Sand Blasting Cabinet
After lengthy consideration and on-line research, I decided to purchase a blast cabinet from Harbor Freight. They offer a couple of them, one comes with legs and a light inside and another has no legs and no light. As the light inside the (more expensive) unit is universally despised and considered useless by nearly 100% of those people who bought one and as I have a supply of perforated, right-angle steel to make a base with - (and as I'm certain you have determined by now, I'm cheap!!) I bought the legless and lightless unit with a coupon for under $100.00!
However!! Be advised that there are two item numbers for this cabinet, 42202 and 62454. If you decided to buy one, make certain that you get item number 62454, for reasons I will explain in a moment. You can't just call your local Harbor Freight and ask if they have a 62454 in stock, because that number will cross reference to 42202 and they will say, "Yes." You have to make them check and see if they actually have a 62454 in stock with that number on the box.
Now, why specify a 62454 rather than a 42202? If you read a couple hundred reviews of these cabinets you will discover they have a number of short comings.. (Hey, it's Harbor Freight stuff - Right?) The majority of these problems have been addressed in the 62454 model which is actually built in a different factory than the 42202. The most noticeable difference you can see, are the two door latches on the front of the 62454, the 42202 only has one. Also the 62454 comes with it's seams sealed with silicone seal and they supply you with a whole tube of the stuff to boot!
After calling all three Harbor Freight stores in Maine (and considering calling several more in New Hampshire) I discovered the Bangor store had a 62454 in stock and that they would hold it for me. Bangor is nearly as far from me as Boston is, but off we went to make a day of it.. . . . 'Mother' decided to come along, but we had to stop at a fabric store.
After I got home and unpacked my new 'toy', I discovered one corner was stove-in and the top had a slight dent - (Hey, it's Harbor Freight stuff - Right?) I pushed the corner back out with a small hydraulic jack and then using a dolly and a hammer smoothed it into shape. The dent only required a swift whack with a rubber mallet.
I was surprised at how high it needed to sit in order for my arms to easily access the rubber gloves and then work inside the cabinet. I built a stand that positioned the cabinet 29-1/2" off the floor. (I would have gone 30" but it has to fit under an existing shelf and the door wouldn't have opened.
The unit comes with the built-in gloves, a blasting gun, with four ceramic nozzles and it's pickup tube. There is also a hole and a 2-1/2" connector for dust collection. Unfortunately standard 2-1/2" hose fittings do not fit tightly into this connector. (Hey, it's Harbor Freight schitt - Right?) other than that there are plugs for the air intake opening (in the back, directed by an internal baffle) and other openings should you decide not to use them, as well as rubber grommets for an air line and a wire for a light.
The viewing window comes with two protective self-adhering films, one of which is already applied.
I've got the stand all built and now have to find a light fixture in my junk that will work, wire that up and then plumb it for HP air and dust collection.
Here is the unit itself:
https://www.harborfreight.com/catal...Featured+Weight,f,Sale+Rank,f&q=blast+cabinet
It will hold 30 lbs of blasting media and I bought a 25 lb box of glass bead media. (I had another coupon!)
I'll post a picture if I ever get it all finished.
Roger
