Sandblaster Cabinet Made From Old Dishwasher
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“I build or fix alot of things in my shop, so when a friend asked me if I wanted an old commercial dishwasher that he was throwing away, I jumped at the chance,” says retired Illinois steam fitter John Gass. “Within a few days I figured out how to make it into a real nice sandblasting cabinet.”
The 30-in. high and wide dishwasher cabinet opened with double doors on 2 sides and had racks on 2 sides that pulled out to load and unload dishes. Gass built a 4-legged stand to position the washer 2 ft. above the floor. Then he re-worked one of the inside racks so it holds small parts that he’s sandblasting. He completely removed the opposite rack so that side had a flat wall. About 10 in. from the bottom of the empty sidewall he cut 2 round openings and added protective rings with gloves on the inside. That provides access so he can reach inside to hold the spray gun with one hand and use his other hand to hold the parts he’s working on. His hands are protected with heavy-duty rubber gloves and his arms with welding leathers that he sews to the top of the gloves.
Gass cut an 18 by 18-in. opening above the hand access ports so he can see what he’s working on inside the cabinet. The opening is covered with 1/4-in. safety glass that he can replace if it gets fogged over or pitted. He put a light fixture in one of the top inside corners and for ventilation he ran an old vacuum cleaner hose through the top and hooked it to a shop vacuum. Gass removed the washing mechanism from the floor of the machine and installed a 1-in. dia. drain.
“As far as sandblasting cabinets go, this is about the strongest one I’ve ever seen,” Gass says. “Even some of the heavier-duty models that you can buy have sides that are flexible. The sides of my dishwasher/blaster are completely solid.”
Gass uses the sandblaster a couple times a week to clean parts for cash registers that he’s restoring or removing chrome from pot bellied stoves that he’s fixing. He uses silica sand on some parts and soda ash for others. Most of the sandblasting he does requires 160 to 170 lbs. of air pressure which he gets from a commercial compressor in his shop.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, John Gass, 153 Frog Hill Road, Franklin, Ill. 62638 (ph 217 370-8902; Jbgass50@gmail.com).
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Sandblaster Cabinet Made From Old Dishwasher FARM SHOP Maintenance “I build or fix alot of things in my shop so when a friend asked me if I wanted an old commercial dishwasher that he was throwing away I jumped at the chance ” says retired Illinois steam fitter John Gass “Within a few days I figured out how to make it into a real nice sandblasting cabinet ” The 30-in high and wide dishwasher cabinet opened with double doors on 2 sides and had racks on 2 sides that pulled out to load and unload dishes Gass built a 4-legged stand to position the washer 2 ft above the floor Then he re-worked one of the inside racks so it holds small parts that he’s sandblasting He completely removed the opposite rack so that side had a flat wall About 10 in from the bottom of the empty sidewall he cut 2 round openings and added protective rings with gloves on the inside That provides access so he can reach inside to hold the spray gun with one hand and use his other hand to hold the parts he’s working on His hands are protected with heavy-duty rubber gloves and his arms with welding leathers that he sews to the top of the gloves Gass cut an 18 by 18-in opening above the hand access ports so he can see what he’s working on inside the cabinet The opening is covered with 1/4-in safety glass that he can replace if it gets fogged over or pitted He put a light fixture in one of the top inside corners and for ventilation he ran an old vacuum cleaner hose through the top and hooked it to a shop vacuum Gass removed the washing mechanism from the floor of the machine and installed a 1-in dia drain “As far as sandblasting cabinets go this is about the strongest one I’ve ever seen ” Gass says “Even some of the heavier-duty models that you can buy have sides that are flexible The sides of my dishwasher/blaster are completely solid ” Gass uses the sandblaster a couple times a week to clean parts for cash registers that he’s restoring or removing chrome from pot bellied stoves that he’s fixing He uses silica sand on some parts and soda ash for others Most of the sandblasting he does requires 160 to 170 lbs of air pressure which he gets from a commercial compressor in his shop Contact: FARM SHOW Followup John Gass 153 Frog Hill Road Franklin Ill 62638 ph 217 370-8902; Jbgass50@gmail com
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