cheap blast cabinet area finally setup

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   Below are pics of the area I set up in my shop to have both cabinets in the same area. I used to have the larger blast cabinet in the garage - it was really messy and dusty, but the small Craftsman compressor (now about 26 years old) finally is dying, and I had no air supply there. It was also inconvenient as my "barn"/shop where I now do the bulk of my auto work is about 100' or so from the garage. So I got creative. It took nearly 3 hours to move the cabinet without making too much of a mess, but got it into the shop. Had to rearrange a lot of stuff to make room next to the smaller glass bead cabinet, but I made it.
Blast media rips vacuums to shreds after a while, and the fine stuff makes it through the vac, but I didn't want to let all the dust settle on the stuff in my shop like it had in the garage. So I took parts of some ideas I found on the web, combined them, and rigged it to work with both cabinets by simply moving a hose from one to the other.
I also rigged it so the hose from this system just plugs into the vacuum, so I can use the vac elsewhere when needed with the good hose for vacuuming.
The filthy air is pulled out of the cabinet into bucket number 1. That bucket has a pipe running to within about 2" of the bottom of the bucket. The pipe leading out is short, near the top, and has a 90 on it facing sidewayes to sort of cause the air to swirl a bit. Then it exits bucket number 1, and enters a similar system in bucket number 2 - there's a long pipe reaching down to within about 2" of the bottom - but in that bucket, there's an inche of water in the bottom. So bucket number 1 catches the larger stuff - maybe some media that makes it out, then what's left goes to bucket 2 where it's trapped in the water sort of like an oil bath air filter - or a Rainbow vacuum cleaner. 
That way the air that finally gets into the shop vac should have lost all of the media and hopefully most of the damaging dust. The dust and dirt will have some momentum and shoot to the bottom of the bucket, but he air should be able to make the turn and head out that 90 degree elbow and out.
There's a coupling at the cabinets so I can move the hose from one to the other and not have 2 systems, or spend much time making the switch. The only down is needing to empty the final bucket now and then to get the "sludge" out.

We'll soon see how it works out.......... these are really cheap cabinets, so they need all the help they can get.

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billd Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Moderator Group Forum Administrator Joined: Jun/27/2007 Location: Iowa Status: Offline Points: 22774	Post Options Post Reply Quote billd Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: cheap blast cabinet area finally setup Posted: Dec/21/2011 at 11:26pm
	Below are pics of the area I set up in my shop to have both cabinets in the same area. I used to have the larger blast cabinet in the garage - it was really messy and dusty, but the small Craftsman compressor (now about 26 years old) finally is dying, and I had no air supply there. It was also inconvenient as my "barn"/shop where I now do the bulk of my auto work is about 100' or so from the garage. So I got creative. It took nearly 3 hours to move the cabinet without making too much of a mess, but got it into the shop. Had to rearrange a lot of stuff to make room next to the smaller glass bead cabinet, but I made it. Blast media rips vacuums to shreds after a while, and the fine stuff makes it through the vac, but I didn't want to let all the dust settle on the stuff in my shop like it had in the garage. So I took parts of some ideas I found on the web, combined them, and rigged it to work with both cabinets by simply moving a hose from one to the other. I also rigged it so the hose from this system just plugs into the vacuum, so I can use the vac elsewhere when needed with the good hose for vacuuming. The filthy air is pulled out of the cabinet into bucket number 1. That bucket has a pipe running to within about 2" of the bottom of the bucket. The pipe leading out is short, near the top, and has a 90 on it facing sidewayes to sort of cause the air to swirl a bit. Then it exits bucket number 1, and enters a similar system in bucket number 2 - there's a long pipe reaching down to within about 2" of the bottom - but in that bucket, there's an inche of water in the bottom. So bucket number 1 catches the larger stuff - maybe some media that makes it out, then what's left goes to bucket 2 where it's trapped in the water sort of like an oil bath air filter - or a Rainbow vacuum cleaner. That way the air that finally gets into the shop vac should have lost all of the media and hopefully most of the damaging dust. The dust and dirt will have some momentum and shoot to the bottom of the bucket, but he air should be able to make the turn and head out that 90 degree elbow and out. There's a coupling at the cabinets so I can move the hose from one to the other and not have 2 systems, or spend much time making the switch. The only down is needing to empty the final bucket now and then to get the "sludge" out. We'll soon see how it works out.......... these are really cheap cabinets, so they need all the help they can get.
	http://theamcpages.com http://antique-engines.com

6768rogues Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List AMC Addicted Joined: Jul/03/2007 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 2500	Post Options Post Reply Quote 6768rogues Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: Dec/21/2011 at 11:35pm
	Looks like cat litter buckets. Maybe a little more fiber in kitty's diet will keep you in a good supply of buckets!
	Why Ramblers? Chicks dig 'em. Whatever it is, I can take it apart. Located near Rochester, NY

sidewinder Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Moderator Group Joined: Oct/07/2007 Location: Niagara Falls, Status: Offline Points: 4342	Post Options Post Reply Quote sidewinder Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: Dec/22/2011 at 8:05am
	I just put wheels on mine and roll it to the door...it vents outside and works fine.... Chuck Page
	Chuck Page, AKA Sidewinder,Niagara Falls http://www.amxsidewinder.com

