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Post by martin42006 on Aug 12, 2018 20:51:56 GMT
A while ago I negotiated for the use of one of my mother's stables which was in use for storing whatever could be lobbed over the door. I decided to clear it out, sell or chuck whatever we didn't need anymore and made it into a workshop extension. Once I had made a bit of space and gathered most of my junk into some semblance of order I got cracking with wiring and lights. I picked up some fairly cheap 240v led tubes and the give a reasonable light. I also invested in some shelving. Again it was cheap and cheerful but seems to be holding up so far I left it like that for a while and after wiring up all the sockets and an extra line for the compressor I could use it for a bit of painting. I have now decided that it needs a bench so this Sunday I decided that I was going to get cracking on that. As you can imagine I'm not going to buy a bench and I also don't want to spend a fortune in timber to build one so I found lots of bits lying about for the frame and the top is made from half of an old garage door. The bottom half was rotten so I just used the top. sturdy It might get a sheet of plywood later on as a top layer but the structure is there. Once that was done I decided that my venerable old sandblaster I built a number of years ago was really starting to show its age along with many design flaws. So I started building a new one, again out of bits I had laying about because 10mm ply seems to last forever. This is as far as I got before going in to cook some dinner, I think it's going to come out rather well.
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Post by cdwood2010 on Aug 18, 2018 8:03:41 GMT
You're like a 1 man A Team. Loving it, this is exactly what we are about at BodgeWerks. It's easy to do anything with an unlimited budget, but it takes some ingenuity to fashion solutions from what you have to hand. Loving the blast chamber, I made something similar just for soda blasting alloy bits. Carry on.
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Post by manitou on Aug 19, 2018 11:31:13 GMT
you set the bar very high martian!
The sloth garage saw a coolant change happen yesterday - so something got done!
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Post by martin42006 on Aug 19, 2018 20:33:56 GMT
No I'm not a martian just human but I can understand the confusion 😂😂 It more of a 2 man A-team you just don't get to see the old man hiding in the shadows keeping me on the straight and narrow. This is mostly what my life is about, how can I make something work without having to spend lots of money that I don't have. The sandblaster progressed today in-between helping with my grandma's MK3 and dad's Range rover classic. I got the holes cut in the front and then began on making the funnel to catch the sand. It's rather hefty stuff but hopefully it will last. I also managed to find a few sheets of single glazing in the skip that my dad removed from an old window or door. They will do right for the viewing hole. All that's left now is the legs, door, extraction and lighting.
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Post by manitou on Aug 20, 2018 12:46:08 GMT
No I'm not a martian just human but I can understand the confusion 😂😂 It more of a 2 man A-team you just don't get to see the old man hiding in the shadows keeping me on the straight and narrow. This is mostly what my life is about, how can I make something work without having to spend lots of money that I don't have. Ahh, the concept of getting so much done is a little alien to me - a two man team hey, always helps!
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Post by martin42006 on Aug 21, 2018 13:35:48 GMT
No I'm not a martian just human but I can understand the confusion 😂😂 It more of a 2 man A-team you just don't get to see the old man hiding in the shadows keeping me on the straight and narrow. This is mostly what my life is about, how can I make something work without having to spend lots of money that I don't have. Ahh, the concept of getting so much done is a little alien to me - a two man team hey, always helps! The trick is merging beer time with work time. Avoid too much heavy machinery after you have had a few but you can get a surprising amount done whilst having a few* pints. * can run anywhere from 2-20 cans/bottles/kegs
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Post by grenade on Aug 21, 2018 22:29:38 GMT
Great job and a few beers whilst cleaning up/organizing? Great idea! (Been doing that for years) great job in the shop too!
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Post by martin42006 on Aug 28, 2018 8:59:05 GMT
Some more done this weekend since it was a long one. First off was to get that big lump off the bench and standing on its own feet. So last funnel panel screwed on And legs Now it's time for some lights They currently run off a 12v DC power supply that I can't remember what it used to be for. Shoved it back into the corner to make space. Got the new gloves on too Well I suppose it need a lid now then doesn't it. Just some more offcuts the bottom layer is 3/4" and the top is 1/2" The cutout was sized to fit the bits of glass I found and leave 1" around the edges for adhesive. Something like that Now there's a catch. Here it is. One on each side in fact. I'm reusing part of the old extraction system too still need to work out where the dust is going to go but the idea here is to create a low pressure area where all the heavier dust will drop back down. I'm thinking I will just hook up an extractor to the top to pickup any dust thats fine enough to make it that far
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Post by martin42006 on Aug 28, 2018 9:14:36 GMT
Once all that was done I made a start on something else I have been wanting for ages but never got round to making or buying is a stand for spraying stuff on. So with the offcuts I made one. It even got some little triangles in the corners for stability and chains for height/width adjustment. And here is is in use already. I also came to the realisation that I don't have enough light over the bench so another spare bit of wood some led strips and an old bonnet release cable will sort that out. The power will be run from an old computer PSU as I have a couple laying about and it's essentially a prebuilt DC 12v, 5v & 3v voltage regulator. Still working on the switch and connection board for that as dinner was ready and I decided to play cards afterwards.
