Sandblasting is a blast!!!

M

MikeeH

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NOT!!
This Saturday I was trying to prep the bottom of the Wellcraft for barrier coat. Last season I applied a heavy coat of Super Slick (against the advice here) but still wound up with a barnacle farm by the end of the season. Add to that the Super Slick became super hard. Scraped as much of the organic stuff as possible and then tried to remove the SS with a dewaxwer and sanding. Nothing! Tried a 60 grit on a RO sander; no luck. Now, pretty disgusted and alternately cursing barbnacle, Super Slick and my own stupidity I head the neighbor and ask if he knows anyone that does mobile sandblasting. Neighbor replies that he has the equipment! (I love the neighborhood in MD). So, after getting the sandtank, compressor, hoses, hood, gloves, coveralls and purchasing 300 lbs of "triple" sand (real fine stuff) I get a quickie lesson in sandblasting. One hour later we finally have the damn thing fine tuned so its cutting without blowing too much sand. I'm laying under the boat, safety glasses fogged up and the screen on the hood scraching the crap our of my 1/2 Italian nose, sand going into every crevice of my body inspite of all the un-breathable paraphanalia I'm adorned with and I'm sweating a gallon a minute. But you know what? After a total of 3 hours (including set-up) the boat bottom is clean and it looks like I did a pretty sweet job (even after removing the fogged up safety glasses and looking again). Wiped the hull down again with a cleaner/dewaxer and washed it with Dawn. Next weekend the barrier coat goes on and, hopefully, a couple of coats of ablative.

When I finished sandblasting the wife asks if I'll ever have to repeat this process; not in this boat's lifetime, or, hopefully, mine!
 
Good for you. Sounds like one of those great experiences to have gone through, that you never want to repeat.

I had my hull media blasted this season. Got a great tip from Joe at Pettit paints. He suggested that after 3 coats of barrier coat (which went smooth), that I apply red for my first coat of ablative (I used SR40), then 2 coats of black. The advantage is that I will be able to see any spots that need touch up in the years to come, and by having the red ablative as my "notice coat" I will still be protected if the black wears through mid season.

I'm hoping that with just a little touch up work I will get 3 seasons without having to re-do the bottom paint.
 
Thanks. Yep, I've done the "1st coat different from following coats" of ablative in the past. Works great.
 
I thought the whole thing was only gonna cost you $99.
 
Had to smile, Mike; reminds me of the time I changed out the in-tank fuel pump on my 1991 Plymouth Acclaim. By the time I was done, I'd have gladly supplied the pump ($140.00) and given someone an extra $100.00, just to change it out for me.

It was in August, somewhere around 1999. According to the lies printed on various internet sites, you don't have to drop the tank in order to swap out the fuel pump. I had reasonably good access to the rear of the tank, but the tank was full (Thank God, it was at the gas prices from 12 years ago). But they all lied! There was a fixed cross-member of the frame in the way, and I COULD NOT get the bloody thing out! I DID have to drop the tank.

Dumped nearly 1/2 the tank of gas onto the ground, when the filler tube pulled out of the side of the tank as I lowered it down with a jack. And the damn thing, being full of gas, was heavy!

About halfway through the job, a wild-ass thunderstorm blew through and I was huddled under the car in a driving storm, with a gas/mud/water mixture all over me for the better part of an hour, with a river of water flowing by and over me.

Taking the old fuel pump out wasn't too big of a deal, although it was a lot longer than I'd imagined, and I had to keep dropping the tank farther and farther to gain more clearance until the damned thing would finally clear the cross-member of the frame in order to get it all the way out. Of course the bolts and strapping all came undone in the process. So there I was laying in the gas/water/mud mixture under the car, hot, sweaty and miserable.

After putting the new fuel pump in place, I then began tapping the slip ring into place with a hammer and block of wood, praying devoutly that I didn't make a spark. Then I had to jack the tank back up to where I could start the nuts back on the tank's hanger straps and bolts, and start raising it back up into place.

Finally, after getting the tank back into place with the filler neck re-attached, and re-connecting the wires, hosing myself off, then changing clothes, I tried it out.

Thanks to everything that's holy, it worked and there were no leaks. But it wasn't a job I'd wish on even my worst enemy! Total elapsed time, including the thunderstorm, was approximately 3 hours and nearly a 12 pack of beer.
 
Sounds like a great time. Please read and make sure you are aware of the time limits between coats for both the barrier as well as the first bottom coat this is critical or it wont bond don't ask how I found out, that's right the hard way.
 
David,

Yep, still $99 (+$27 for the sand). I would have to sandblast the bottom regardless of whatever I did, it was that screwed-up.
 
quote:
Originally posted by MikeeH

David,

Yep, still $99 (+$27 for the sand). I would have to sandblast the bottom regardless of whatever I did, it was that screwed-up.

Click to expand...


Mikee....PUHLLEEEAAASSSE. We are up to $126 not including the Armani suit, clean room respirator, ER visit for the 1/2 of the nose you did not mention.

I'm thinking you are in for close to a grand and afraid to look at the AMEX bill![^]

DAMMIT MAN. You speak Chinese. Could you not have lied to the local take out place and hemmed the pants in the name of patriotism?

I am so dismayed.
 
David,
LOL... thanks, but speaking Mandarin was no help. Now, if I could speak Spanish maybe I could have found a couple of "undocumented" fellows to just do the damn job for me!!
 
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