billd Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Moderator Group Forum Administrator Joined: Jun/27/2007 Location: Iowa Status: Offline Points: 22774	Post Options Post Reply Quote billd Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: Dec/22/2011 at 8:17am
	I've got the casters and materials to make "platforms" for them to sit on, so I can wheel them around. Will be handy, as one forum member said a few days ago, to clean, refill, etc. OUTside of the shop. Just opening the bottom to remove the used stuff can be messy - dust in the air, etc. In the end, I hope to have a different "fan" and vent it outside after going through the buckets. They will have platforms/casters so I can more easily move them around for maintenance. Note the smaller one I use for the beads was a bench-top unit.... The air moving through due to the vacuum keeps it cleaner inside - less dust on the glass and it's a whole lot easier to see inside the unit! My barn shop also has much better lighting. I don't like blasting in 10 degree weather - ANOTHER reason that one got moved into my shop...besides the blown compressor, and better air supply, I can now blast without freezing my hands and the gloves being stiff as steel in the cold. It's always 45-50 in my shop, and it's 60+ if I decide to make it so. LOL - you would not believe the plastic buckets I have stored in my garage loft, and just sitting around used for various things. I was glad to find a use for 2 more of them.... I use them for parts, supplies, waste baskets, etc. The hoses are from an above-ground pool. They ran from the pool to pump and filter, etc. so the hoses were free. They were sitting in a pile under the deck. I have several others, including 2 brand new ones. Edited by billd - Dec/22/2011 at 8:19am
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RSX 401 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List AMC Apprentice Joined: Oct/21/2010 Location: Southeast Texas Status: Offline Points: 218	Post Options Post Reply Quote RSX 401 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: Dec/22/2011 at 9:00am
	My cabinet (similiar to your small one) is a unit from Harbor Freight. Once it was assembled, I gave it a try. Even with my small shop-vac attached, I noticed a fine powder around some of the seams. Luckily, I just happened to have a roll of red duct tape on my work bench. All the seams and corners are now sealed tight.........
	Rick Sipole Southeast Texas 1972 Gremlin 401/Turbo 400

70amcpwr Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List AMC Addicted Joined: Feb/16/2011 Location: Clarksville NH Status: Offline Points: 673	Post Options Post Reply Quote 70amcpwr Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: Dec/22/2011 at 9:48am
	Looks great! Just hook the vacuum cleaner outlet to a dryer vent in the wall and you will never have dust again.
	70amcpwr You just can't fix stupid. mine 1970 BBO Javelin, wifes 1970 Rebel Machine 25A 390 4spd, sons 73 AMX 360 4spd, 1969 Javelin mod pkg candy apple red 343 4spd.

greasygt Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List AMC Nut Joined: Oct/26/2008 Location: fl. Status: Offline Points: 314	Post Options Post Reply Quote greasygt Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: Dec/22/2011 at 12:17pm
	Billd, I like the concept of the pre-chambers you have hooked up. Do they catch much material? Catching any will prolong the life of the vacuum.
	greasy 83 Spirit GT. 79 Ranchero GT.

billd Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Moderator Group Forum Administrator Joined: Jun/27/2007 Location: Iowa Status: Offline Points: 22774	Post Options Post Reply Quote billd Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: Dec/23/2011 at 7:53am
	I've only used it one time for a short time since the setup was assembled. I bead blasted an alternator frame. I found a small number of glass beads in the first bucket, and the water was quite dark in the second. My goal was to make it clean enough so as to not trash a vacuum. I agree on porting the vacuum output out through a duct - for one thing, it might help quiet it just a bit, shop vacs are LOUD, but this little cheapie doesn't have an actual out port, it's output is via "vents" or a grill on the side. So I may eventually get a cheapie that DOES have a "blower port" (you'll find them advertised as vac/blower if it's got a round hole for the hose on the outlet side) and dedicate it to this rig, and that way I can maybe put it up high off the floor away from stuff, and vent it out and leave it that way. I am thinking about some sort of "pre-filter" on the cabinets to catch the larger things like the media, but that's the goal of the first bucket. I'm thinking this way - if I use the bead blaster, beads will get caught in that first bucket, but then if I move the hose to the other cabinet, the black blast will be in the bucket, the two mixed. Originally I thought I could just return caught media to the cabinet - but using a single first bucket, there would be both in there. So I guess one solution is two primary buckets, left connected to the appropriate cabinet, and then just switch the hose from the second bucket to which-ever fist bucket I'd be using. Now I switch the hose to the cabinet being used. If I modified it, that would be connected solid, and I'd switch at the buckets, using 3. That way after a few hours of use, I could empty the media caught in the primary buckets back into the cabinet. LOL - more complicated to say than to do.
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fast401 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List AMC Addicted Joined: Sep/16/2008 Location: swanton, ohio Status: Online Points: 2172	Post Options Post Reply Quote fast401 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: Dec/23/2011 at 10:46am
	How about some sketches of the filter system.
	Disturbing the peace since 1970!!! AMX 19245 www.fast-401.4t.com

billd Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Moderator Group Forum Administrator Joined: Jun/27/2007 Location: Iowa Status: Offline Points: 22774	Post Options Post Reply Quote billd Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: Dec/23/2011 at 11:22am
	Sure - I'll also take the camera out with me in a few minutes to get some "inside shots" - it might be later tonight before posting, however, because when my wife returns, the fun stops and I gotta help her get prepared for a get-together at my son's house this afternoon.
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