Converting a suction blast cabinet to pressure blast

[scottmk1]

Ok, I have a Guyson Super 7 suction blast cabinet which is good due to it's size, but very slow due to it being a suction blast unit. I know I can buy a pressure pot off eBay or BlastWash that will bolt straight on to the bottom of my cabinet, but would like to hear if anyone has put their own together? Really I'm after a recirculating one rather than just buying a standalone pressure pot and feeding the hose in, but could be open to the stand alone pot idea as I may be able to utilize it outside as well.

The drawback here is I am restricted to 25cfm air delivery at 7 bar, which I know is on the low side.

 

[brightspark]

Ok, I have a Guyson Super 7 suction blast cabinet which is good due to it's size, but very slow due to it being a suction blast unit. I know I can buy a pressure pot off eBay or BlastWash that will bolt straight on to the bottom of my cabinet, but would like to hear if anyone has put their own together? Really I'm after a recirculating one rather than just buying a standalone pressure pot and feeding the hose in, but could be open to the stand alone pot idea as I may be able to utilize it outside as well.

The drawback here is I am restricted to 25cfm air delivery at 7 bar, which I know is on the low side.

a 25cfm comp will run a pressure pot at 90 psi with a 2.5mm jet no problem and hold it I use mine mobile and in the the cabinet. just stuff the blast hose through the armhole my pots got a quick release top and a decen proper regulating valve not a rubbishy ball valve that always gives problems

 

[scottmk1]

OK thanks. When refilling do you just dig the media out of your cabinet and refill the pot through a funnel?

 

[rtbcomp]

Put through a seive.

 

[brightspark]

OK thanks. When refilling do you just dig the media out of your cabinet and refill the pot through a funnel?

I have a plate I open in the bottom of the hopper just drop it in to a bucket with a sieve on top then refill with a large funnel in doesn't take long and a blast pot doesn't use a lot of media 80 percent air 20 percent media ish 25 kg cleans a fair bit of metal

 

[Dcal]

Wish I had 25cfm to play with.
I struggle on with a weak 3hp piston compressor and a 2hp direct drive to help it out.

I have a cheap Clarke pressure pot and I run it into my cabinet.
It works very well.
I just cut an opening into the cabinet so that I can use it inside the cabinet or just open the door and use it as intended without having to disconnect the blasting head.
I will put a proper hinge and catch on it, but it works for now.
I use hydraulic hose for the blast pipe and haven't had one wear out since I started using it over a year ago.



I also rigged the pressure pot with the foot switch that came with the blast cabinet and it's a great help.
The nozzles and dead-man that came with the pressure pot are completely useless and a 2.5 or 3mm tungsten nozzle is absolutely necessary. I use a 3mm.
I screw the nozzle into a plumbing fitting hand tight so that it's simple and quick to remove the nozzle and clear blockages.
As @rtbcomp says sieve all the grit before putting it back into the pressure pot. Paint flakes and the like can cause a blockage.



I totally agree with @brightspark that the ball valve grit regulating valves are useless but I am soldering on with the ball valve until I get my lathe up and running and make a decent one like Brightsparks.

Couple of photos of the blasting I did yesterday.
Bigger stuff i did outside



Smaller stuff in the cabinet.

 

[brightspark]

if your making a regulating valve I made some patterns and got them cast in ally which is easy to machine and thread. all my others were steel and took some more time up to make .here's the patterns and castings

 

[Dcal]

@brightspark how do the aluminum grit valves wear?
Have you any spare alloy blanks for sale? Or complete valves? Or dimensions?
Also have you a better source for the plastic protectors for the cabinet screens?
Don't fancy paying £40 for 5 or 6 spares!

It is so frustrating working with the existing ball valve regulator.
I can't get just the right amount of grit. It either nothing or too much and the effectiveness of the blast is reduced and you will get blockages, also you can't see anything in the cabinet for the dust.

It is great having a blaster, I must have put a ton of grit through it by now, but there are times I could take a sledge hammer to it.

 

[brightspark]

the ally body does not wear the rest is steel. its only a bit of round bar sticks through with a bit of flat bar welded on and a lever to operate it. the inlet is half inch bsp outlet is half inch bsp round bar threaded either end with a 10mm hole bored through . pretty simple its copied of the Clemco minipot and works very well without blockages heres the inside of a steel one I made .centurywise sell them for about 125 quid ish in alloy with a stainless steel pin and flat regulator plate. I can find out how much a couple of castings cost all you need is a lathe and a half inch bsp die and can easily be made cheap ish

 

[Dcal]

That would be great.
If it comes to it I will make it out of steel.
I have, or can get, plenty of plate and the turning would be good practice. (God knows I need it)

 

[rtbcomp]

...It is great having a blaster, I must have put a ton of grit through it by now, but there are times I could take a sledge hammer to it.

I know exactly what you mean.

 

[armalites]

@brightspark how do the aluminum grit valves wear?
Have you any spare alloy blanks for sale? Or complete valves? Or dimensions?
Also have you a better source for the plastic protectors for the cabinet screens?
Don't fancy paying £40 for 5 or 6 spares!

It is so frustrating working with the existing ball valve regulator.
I can't get just the right amount of grit. It either nothing or too much and the effectiveness of the blast is reduced and you will get blockages, also you can't see anything in the cabinet for the dust.

It is great having a blaster, I must have put a ton of grit through it by now, but there are times I could take a sledge hammer to it.

I've found it's just as cheap to replace the glass on my cabinet. I can buy the glass cheaper than the protectors. I have a piece of 15mm copper tube with loads of tiny holes drilled in above the screen which blows air across it. Seems to help make the glass last longer.

When I started looking for spares for my Vixen I found I could buy the media valve for about £40, they were using a standard valve. As it turns out I've never had to replace it. If I get a chance I'll try and take a picture of it and get the part number.

 

[brightspark]

I just put a piece of glass on my cabinet without protector it lasts ages. I use a 4inch woodchip fan sucking out from the topside of cabinet with a fine filter to stop it pulling all the good grit out and only remove dust , to stop it getting 2 cloudy inside as well I have a mesh floor in it and most is covered with a piece of rubber and cut short round the edges the used media drops down and cant get blown back up with the blast jet

 

[rtbcomp]

I used a roll of plastic film threaded behind the glass and pulled down as required.

 

[Dcal]

I used a roll of plastic film threaded behind the glass and pulled down as required.

That's what I was thinking of doing.
What sort of plastic are you using?
I couldn't find a source on line for a reasonable cost.

 

[rtbcomp]

I used the sort of stuff they use for protecting books

 

[stuvy]

I’m sure Iv read somewhere that cellophane for wrapping flowers is great and can be brought for pennies

 

[scottmk1]

Thanks again for the responses. Looks like I need to get myself a pressure pot and sort out a valve like Brightspark's

 

[rtbcomp]

I’m sure Iv read somewhere that cellophane for wrapping flowers is great and can be brought for pennies

I was going to try that as it's clear, whereas the stuff I used is slightly frosted, but still OK with good lighting in the cabinet.

 

[scottmk1]

What about this one? https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/clarke-cpsb100b-32l-pressurised-sandblaster/

Suggestions for alternatives welcome too!