This afternoon, I finally had the chance to run the blaster for the first time. I really needed to blast the compressor rack I've been working on. Since this was a rust removal situation and not a paint removal one, I had to Star Blast it. Once I finally got the blaster adjusted and ready, I stepped into the mini-Terror Dome I built out of PVC pipe and 6 mil clear plastic sheeting. It worked beautifully. But this stuff is very aggressive and dirty. It made me realize I need a full on hooded coverall suit with a full face respirator instead of the t-shirt, safety glasses, and respirator I was wearing. I'm thinking I may need to charge extra for Star Blast jobs.

After I finished off most of the compressor rack (ran out of media with just a couple of spots left), I loaded up with soda. WOW. The dust was tremendous. Fortunately, I have a water attachment that all but eliminates the dust. It was AWESOME. I got the paint off the tongue of the compressor and got started on the trunk of Dad's Bel-Air for shits and giggles. Why no pics? Well... my neighbor came over in the middle of doing Dad's trunk raising holy hell about the noise, dust, and the leaves in my front yard. He threatened legal action, calling the sheriff, and threw in a racist remark for good measure.

I told him I understand and agreed with his complaint about the noise. Actually, I thankfully had bought ear plugs last week and I accidentally blasted without them for just a few minutes today and my ears are still ringing. I explained I was just testing my equipment and it wouldn't be a regular thing. So our fun playtime was busted up which actually was just as well since it was about to get dark on us anyway.

So the blaster lost it's virginity and I have learned a lot about the whole deal just in the couple hours I got to play with it.
I'm surprised nobody asked about the racist comment! I won't repeat it. But it was especially odd since my neighbor is as white as I am.