Home soda/abrasive blaster

[Chuckman]

Looks like if the stars align that I might be bringing home another ooooollllld jeep. Haven't seen it yet, but it fits my wants and will eventually get a full restore, but Im thinking now of just good paint and no rust on the exterior. Does anyone here have any experience of a home -use bead blaster/soda blaster? Im sure that Id need both for a 1945 vehicle. Do you have a booth setup for the whole body? Its certainly easy enough to pull a willys tub off and set on jackstands, to do this etc, but it would be nice to do all the little pieces too. Im thinking an outdoor booth and a smaller little desktop unit with the gloves and hood etc. dunno, might be cheaper /easier in the long run to hire it all out, but that not my style.

 

[Caver Dave]

Soda's too fine/light for paint/rust and takes too long for large parts... best for smaller/delicate parts like carbs, trim rings, light housings, etc.

Several buds have used the cheap "pressure washer sand blasting attachment" & "Play Sand" with pretty good success to strip paint/rust from chassis/tubs. Little dust & no sheetmetal warping because of the water, but you'll have to quickly dry & seal/prime the parts or they'll flash rust within an hour...

 

[Black Bear]

if you sandblast wear a damn good mask, and dont use play sand unless you dont care about inhaling Silica.

 

[braxton357]

Soda will work for old paint, but not heavy rust. If you go the soda or sand route, you're going to need a very large compressor. Even for small stuff.