DIY Thrifty air abrasive blaster build.

[Fossildude19]

Found this video on Youtube, and thought it was pretty ingenious. I like the DIY blaster box idea, as well. 

Thought it might be an option for those of us who cannot break the bank to do our own fossil prep.

This has given me some ideas to try out.  Hope this helps someone out.  

Good luck!

[Kane]

Some good ingenuity there. I could see some opportunities for modification on that (such as getting cheap dispensing needles to mount on the sprayer for more detail).

[Fossildude19]

Good point, Kane. That was my thought, as well.

This could be a workable setup for those of us without the means to have a proper prep lab.  

This also gave me an idea on how to make a larger dispenser for my HF air eraser. 

[Kane]

Absolutely... And with the other potential benefit for those who have never prepared before to see if they'd enjoy it without having to invest a lot of money. It definitely lowers the barrier to entry. 

[FossilNerd]

8 minutes ago, Fossildude19 said:

Good point, Kane. That was my thought, as well.

This could be a workable setup for those of us without the means to have a proper prep lab.  

 

4 minutes ago, Kane said:

Absolutely... And with the other potential benefit for those who have never prepared before to see if they'd enjoy it without having to invest a lot of money. It definitely lowers the barrier to entry. 

Yes and yes! Thanks for this! I only have manual tools, and a dremel, at the moment. Ive been looking at getting air tools, but getting the tools and all the proper lab equipment is a little out of my budget right now. This would get me started and also allow me to “try before I buy”, as Kane mentioned. 

[RJB]

  With me being lazy my first thought was "how often does one have to refill the little bottle"?

 

RB

[Fossildude19]

59 minutes ago, RJB said:

  With me being lazy my first thought was "how often does one have to refill the little bottle"?

 

RB

About every 5-10 minutes, I would suppose.

The small cup on my Harbor Freight model only lasts about 5 minutes or so, but it really isn't a big deal to fill it, for the amount of time I actually use it for. 

 

[Randyw]

Great idea! I may have to try this!

[Ptychodus04]

10 hours ago, Fossildude19 said:

About every 5-10 minutes, I would suppose.

The small cup on my Harbor Freight model only lasts about 5 minutes or so

This makes me appreciate the hour+ that I get out of a full tank on my blaster way more than I did before. 

[Fossildude19]

36 minutes ago, Ptychodus04 said:

This makes me appreciate the hour+ that I get out of a full tank on my blaster way more than I did before. 

 

 

We can't all have awesome prep labs.  

You should appreciate that hour.  

[Ptychodus04]

1 hour ago, Fossildude19 said:

 

 

We can't all have awesome prep labs.  

You should appreciate that hour.  

Ha! It only took me 22 years to get my dedicated lab. 

 

I’m finding design flaws with the lab now that I have it broken in. Most of them revolve around the air conditioner. I had to move my compressor back into the garage because the heat generated was too much for the little ac that could when coupled with the scorching Texas heat. Then, I had to move the AC closer to my work area because it wasn’t doing an adequate job of cooling my giant sweaty self wrapped up in my Darth Vader set up and lab coat.

[RJB]

11 hours ago, Ptychodus04 said:

my giant sweaty self wrapped up in my Darth Vader set up and lab coat.

I have the 'Spider Man" set up.   Ha!!! 

 

RB

[Ptychodus04]

4 hours ago, RJB said:

I have the 'Spider Man" set up.   Ha!!! 

 

RB