Blast Your Way to Success
Tips for Success in Your Blast Cabinet
At Rodeco Metal Finishing, we understand that using an abrasive blast cabinet can significantly enhance your blasting experience. Not only does it provide a safer and more comfortable environment for operators, but it can also be a cost-effective solution when set up correctly. As long as your parts fit comfortably within the cabinet, you’ll unlock a range of benefits—including lower abrasive costs, reduced waste, better precision, and a cleaner finish.
In this blog, we’ll present five essential tips to help you optimize your abrasive blasting process. While you might already know the benefits of cabinet blasting, we’ll focus on practical strategies that can enhance your results. Let’s get started by exploring how these tips can improve your blasting operations!
Using recyclable media can lead to lower abrasive costs, helping you save money.
Recycling your abrasive material reduces waste, particularly dust.
Being closer to your work piece while blasting improves precision and coverage.
You have the flexibility to use the cabinet at any time, without concerns about the weather.
A recyclable abrasive ensures a cleaner finish, and you can easily blow off your parts inside the cabinet for optimal results.
The following tips cover key aspects such as cost savings through recyclable media, waste reduction, improved precision, operational flexibility, and achieving a cleaner finish. By implementing these strategies, you’ll ensure that your blasting process is not only efficient but also effective.
Blow It Away:
Dust Has No Place on Your Parts!
Even with the most advanced blasting systems, we strongly recommend taking a little extra time to blow off your parts to eliminate dust. Leaving dust on your parts can lead to significant issues with coating adhesion, oxidation, and moisture retention. I recall a process we ran in the Rodeco Process Development Lab where we were glass bead blasting brass parts for an aesthetic finish. About 30 minutes after finishing, we noticed the parts turning purple from patina. We later realized this was due to a small amount of glass bead dust left behind, which allowed moisture to soak in and sit on the surface, which turned the parts purple.
The Perfect Blend: How a Good Abrasive Mix Ensures Consistent Finishes
When is it time to add abrasive to your blast cabinet? Like many, I used to think I should refill the cabinet only when it was completely out of abrasive. However, the problem with this “empty fill” method is that it leads to significant variations in your abrasive mesh blend between refills. When you add new media, it’s at its largest size, which means the surface of your parts will be rougher right after a refill. As the abrasive breaks down into smaller particles, the finish will gradually smooth out.
To ensure a consistent finish on your parts, consider making smaller, more regular abrasive additions. For instance, instead of loading 50 pounds of new media each week, try adding 10 pounds per day. This way, your machine will benefit from a mix of larger (new) media, smaller particles (just before they’re removed by the dust collector), and everything in between. When we mention having a good working mix, this is what we mean.
Blast Cabinet Care: Develop an Effective Preventative Maintenance Schedule
Creating a service plan for your blast cabinet is one of the most important pieces of advice I can give to cabinet blasters. Just like with your portable blast pot, when the blast nozzle in your cabinet wears down, your air requirements increase to maintain the same level of performance. Furthermore, as gaskets and gloves start to wear or tear, you might see dust escaping from the cabinet, leading to cleanliness and safety concerns within your shop. When holes develop in your enclosure, reclaimer, and recovery hoses, secondary air gets introduced into the process, resulting in various performance issues and increased production costs.
To prevent these issues, regular inspections and maintenance are essential. Schedule routine checks to assess the condition of your blast nozzle, hoses, enclosure, gaskets, gloves, and filters. This proactive approach allows you to address wear and tear before it escalates into larger problems. Additionally, keeping a maintenance log can help you track when parts were last replaced and anticipate future needs. By staying on top of maintenance, you can ensure optimal performance, reduce downtime, and ultimately save on production costs. Remember, a well-maintained blast cabinet not only improves efficiency but also enhances safety in your work environment.
Don’t Overfill Your Cabinet
This tip may seem obvious, and some might find it a bit underwhelming. Who would purposely overfill their blast cabinet with abrasive? While experienced blasters typically avoid this error, new operators might not fully understand the blast recovery system and could prematurely add fresh abrasive. At the start of their shift, blasters usually check the suction hopper or pressure pot to gauge the remaining abrasive. However, if the last person to use the cabinet turned it off immediately after their job, some media may be left unrecovered at the bottom of the cabinet and in the conveying hose. If fresh abrasive is added and the machine is turned on, the unrecovered abrasive will cycle through the reclaim system and flow back into the hopper, potentially overloading the pot.
In a pressure pot, overfilling abrasive can create pressurization problems, preventing the plunger from sealing properly with the gasket. This can greatly impact your blasting performance. In a suction blast system, excess abrasive can lead to significant leaks near the reclaimer door or be pulled into the dust collector, resulting in wasted usable media.
Optimize Your Grit Valve Settings (Pressure Cabinets)
If you’ve used a portable pressure vessel, you understand the importance of not overfeeding your nozzle with abrasive. This occurs when you open your grit valve more than what’s optimal for efficient blasting. While this might seem to speed up the process, it leads to excessive abrasive consumption. In a cabinet setup, overfeeding can result in more serious problems, including premature wear of the cabinet and parts, reduced visibility, and increased strain on your reclaimer and dust collector.
Not all grit valves are identical, so when adjusting the grit valve, I always begin by fully closing it by turning it clockwise. After it’s closed, I turn it 1-2 full counterclockwise turns (depending on the specific make and model) to open it slightly, then check the media flow in the blast cabinet. I look for a barely visible blast stream and typically place a piece of scrap metal inside for testing. Once I’ve checked the stream, I make ¼ counterclockwise turns while monitoring the blast stream until I reach the optimal level for efficient blasting
In conclusion, utilizing an abrasive blast cabinet can provide a more cost-effective, safe, and comfortable experience for blast operators, as long as your parts fit within the cabinet and allow for proper maneuvering. By ensuring the right fit, you can enjoy several key benefits, including lower abrasive costs, reduced waste, improved precision, the ability to blast anytime, and a cleaner finish.
As you implement these tips for optimizing your blasting process, remember that proper maintenance, careful media management, and attention to your grit valve settings are crucial for achieving the best results. If you have any questions or want to discuss your specific blasting needs, visit rodeco.com or call 800-849-0871. We’re here to help you enhance your blasting process!
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