Sand Blasting

JR I had to build an air dryer to run my air through to solve my moisture problems. I used 4" pipe about 4' long filled with desiccant(not sure about the spelling but it's the white pellets that go in auto air-conditioner dryers). Mount the pipe vertically with screens inside to contain the pellets top and bottom. Set it up where the air goes in the bottom and out the top. Put a moisture drain out the bottom and a side outlet between the screens to add or remove the pellets. If they get wet you can remove and dry then reuse. The pellets are fairly expensive(about $70 for 10#'s) but it's a one time expense. Haven't had any moisture problems since.



This is what the desiccant looks like, about the size of a BB.


Here's a shot of my dryer.

i used play sand when i did mine, never again. the mess is to much. it did a good job, and i had no warpage problems on the large panels. i kept the gun at an angle to the panels, and changed out the ceramic nozzles alot.
if i ever build another van, i'm going to rent a steam jenny. just a presure washer won't phase the rubbery stuff, you need hot water to cut thru it.be prepared to get soking wet. and it took a while to learn the best settings for the sand blaster. my 1st day at it sucked. by the 2nd day i had got a handle on it. you can't get in a hurry. when my air compressor would cut on, i would stop blasting and cut off the valve at the bottom of the blaster pot, and drain the air copressor tank and line, then repete till the air compressor cycled on again. i used about 15 bags of play sand to do the whole van. i had the biggest litter box in town. cats would come froms miles around just to poop in my drive way.
wildbillinva

Matt I scraped a lot off using razor blades and a scraper .1st but a box of blades and a good scraper, not a junk $1.00 type, Buy the best one out there. $10.00 or so, the blade works beter a little less sharp. And you can't use to much pressure or you will just brake blades, Start on a flat surface not a wheel well, with 1 swipe you can cut off a lot of old materal , Also use the angle grinder with a 4'' wire wheels And some smaller ones for a drill, Like every one is saying it takes some time, What i do is as soon as i get home from work Ill work on the van 1 to 1 1/2 a day, that way you still have family time, if you stay on this you don't get burned out,

Step 1. Take everything off. You have done this.
Step 2. Clean the oils and dirt off. A pressure washer is good, a Hotsy or similar is better. This is a kerosene-fired hot water pressure washer.I have seen people go right to undercoat after this. It really gets a lot off. They can be rented but this is not something to be trifled with. They can hurt you!
Step 3. Mechanical removal. This is where you have to grind, scrape or blast. There are a ton of opinions and thoughts on this step. It all boils down to Time, Cost, Effort and Quality when done. By price it starts at getting under there yourself and hand scraping and brushing. You have already got a taste of that. At the high end of price, you take the body to a local shop and pick it up blasted and maybe even primed in a couple days. In between, there are all sorts of messes and health hazards to consider.

I won't bother to describe hand cleaning. If you have any intelligence, you will experiment with different stuff and figure out what works best. You will be there a long time.

Dry ice is not available locally, and very expensive. It tends to be for the underside of yachts.
The local mobile blasting guy quoted 900 outside, 900 inside, and no touching the underside! This was soda.
I have access to a pressure pot and a towed compressor. I plan on soda blasting the entire body and using copper slag (this IS the copper state) for the areas with rust. Sand is cheap, but you can easily warp panels, cleanup is much worse, and the dangers have been noted.
Doing the entire thing with slag is the same as sand without the breathing issues and higher cost. A bag here is 12 bucks for 70 pounds. The hopper will probably hold 4-6 bags and last about 15-20 minutes.
Doing it with soda or walnut shells is less chance of warping, doesn't dig out the rust, is okay for cleanup, but leaves a film. You have to plan for that.
Doing it with plastic media is more costly and there is cleanup. It also doesn't get rid of the rust.

All of them you need old clothes or a suit, a mask or respirator (with sand it's best to go high-end with a good respirator or fresh air supply), good gloves and boots, a work area that will not mess with others or laws, clean up stuff, and it's a good idea to have a helper/ambulance driver, just in case. I will document this part of mine, I'm getting close.

it's a good idea to have a helper/ambulance driver, just in case.
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A lot of steps & I guess a lot of work so I guess that's why the professional's charge what the do for their work

I paid a guy to do mine , best $300 I ever spend. (took him all day to do it) And about 20 bags of sand

If I could get a guy to do all of mine for 300, I'd have 2 of them lined up and ready!

Ditto here on the $300 I'd have both mine done too!

Just find a crack head & tell them you lost some rocks under it. They will pick it clean for you for free-:(Lol)