Topic: Soda blasting carbs. A natural cleaner

[manjisann]

Does anyone know, would this work well for cleaning our engine's before painting them??

Thanks,

Brandon

[Retro Rocket]

Does anyone know, would this work well for cleaning our engine's before painting them??

 

It sure does, i spent the weekend at the "40th anniversary of Honda in Australia" rally at Gatton in Queensland and i was looking at what i thought were brand new cases but in fact these were soda blasted and looked awesome. I will be having some of my stuff done by this guy, funny thing is that his business is just down the road from where i live.... 

Mick 

[plippo]

so is this the cabinet on sale?

http://www.harborfreight.com/abrasive-blast-cabinet-42202.html

thanks

[LokisTyro]

I'd like to add that you can buy ceramic soda blasting tips for about a buck a piece, or 10 for $10, which could add some more bang for the buck with this setup. There are different sizes and all you need is a hose clamp to keep them from becoming a projectile and rocketing towards precious parts, I wont guarantee that.. I didn't see anything in here about those, hence the grave-digging of an old thread. Hope this helps.

[thelowmax]

I was going to build one of these but then I saw and bought a media blasting kit at Harbor Freight Tool supply for $32. It comes with a 50lb capacity container to hold the medium, a hose and a pretty decent gun that attaches to my compressor.  I used it with baking soda the first time and it works great. Cleaned up all the oxidation, stripped the old black paint off the engine, carbs (inside and out), cleaned off the bits of rust all over (screw heads, frame chips and wear), etc.. I went a little crazy and started blasting everything around me. Wood, plastic, stone, etc.. It's pretty cool. Tough on the mess, gentle on the metal.  The baking soda is cheap (but so am I) so I'm building a little blasting box for smaller items to contain it. It is a bit messy, but it's just baking soda so it cleans up pretty easy.   I'm getting some different mediums to try out as well. Glass beads, nut shells,etc.. I wish I had gotten one sooner now that I see the potential of this great tool. I recommend building (easy) or getting one (cheap).

[hmenzies]

I was going to build one of these but then I saw and bought a media blasting kit at Harbor Freight Tool supply for $32. It comes with a 50lb capacity container to hold the medium, a hose and a pretty decent gun that attaches to my compressor.  I used it with baking soda the first time and it works great. Cleaned up all the oxidation, stripped the old black paint off the engine, carbs (inside and out), cleaned off the bits of rust all over (screw heads, frame chips and wear), etc.. I went a little crazy and started blasting everything around me. Wood, plastic, stone, etc.. It's pretty cool. Tough on the mess, gentle on the metal.  The baking soda is cheap (but so am I) so I'm building a little blasting box for smaller items to contain it. It is a bit messy, but it's just baking soda so it cleans up pretty easy.   I'm getting some different mediums to try out as well. Glass beads, nut shells,etc.. I wish I had gotten one sooner now that I see the potential of this great tool. I recommend building (easy) or getting one (cheap).

Would you mind posting a link to the kit you ordered?

[thelowmax]

I think it was on sale when I bought it because it's $39.99 now. Still a pretty deal.

http://www.harborfreight.com/portable-abrasive-blaster-kit-37025.html

[brah pitt]

I think it was on sale when I bought it because it's $39.99 now. Still a pretty deal.

http://www.harborfreight.com/portable-abrasive-blaster-kit-37025.html

back on sale! $24.99

[thelowmax]

I think it was on sale when I bought it because it's $39.99 now. Still a pretty deal.

http://www.harborfreight.com/portable-abrasive-blaster-kit-37025.html

back on sale! $24.99

This will pay for itself the first time you use it.  But not literally, because if it did I'ld get a bunch of them.

[MCRider]

I think it was on sale when I bought it because it's $39.99 now. Still a pretty deal.

http://www.harborfreight.com/portable-abrasive-blaster-kit-37025.html

back on sale! $24.99

This will pay for itself the first time you use it.  But not literally, because if it did I'ld get a bunch of them.

