# recommend a media for removing rust and paint from aluminum and steel bikes



## photosbymark (Sep 27, 2011)

Ok was at Harbour Freight today and found a portable media blaster for about $35 bucks or so.  Its basically a spot blaster, and I might build a cabinet for it at some point, but maybe not.  Still it looks like it would work well for getting rust and paint off things around the house.  Also should work on bike frames too, but that I won't tell the wife just yet.  I know there are a number of different things to use.  I think I read somewhere that one can even use regular play sand as an abrasive material.  Yet I am interested in opinions on what would work best for steel and aluminum bikes.  Don't want to damage anything removing the paint and rust.  Thanks in advance


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## Iverider (Sep 28, 2011)

No on the regular play sand. Just don't do it. Use glass bead or the black "sand" that is actually slag of some sort (available at most big box stores near the play sand or by mortar mixes). The glass bead will clean things well, but not take rust off quite as fast as the black stuff. The black stuff will eat everything you throw at it (including the metal from the bike frame if you hold it in one place for any amount of time)

I've got the 20# Harbor freight blaster and it's kind of a turd. Granted my compressor could be larger, I often find the valves on the pressure pot clogging. The cabinet I bought from them leaks sand pretty badly (until I caulked everything myself). I much rather wire wheel things these days. I am looking into converting my pressure pot blaster to soda. It cleans up nicely with water and doesn't remove material (also doesn't work on rust very well hence the wire wheel)

Sand is messy by the way. You'll definitely want a cabinet, or to blast outside. You'll also want to wear at the very least, a dust mask or respirator. I'm sure you're not going to get silicosis from blasting once or twice, but it never hurts to protect your lungs. By the way, silicosis is the main reason not to use play sand for blasting. I've used it before, and it really isn't that great of a media anyway. It often clumps with moisture and clogs things. The black stuff and glass bead are much better about NOT doing this.


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## photosbymark (Sep 28, 2011)

I wondered what would take more metal as well as rust.  This one isn't supposed to need any conversion for different media.  The compressor I have is a 1.7 horse and with a 26 gallon tank and almost twice the cfm at 50 psi as recommended, this is one time I don't expect a problem.  My compressor isn't big enough for a lot of air tools, but this one should be fine.

Here is the one problem I might have with the glass beads.  I am probably going to be working outside instead of in the shop. (ie no cabinet yet unless I build it) With sand, soda or shells it can just go into the yard and be done with it.  I can probably come up with a way to catch them I guess, but can they be reused if I do?  Its all new to me and learned long time ago that it's easier to ask than reinvent the wheel.  Thanks everyone


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## Iverider (Sep 28, 2011)

I don't think soda can be reused. It kind of turns to dust. Walnut shells will break down too, but you can collect them and reuse them until they're no longer effective. When blasting outside, I usually put a tarp down next to the garage and use two more tarps to sort of form a three sided enclosure (the third side being the exterior wall of the garage) When I run out of blast media I just pour the sand from the tarp through a screen and reuse it. Some of it does go flying, never to be seen again, but you can save a good amount using this method.


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## rideahiggins (Sep 29, 2011)

Blasting with soda outside will kill the grass, my brother found that out the hard way. I usually take mine to the local sandblasting shop and he does them for $10 a frame.


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## photosbymark (Sep 29, 2011)

Well I would probably spend more time and money taking the frame back and forth to the local sandblaster than I would doing it here.  Soda killing grass is something I hadn't thought about, but it likely would.  Trouble is the weeds would probably survive.  I am likely at least an hour away from any sandblaster.  Time alone would make this worthwhile for me IF I can learn to do it properly.  There always seems to be some way to use a skill like this around the house.


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## david in wisc. (Oct 3, 2011)

Krautwaggen said:


> No on the regular play sand. Just don't do it. Use glass bead or the black "sand" that is actually slag of some sort (available at most big box stores near the play sand or by mortar mixes). The glass bead will clean things well, but not take rust off quite as fast as the black stuff. The black stuff will eat everything you throw at it (including the metal from the bike frame if you hold it in one place for any amount of time)
> 
> I've got the 20# Harbor freight blaster and it's kind of a turd. Granted my compressor could be larger, I often find the valves on the pressure pot clogging. The cabinet I bought from them leaks sand pretty badly (until I caulked everything myself). I much rather wire wheel things these days. I am looking into converting my pressure pot blaster to soda. It cleans up nicely with water and doesn't remove material (also doesn't work on rust very well hence the wire wheel)
> 
> Sand is messy by the way. You'll definitely want a cabinet, or to blast outside. You'll also want to wear at the very least, a dust mask or respirator. I'm sure you're not going to get silicosis from blasting once or twice, but it never hurts to protect your lungs. By the way, silicosis is the main reason not to use play sand for blasting. I've used it before, and it really isn't that great of a media anyway. It often clumps with moisture and clogs things. The black stuff and glass bead are much better about NOT doing this.




Yes you should wear a mask of good quality when blasting paint. I worked in mining of sand for 18 plus yrs. & all sand has silica bases in it (some worse than others) ! Silica gets into your lungs & will stay there the rest of your life causing scarring of the lungs & eventually a shorter lifespan from constant exposure to silica particles!


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## rustyspoke66 (Oct 3, 2011)

I've used soda for small parts like hubs and anything I don't want to damage the original finish on. I just use it on the side of my shop I don't want the grass to grow.


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