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Post by cdwood2010 on Aug 28, 2018 23:51:09 GMT
I do like the way that your solutions look so simple. Like " oh yeah of course". Genius. I'm liking the blast cabinet; i made mine with a flat bottom but i think i might revisit that now.....
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Post by martin42006 on Aug 29, 2018 12:17:54 GMT
My first blasting cabinate has a flat bottom aswell but I soon got fed up with scraping the sand up so it got modified. I also hate the viewing hole being on top of the box as my neck and spine is buggered enough already hence this one has the window in front. I got the wiring finished for the light last night Old psu screwed to the back wall. A panel screwed on, connector block and switch attached. What I like about computer PSU's is the amount of 12v lines you get. Just chop off one of the old molecular connectors and you have 2 black earth's and a yellow 12v, the red I believe is 5v and not much use at this point. And we have lights. Going to order some more switches so that I can power the sandblaster lights from the same system.
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Post by martin42006 on Sept 17, 2018 12:17:49 GMT
A few more bits done in-between work, car shows and life. My dad fitted new gas struts on his range rover a while ago and threw away the old ones, so I un-threw them away and stuck them in a corner untill I found a use. Well I found one. Also fitted a switch for the lights I also found a ash vaccum cleaner in Aldi which I figured would make a good extraction system. It does work rather well so I got a few bits blasted. Spare heat shields that a friend wants powder coating. And done in "chrome" New shelf And some spare panels hung on the walls I also decided to start a numberplate collection, these are all from cars that I currently have or have had. My MK1 is missing from there because the only plates I have for her are currently on the car. This weekend I shafted an axe. Which as you would imagine is considerably better than getting shafted by an axe. The old handle had taken some abuse so since I had a new on lying about I decided to repair it. Also sharpened it too.
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Post by cdwood2010 on Sept 19, 2018 8:45:43 GMT
God damn it there is so much win here. PC PSU. Genius.
I am loving that chrome finish. Might have to get me some of that.
What media do you use in your cabinet? I built mine just for soda blasting really but i have "tinkered" with walnut and even the dreaded gritty grit. Ima have to put a pointy bottom on my cabinet, not only will it save me the scoopy thing but i think it will be extra swirl space; soda is a bit dusty and whips around a lot.
c.
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Post by martin42006 on Sept 19, 2018 11:08:46 GMT
I came across using a PSU for setting up a electronics testing station, they are very useful and found that they could be used pretty much anywhere. I'm currently using kiln dried sand in my blaster, it's cheap and easy to get. I also have also played with some aluminium oxide grit and some glass bead both of which worked quite well. The issue with sand is silicosis which you really don't want, so it's important to have good filtering which is where the ash vacuum cleaner comes in, having used it for a while the vacuum clogs very easy because the dust is so fine but it does work.
The chrome powder is good but can be quite picky, it needs 30mins baking time at 200deg and then has to have a coat of clear powder which does dull it a little.
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Post by martin42006 on Oct 1, 2018 8:12:43 GMT
Ok I have decided to rename the thread since it's more than just building the workspace now. So since we last spoke I have been beavering away, I have modified the blaster slightly so that I can change the media. Hole drilled and a cork hammered in. This was partly because I wanted to change up to the aluminium oxide grit I have. It's alot harsher than sand and nowhere near as much dust so it stays rather clean. The only problem with it is I think it's a bit to corse for the gun. More on that later. Made a start on the bike as I ditched it a few months ago. One of the front forks bent and locked. So I bought and refurbed a set to fit. The front now has working suspension and I got a few panels bolted back on. I love a good bit of up-cycling so when I was rummaging around reshafting the other axe I pulled out another one with a rotten handle it had taken a fair few beatings over the years and since we have another 3-4 full length splitting axes I thought I would make something a bit different. Added a bit of lightness and style Cut along the line. Remove all the excess from the back of the head Quick polish and sharpen Pretty much ready for a new handle now. I might take a bit more steel off but don't want to weaken it and there is already a small crack from all the years of abuse.
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