What media should I use?

Media Type	Uses	Mohs Hardness	Shape
Sodium Bicarbonate (NaHCO₃)	Automotive such as oil galleries, carburetors, diesel pumps, injectors. Anywhere you want a matte finish or where you have an assembled part and can’t easily clean out remnant media.	2.5	Angular
Plastic abrasive (several types)	Commonly used in aircraft restoration. Strips without damaging or warping the substrate.	3.5	Angular	Crushed Glass	Cheap angular grit good for removing coatings and providing a good keyed surface. Used in many applications.	6	Angular
Glass Bead	Provides a brighter finish. Used for blasting, peening, honing, cleaning, light deburring and Carbon removal. Used in a great variety of applications. Different sizes give different blasting properties.	4.5	Spherical
Plastic abrasive (several types)	Commonly used in aircraft restoration. Strips without damaging or warping the substrate.	3.5	Angular	Crushed Glass	Cheap angular grit good for removing coatings and providing a good keyed surface. Used in many applications.	6	Angular
Garnet	Inexpensive angular grit good for providing a keyed surface for recoating	7.5-8	Angular
Aluminium Oxide	One step down from diamonds on the Mohs hardness scale, it’s a tough grit in various grades to provide a range of finishes effectively	9	Angular
	Read on for more detail...

Sodium Bicarbonate (NaHCO₃)

At Dana-Ridge we often get enquiries about this blast media. There seems to be a misconception that it gives a nice bright finish. Many times, we find that glass bead is a better option. It does have some benefits however and in a wetblast machine you get longer life of the media thanks to the water cushioning effect.

Advantages of Soda

Friable – soft angular grains readily fracture into smaller particles softening the impact on substrates.
Dissolves in water
Safe to use on virtually any substrate, including delicate surfaces, rotating equipment and moving parts but still able to remove coatings.
Able to be washed out of internals easily meaning no damage to moving parts.

Disadvantages of Soda

Unable to remove rust and scale
Gives a matte finish (may be an advantage if it is the desired effect)
Shorter media life
Slightly alkaline, causing crystals to form on blasted parts (this can be neutralised in a slightly acidic solution of vinegar and water after blasting)
In a dry sandblasting cabinet water is an issue (not in our wet system though)

Plastic media

The most common request for plastic media comes from aircraft manufacturers and the like. They want a media that will strip and clean but where etching of the underlying substrate cannot be tolerated. As you can imagine, aircraft manufacturers have to be very precise with their tolerances and the Dana-Ridge wetblast system can combine both the qualities of the plastic and the water cushioning aspect of the wet blast unit giving even more advantages.

Advantages of Plastic Media

Gentle non-abrading action where no damage to the substrate can be tolerated but top coating needs removing
As plastic impacts the blasted part the plastic breaks and creates a new cutting surface/shape

Disadvantages of Plastic Media

Anti-static agent required in dry blasters (no need for such a thing in our wet system).
Still a soft media and you won’t get a bright finish of a glass bead nor the aggression of an oxide or crushed glass.
Not durable compared to other media types

Glass Bead

An environmentally friendly spherical media providing many useful characteristics. It comes in a variety of sizes. The following table gives an idea of how to choose. The grades we supply range from the letter designations AH (very fine) through to the larger C and B grades. There are more sizes available upon request. The wetblast system gives a superior finish to dry sandblaster as the water cushion changes the way the bead interacts with the part.

Advantages of Glass Bead

Range of options and finishes depending on desired effects
Stress relieving properties and peening action. More-so with the larger bead
Typically gives the nice bright finish on blasted metal
Not as rough as an angular grit
More of a pushing/scrubbing action than a ripping action you get with angular grit
Available in a range of sizes
Environmentally friendly

Disadvantages of Glass Bead

Peening effect with larger bead (disadvantage if not a desired outcome)
Not as rough as an angular grit (may also be an advantage)
Need to ensure none gets left behind in components with moving parts or close tolerances.

Crushed Glass

Crushed glass allows a cheap way of removing coatings and profiling the surface of a part. The angular nature means it is more aggressive and allows a fast processing.

Advantages of Crushed Glass

Cheaper than glass bead and aluminium oxide
Quick and effective for stripping coatings
Offers aggressive surface profiling
Made from recycled bottle glass
Available in a range of sizes
Environmentally friendly

Disadvantages of Crushed Glass

Softer and not as durable as aluminium oxide
Angular grit wears with use and becomes more rounded

Garnet

A dense, tough, high performance, cost effective media that is great for providing a rough surface that will allow paint and other coatings get a grip on the freshly blasted surface.

Advantages of Garnet

Harder than crushed glass
Cost effective
Good for providing a keyed surface for surface recoating

Disadvantages of Garnet

Harsher on softer material such as aluminium
Creates a matte finish

Aluminium Oxide

One step down from diamonds on the Mohs hardness scale, aluminium oxide is a sharp, dense, long lasting abrasive that is highly efficient and durable. It will clean and etch all types of surfaces and is one of the fastest cutting abrasives available. It comes in different sizes and also different quality grades, Brown, pink and white.

Advantages of Aluminium Oxide

Tough and durable
Creates a profiled surface
Variety of sizes and purity levels

Disadvantages of Aluminium Oxide

Usually must be careful not to breathe the dust (not an issue in the Dana-Ridge wetblast process)

More expensive (although lasts longer)

Below is a table showing some of the more common grades of blasting media supplied by Dana-Ridge (other sizes and grades available upon request).

Description	Product codes	Size in microns	Characteristics
Crushed Glass "Medium"	VCG1575	1000-1700	Large angular grains good for removing coatings and leaving a 'keyed' matte finish
Crushed Glass "Fine"	VCG7020	500-1000	Angular, sharp grains good for coating removal and a matte finish
B Glass Bead	VS25B	420-590	Large bead gives a slight “grainy” finish compared with those below but the large mass means quick output and a more pronounced peening effect.
Aluminium oxide 46 grit	AL46	355	Very tough, large angular grit good for removing coatings and a matte finish
Garnet 30/60	GA25C	250-560	Tough sharp grit. Gives a matte finish. Tougher than crushed glass. Not as tough as aluminium oxide
C Glass Bead	VS25C	250-420	Commonly used for carbon removal or fast processing. Bigger mass means a nice bright “satin” look and a uniform finish.
Soda	VERA25C	210	More easily washed out of areas where standard media may cause issues. Matte finish.
Crushed Glass "superfine"	VCG0425	150-500	Gives a matte finish. Less aggressive than the larger sizes.
AB Glass Bead	VS25AB	177-297	A great little all-rounder. Gives a brighter finish than C and still has enough mass to remove coatings effectively.
Aluminium Oxide 120 grit	AL120	125	Fine angular grit gives a matte finish
AD Glass Bead	VS25AD	105-210	A nice fine media. Great for blasting uncoated alloys, aluminium etc. Will remove coatings but not as quickly as its larger counterparts but will give a great “wow factor” finish.
Aluminium Oxide 240 grit	AL240	53	Angular grit. Matte finish. Less aggressive than its larger stablemates.
AH Glass Bead	VS25AH	44-88	Has much smaller peening effect that the larger beads and less surface change. Gives a nice bright finish. Holding the beads in your hand it almost has a flour consistency. Our wet-blast units are better able to handle media this size than dry units.

Dana-Ridge can supply all your wetblast media needs