Sand blasting wheels and ford shock tower questions

[84CUCV]

here are pics of the wheels i bought. 16x7in rim. got them for my lav tires. question is want to sand blast them clean and then paint them. should i just use plain sand? dont want to hurt the metal. also, pic of the ford shock towers. i got a bunch from the same guy. these are not the right ones a friend said. need the ones from a 78 ford. can i use these anyway? i dont see why not.

thanks

 

[b454rat]

I used play sand before and worked good. Its alot finer than regular blasting sand, so won't gouge the softer metal. Try it out on the backside first to be sure.....

As for the towers, don't see why they wouldn't work, same concept just different design....

 

[readymix]

SandawgK5 has those towers on his K5 IIRC.
I know he has posted pictures of it before.

 

[84CUCV]

good to know thanks.

 

[Blazin'4x4]

I have the same shock towers gettin ready to be installed. I havent noticed any problem in runnin these.

 

[jor]

My advice is NEVER use sand to blast anything. It is very dangerous to your health. There are a lot of blasting media available that do a great job. I use Black Beauty or Fused Alumina or whatever, but never sand. Do a query on blasting with sand and I'm betting you'll choose not to use it. Good luck.
jor

 

[thatK30guy]

My advice is NEVER use sand to blast anything. It is very dangerous to your health. There are a lot of blasting media available that do a great job. I use Black Beauty or Fused Alumina or whatever, but never sand. Do a query on blasting with sand and I'm betting you'll choose not to use it. Good luck.
jor

Why not explain the dangers of it here so we can read it right here? It'd be nice to understand something here on the same page as everyone else instead of each of us looking for info on different sites and jumping to conclusions with different answers.

 

[thatK30guy]

I don't think its '78 brackets you need but rather newer ones like '87 maybe? This is the first time I've ever read or heard of a '78 year for Ford brackets, ever. They are different than the newer ones.

 

[jor]

Why not explain the dangers of it here so we can read it right here?

It can cause serious or fatal respiratory disease - silicosis. Here's a quote for the CDC website:http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/92-102.html
Abrasive blasting with sands containing crystalline silica can cause serious or fatal respiratory disease.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) requests assistance in preventing silicosis and deaths in workers exposed to respirable crystalline silica during sandblasting. Sandblasters, exposed coworkers, and their employers urgently need information about the respiratory hazards associated with sandblasting. Your assistance in this effort will help prevent silicosis and death, a national goal for health promotion and disease prevention stated in Healthy People 2000 [DHHS 1990].

The Alert describes 99 cases of silicosis from exposure to crystalline silica during sandblasting. Of the 99 workers reported, 14 have already died from the disease, and the remaining 85 may die eventually from silicosis or its complications. NIOSH requests that editors of trade journals, safety and health officials, labor unions, and employers bring the recommendations in this Alert to the attention of all workers who are at risk.

 

[muddermilitia]

I don't think its '78 brackets you need but rather newer ones like '87 maybe? This is the first time I've ever read or heard of a '78 year for Ford brackets, ever. They are different than the newer ones.

X2, I think you can get the stamped steel type shock towers from just about any 80s-early 90s f-250 & f-350

 

[84CUCV]

OK good info, where can i get Black Beauty or Fused Alumina? not to sure where to look. thanks

 

[sandawgk5]

SandawgK5 has those towers on his K5 IIRC.
I know he has posted pictures of it before.

Yep here is the post.

http://coloradok5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=165893&highlight=gabriels

I will have to move them when I push my axle forward but there is plenty of frame space to do that with no inner fenders

Dik

 

[84CUCV]

your right to, 80 stamped tower. have these now so im good

 

[84CUCV]

thanks for the link

 

[jor]

here can i get Black Beauty or Fused Alumina?

I'm in Tucson and I get my blasting media from Kern's Blasting Sand. I'd check the yellow pages or internet for "blasting media" or something like that. Check the TPTools catalog (tptools.com) to get an idea of what's available. The alumina stuff I referred to is actually aluminum oxide and is less abrasive than other stuff. Black Beauty is a general use media. I use it in my pressure blaster and in my cabinet (bought from TPTools). BTW, the guys at TPTools are real helpful. Good luck.
jor

 

[84CUCV]

thanks again

 

[thatK30guy]

It can cause serious or fatal respiratory disease - silicosis. Here's a quote for the CDC website:http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/92-102.html
Abrasive blasting with sands containing crystalline silica can cause serious or fatal respiratory disease.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) requests assistance in preventing silicosis and deaths in workers exposed to respirable crystalline silica during sandblasting. Sandblasters, exposed coworkers, and their employers urgently need information about the respiratory hazards associated with sandblasting. Your assistance in this effort will help prevent silicosis and death, a national goal for health promotion and disease prevention stated in Healthy People 2000 [DHHS 1990].

The Alert describes 99 cases of silicosis from exposure to crystalline silica during sandblasting. Of the 99 workers reported, 14 have already died from the disease, and the remaining 85 may die eventually from silicosis or its complications. NIOSH requests that editors of trade journals, safety and health officials, labor unions, and employers bring the recommendations in this Alert to the attention of all workers who are at risk.

I understand and agree with this quote but for those who are at risk, the problem lies within the user. Its clearly stated in the instructions/directions with each and every brand new blaster, that a respirator, safety glasses, bump hat and full hood are higly recommended. Failure to use these will result in what the quote said above.

I have never blasted without the stuff I quoted above. I've tried the paper filter dust mask and tried the paint type respirators like body shops use and prefer the respirator over the dust mask any day. I even wear safety glasses as with the hood on, the sand still manages to get blown up inside to your face. The best bet here would be to duct tape the bottom of the hood to your chest.

 

[gibby2268]

Silicosis is nasty nasty stuff, no doubt about it. However, from everything I've read abut it, it seems that the problem with using silica based sands comes with re-using the sand as it gets broken down, as in a blast cabinet that recycles the media continuously. If you're using the sand like in a pressurized blaster outside where you use it one time and then its gone to become one with the yard, you would be ok. I'd still want a good fine particle mask and goggles at the very least, but it should be ok.
That being said, I'd still be alot more comfortable using aluminum oxide or something else as blasting media. I run al ox in my blasting cabinet and it works great.

 

[thatK30guy]

I've only used the fine, fine sand from the local lumberyard thats meant for blasting. It was one-time use only. What came out of the valve stayed on the ground.

I've used a blast cabinet before and it used the same sand from the same lumber yard. Nobody here in town uses any other media, so I can't speak for the others.

 

[k2mslskier]

I saw a show recently where they used baking soda. That's all I know, nothing else. If anyone wants to look into it I'm sure Google could help with that. I lay no claims to being an expert on it nor do I accept any responsibility if anyone was to use it.