softer materials, this might cause a problem if you are not paying attention. As the media is used more, it will drop in grit, reducing the aggressiveness of the blast. Eventually, it will need to be replaced. If you do need to do this, media can be purchased from Tractor Supply in 50LB bags for $8. They have 2 grits usually available, 20 and 80. 20 works best because it will last longer than the 80 grit. If you do buy a new bag, make sure to remove all media inside the cabinet. This is best accomplished by wheeling the cabinet outside and placing a homer bucket below where the scoop is. Once released, it will flow out. Providing new media was not added without removing the existing, you should have a nearly full bucket that can be disposed of.

LIGHTING: 

The light that's embedded in the cabinet is not bright at all. It is best to use a flashlight that sits flush on the viewing area to help see material. DO NOT USE ANYTHING BUT LEDS. A halogen lamp's surface gets very hot to touch and can easily melt the viewing window if it is acrylic. Likewise, if this were to be leaning up against the glass, it'd get very hot and pose a fire risk.

VACUUM: 

There is a shop vac situated next to or under the cabinet. Plug this in and use while blasting. There is a hose that runs from the cabinet out to it and it will greatly help visibility when blasting, as much dust is created when blasting.

VIEWING GLASS:

Size: 23.875 in. x 11.875 in.

Eventually, the glass (or acrylic) viewing window will grit up to where you cannot see inside the cabinet very well. There might be a replacement window on the cart the cabinet is mounted to or one can be cut using clear acrylic (1/8" recommended) or having a piece of glass cut. To replace the window, you will need to remove 6 of the 14 screws to access the panel under the black cover holding it flush to the cabinet. Grab a flat-head screwdriver, open up the cabinet, and remove the 6 closest screws to the cabinet-door (right side of the cabinet if viewing at the position you'd use the cabinet.). Once these come up, it is easy to slide in-and-out the pieces.

GLOVES:

While the gloves should not wear as quickly as the window, they eventually will get used (and abused) to where they need to be replaced. There is a single, large hose clamp around the inlet portion at the top, accessible from inside the cabinet. You will need a Phillips head screw driver to remove and re-tighten it.

CAPACITY:

The door opening is 22 in. W X 19 in. H. You can fit objects about 30" in length inside and get away with a little longer if they're diagonal inside. Irregular objects might not fit but you will have to see. Keep in mind you'll most likely be moving it around or can stop and reposition it.