I used my HF unit on my VM29s which had been sitting on a shelf since 1995. Cleaned all the varnish in float bowls, all the brasses, bodies inside and out without disassembly, water clean up. Carbs work perfectly.

[Hush]

My Son's CBR400 looks like it had been parked at the beach for a year, we followed the "how to" from the the FAQ's section on here and are amazed (1) that it worked and (2) how well it worked. I couldn't get my head around the air flow sucking up the powder but it worked sweet.

[sweet_baby_james]

Im looking into getting the setup from HF.  Just wondering what HP, capacity and CFM compressors people have.  I have heard reports that it is quite a intense process, especially for the larger parts such as engine casings.

Thanks

[CafeDawg]

I have a portable blaster unit and used a 6gal pancake to blast parts but spent more time waiting for the compressor to recharge than I did blasting.  Now have a 13gal compressor which works much better, good for small parts like carbs, triple tree etc.  In this case bigger is better.
Respect
CD

[Hush]

One thing, do wear a mask or you will think you have injested powdered lemons into your lungs for days afterwards.
We did engine casings too, no worries.

[crazypj]

Im looking into getting the setup from HF.  Just wondering what HP, capacity and CFM compressors people have.  I have heard reports that it is quite a intense process, especially for the larger parts such as engine casings.

Thanks

 Tank size is irrelevant, you need to know the SCFM of compressor, bigger is better when blasting
I have a 4.5hp, 8.1 SCFM  @ 40psi (6.4 SCFM @90psi) its way too small but does get the job done (eventually)
 The smaller the blast nozzle, the lower SCFM you need, carbs are OK @40psi and 3/32" blast nozzle
 This is a pretty good site for all sorts of information, it's not for professional 'blasters' so more 'user friendly' (in my opinion)
http://www.sandblasterinfo.com/

[metalhead0283]

i got a haul behind diesel air compressor that does 187scfm @ 120psi an this 6 foot tall dual cylinder air drier...a 100lbs pressure pot blaster an big blast cabinet with a dust collector built in...i know its over kill but a got stupid good deal on this stuff

[crazypj]

Nope, that's a REAL compressor
 I used to work on Ingersol Rand 80~600scfm compressors, make life real easy when your doing dainty stuff on bikes

[metalhead0283]

yeah thats the brand mine is....i jus gotta be nice bout when i use it cuz the damn thing is loud as hell..neighbors might not like that cranking at midnight...lol...me n my friend got tired real quick of that 80 gallon compressor n taking hours n hours to do a few parts...got that compressor for $500 running..to good of a deal to pass up..jus lil blow by or back or whatever its called..not a big deal jus will need a rebuild eventually n i heard its like $500 for the parts n we know a guy thats done em before...jus check the oil n its all good for now...im getting the stuff to finish hooking it up this weekend...

[crazypj]

Probably just needs a new filter and cooler connectors tightened up.
What motor is it running? (I've only re-built the 'smaller' Deutz and Hatz diesels)

[metalhead0283]

it has a perkins in it...i jus check oil before using it..ill run it till i really need to rebuild it...the oil blows out the dipstick hole..well not blow but drips out

[DonMer]

I think it was on sale when I bought it because it's $39.99 now. Still a pretty deal.

http://www.harborfreight.com/portable-abrasive-blaster-kit-37025.html

I got the gun from one of those for 5 bux at a garage sale. Took a JIF peanut butter jar, drilled a hole in the lid, hose clamped the pick up hose on each side where it goes into the lid and then clamped it onto the gun. Cheap and easy to use.

[MickB]

Thanks for the soda tip I'll use it on my cb500 carbies, we are bakers and I just happen to have 50lbs of bicarbonate on hand

[Stev-o]

I'm going to try this....

[Magpie]

After reading through this thread I thought I better try this. Our local Princess Auto has this little blaster
https://www.princessauto.com/en/1-litre-siphon-feed-abrasive-blasting-gun/product/PA0008574170 It seems to work well even with old clumpy baking soda. After a few minutes work a carb looked pretty good, almost too good. Cliff.

[RAFster122s]

Soda for blasting is a bit different than soda for baking...your results will differ using blasting soda...