sand / shot / ice / bicarb blasting / acid dipping....

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sand / shot / ice / bicarb blasting / acid dipping....

Postby Clara » Tue Mar 16, 2010 9:10 am

Once I get the rear suspension (and possibly sun roof and headlining) removed next weekend the body tub / wheels / many boot lids I have laying around / etc... will be ready to be sent off for cleaning (while I start on the suspension) before we stare at horrors at all of the rust / weak spots this reveals and spend most of April sweating / crying / swearing.

Does anyone have any experience in having their cars blasted / dipped to remove all of the paint and rust? WHAT and importantly WHO would you recommend?

Most places seem to put an under coat (I'd prefer zinc based) on so that it wont worsen while we're busy cutting the grot out. Is there any under coat / anti rust you'd recommend? Once the welding is complete she'll be sent to the paint shop (staying original colours) but she's living outside right now so any protection is appreciated.

OR of course - has anyone done this themselves? How'd it go? Did you use strippers or something else?
Three cars, two fire engines, one steam roller, a wheelchair, and various sized hammers.... what could go wrong?!
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Re: sand / shot / ice / bicarb blasting / acid dipping....

Postby klassicdave » Tue Mar 16, 2010 8:51 pm

Clara, be careful if you have the outer body panels sand blasted as I've read a few times in the past that restoration projects have come back from this process with quite bad distortion. One of the best methods I've read about is media blasting with crushed shells as its less aggresive but just as effective and also removes stubbon paint.
Sorry I can't recommend a company, but you should strike lucky searching the net for somebody in your area.
Best of luck with your project

Dave
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Re: sand / shot / ice / bicarb blasting / acid dipping....

Postby opelscott22 » Wed Mar 17, 2010 12:21 am

Clara, I wouldnt recommend blasting at all for outer panels due to the distortion Dave mentions above, even using soda or well used fine grit can still give problems. Where sandblasting is good is floorpans and engine bays, you still have to scrape off most of the underseal the hard way though as even blasting has a hard time shifting it.( it just makes it hot and run...)
I would look for a blaster who specialises in vehicles as commercial blasters will probably be too heavy handed. For the outer panels i would use paint stripper or strip and clean discs in a grinder, I have found these to work well. If you are carefull with the outer panels it will save loads of time and bother when the bodywork time comes as this minimises distortion, its surprising how much panels move with only a small amount of localised heat.
I havent had any experiance of dipping purely due to the cost, which can be upward of £2k!!!

Good luck and keep us posted!!!

Scott
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Re: sand / shot / ice / bicarb blasting / acid dipping....

Postby Clara » Wed Mar 17, 2010 8:38 am

Thanks Chaps,
I'll be making a few phone calls at lunch to start getting prices in. If you hear sobbing in the corner you'll know why.
Three cars, two fire engines, one steam roller, a wheelchair, and various sized hammers.... what could go wrong?!
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Re: sand / shot / ice / bicarb blasting / acid dipping....

Postby droopsnoot » Wed Mar 17, 2010 9:31 am

I like the idea of acid dipping, but I've read that some people who had it done when it was quite a new process are finding that trapped acid is starting to seep out of some of the box sections after a few years. A guy near me has had his BMW done, and reckons it is fine though.
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