sandblaster!

That's really neat. Shame it was too much for the thin Ti metal, but there's a lot of potential there for case finishing.

Can you give some information on the sandblaster? My googling turned up cabinet setups, and tiny Badger hobby units the size of an airbrush - nothing like yours.

(I think we need another emoticon for green with envy)

here's one:
http://www.toolrage.com/cgi-bin/istore.cgi?store=&search=yes&detail=yes&product=VER-79800

I googled -> sandblaster automotive

and got several useful hits

Heck if I know what mine is, a friend gave it to me. It's not very good, I have to keep tapping/banging/bumping it to keep it flowing. POS really, but it does enough to make a mess.

I should buy a new one.

Dan K

the airbrushing "erasers" (just micro sized sandblasters) would be perfect for sandblasting the Ti case because they use a fine grit and are very gentle.

I had no idea they were so cheap!

Just out of curiosity, what's the difference between the sandblaster pictured on the linked site and an air paint gun that looks very similar?

both round, but different. Ok, how about a chisel and screwdriver?

Air painter vs. sandblaster, two different tools, similar in shape but different functions. Paint gun delivers an atomized spray of liquid (paint) in a precise pattern. A sandblaster sprays a granulated solid media in a rough pattern at high speed through an abrasive resistant nozzle.

Very similar but very different, neither can do the other's job.

Dan K

Excuse me for thinking these

would work as one of these with the proper nozzel.

Portable suction sandblasters, while similar in general shape and operating principle to a traditional paint spray gun, are much coarser, cruder devices. Paint application requires some degree of precision, which the blaster doesn't have or need. Therefore the internals of the two devices are vastly different.

Heck, similar blasters to mine cost $25 - $60. If one already has a suitable compressor just shell out for a blaster and get to work!

Check this out though, interesting process of which I'd been unaware:
http://www.google.com/search?q=dry+ice+blast

Not for home hobbiests though, it looks a trifle pricey!

Dan K

PS: check out the "Ads by Google" at the page bottom!"