sand blasting...

[Mountaincraft]

Will sand blasting clean up carved hardwoods? or will it destroy detail?
I'm most interested in removing the little marks left in the flats of pockets when my machine changes direction...

Looking for an easier solution that trying to hand sand all that out, while I gradually dial in, tram, adjust, and eventually rebuild my machine...

I saw someone posted a small airbrush sized sand blaster from harbor freight a while back, and I'm wondering if that could be a temporary solution for me... or even something that I would use frequently regardless of how well the machine is set up...

Seems like a sand blaster would leave a nice finish in consistently grained material... but I'm wondering if it would work on hardwoods...

[awerby]

Will sand blasting clean up carved hardwoods? or will it destroy detail?

[It can do both things.]

I'm most interested in removing the little marks left in the flats of pockets when my machine changes direction...

[It would wreck everything nearby before it did much to them.]

Looking for an easier solution that trying to hand sand all that out, while I gradually dial in, tram, adjust, and eventually rebuild my machine...

[Concentrate on getting your machine to work at the top of its form, rather than trying to fix everything it screwed up. It also might help to redo your toolpaths so that direction changes don't leave "witness" marks.]

I saw someone posted a small airbrush sized sand blaster from harbor freight a while back, and I'm wondering if that could be a temporary solution for me... or even something that I would use frequently regardless of how well the machine is set up...

[That's not likely to work too well.]

Seems like a sand blaster would leave a nice finish in consistently grained material... but I'm wondering if it would work on hardwoods...

[In hardwoods it raises the grain less than in softwoods, but the effect is still noticeable. I've done glass-bead blasting to remove "whiskers" from wood where nothing else worked. Whatever you do, don't use actual (silica) sand. That can kill you, and not just gradually from chronic silicosis. There's an acute form, due to exposure to massive amounts of freshly fractured silica particles, that can kill you much quicker. Here's a reference: Silicosis : MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia

It's safer to use other abrasive blasting media, like garnet, aluminum oxide, or silicon carbide, but no dust is good for your lungs, and you should always protect yourself (and your neighbors) by taking proper precautions like blasting in an enclosed cabinet equipped with a filtered cyclone-type dust extractor.]

Andrew Werby
ComputerSculpture.com — Home Page for Discount Hardware & Software

[zool]

Try soda blasting or dry ice blasting.

Dry ice blasting is very nice as the dry ice sublimates. It is used on fiberglass boats around here [Long Island Sound] to clean hulls prior to repainting. It costs a bit more but there is not tenting or cleanup other than the paint and dried algae and such.

Neither will deform anything as both medium explode on impact rather than heating and abrading and deforming the material being cleaned.

Neither will do much if any damage to wood, glass or rubber.

[zool]

Mountaincraft stated: I'm most interested in removing the little marks left in the flats of pockets when my machine changes direction...

Try using bull nose bits.

They are end mills with radiused corners.

[Mountaincraft]

Mountaincraft stated: I'm most interested in removing the little marks left in the flats of pockets when my machine changes direction...

Try using bull nose bits.

They are end mills with radiused corners.

Thanks.. That's the 'other' thing I've been planning to try.. as common sense says that should help... Is two flute or four flute recommended for wood?.. They're intended for metal, so there's usually very little useful information on suppliers sites for this purpose...

[zool]

Thanks.. That's the 'other' thing I've been planning to try.. as common sense says that should help... Is two flute or four flute recommended for wood?.. They're intended for metal, so there's usually very little useful information on suppliers sites for this purpose...

I have been using 4-flute down cut spiral bits for about four months and have been please with them. Using them got rid of all the little ridges that get left when cutting pockets.

Remember to adjust the step-over.

[Mountaincraft]

Got a link to what you've been using?

[zool]

Home >
eBay Stores >
End_Mill_Man

This is where I bought them.

I got the 5 flute radiused ends mills.

[Mountaincraft]

Home >
eBay Stores >
End_Mill_Man

This is where I bought them.

I got the 5 flute radiused ends mills.

Thanks for that Zool.. always looking for new sources for bits...