Vapor Blasting Prices

Yeah, I used to have a boss, Engineering manager, who would tell the project guys when they wanted something, "Good, Fast, Cheap, Pick Two"

Yes, I have always abided by that. Typically you only get 2.

The guy was a one man outfit and it was refreshing to see the level of customer service and pride in work.

Communication was excellent. Before he started I was sent pictures of spot tests for different grits to ensure I was happy with the finish.

He even sent my parts with another one of his regular customers to save me the 2 hour+ round trip drive.
 
Im in Houston, and with so much work with car clubs and bikes, I can still get by with $60 per hour. But may have to go to 75 by the end of the year. I use it for my own builds but paid of the 3k cost of the machine by doing outside work. I use the least aggressive media, so no metal is impacted, it just takes longer to prep and hit hard to reach/remove spots.
Mez
 
I broke down and bought a used HF blast booth, which I'm so glad I talked him down because they put it together all wrong and the first thing I need do is disassemble it and do it right.
They were also trying to run sand in it with a way undersized compressor. Didn't have enough flow to suck media from the hopper so they ran the feed hose out the back to an upended orange road side warning cone filled with sand attached to the back.
HF recommends 9 CFM, what they had was basically a nail gun compressor, What I'll be trying to run it on is a stand up 30 gallon piston compressor rated at 6 CFM. I figure I'll upsize the feed line from 1/4" to 3/8"
Learned ages ago the key to getting air tools to work wasn't as much pressure as flow so on field jobs we ran 1" hose from a manifold up to 100' to a 10' long 1/2"-3/4" air whip on the tool itself. When you're driving big Ingersoll 9" side grinders it makes all the difference.
I figure the increased line size may help offset the lower output, it'll just mean it's not 100% duty cycle and I'll have to let it build more frequently. Since it's basically a hobby application rather than a shop I hope it'll be adequate
 
I broke down and bought a used HF blast booth, which I'm so glad I talked him down because they put it together all wrong and the first thing I need do is disassemble it and do it right.
They were also trying to run sand in it with a way undersized compressor. Didn't have enough flow to suck media from the hopper so they ran the feed hose out the back to an upended orange road side warning cone filled with sand attached to the back.
HF recommends 9 CFM, what they had was basically a nail gun compressor, What I'll be trying to run it on is a stand up 30 gallon piston compressor rated at 6 CFM. I figure I'll upsize the feed line from 1/4" to 3/8"
Learned ages ago the key to getting air tools to work wasn't as much pressure as flow so on field jobs we ran 1" hose from a manifold up to 100' to a 10' long 1/2"-3/4" air whip on the tool itself. When you're driving big Ingersoll 9" side grinders it makes all the difference.
I figure the increased line size may help offset the lower output, it'll just mean it's not 100% duty cycle and I'll have to let it build more frequently. Since it's basically a hobby application rather than a shop I hope it'll be adequate
You’re correct about hose diameter. I learned that years ago after I spent a lot of $ on a good air impact gun that underperformed running on a longer 3/8” hose. I upgraded to a 1/2” shorter hose and it made the tool run like a champ. I increased the size of all the connectors from the tank to the gun too. You’ll probably run out of air quickly but as you suggest, for hobby use it will probably be ok. 9 cfm requires a fairly big compressor.
 
I made my own compressor w/ a 5hp motor and a 2 cylinder HF pump (15 CFM). it outpaces my nozzle and i get fast coverage). I can't get through powdercoat or high quality paint, but i can blast a XS cylinder in well under an hour. A 19" wheel is usually 1-2 hours, and a 16" wheel is slightly less.

Case halves (visible portions) are under an hour each. Biggest pain is my custom water handling system, but that doesn't impact blast times ;)
 
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