Air eraser & blast cabinet question

[efimage 42]

I am thinking about trying my hand at etching and was thinking about picking up an air eraser but really do not want to make an investment on a blast cabinet at this point. I would like to see how profitable it would be before making more of investment and finding a spot for the cabinet.  

 

How much of a mess does the air easier make. I have a full face respirator and proper protection I am more worried about making a mess in the garage. And scratching up my wife’s car etc. I could always do it outside but with fall and winter coming that will not be an option.

 

Thanks

 

[VictoryVinyl 13]

It does make a mess and I would definitely do it outside.  I think I used my air eraser 3 times before actually investing in a cabinet from Harbor Freight. 

 

I want to clarify that I am new to this so some more experienced may have other opinions or ways to control the mess

[efimage 42]

I was actually at Harbor Freight yesterday looking at them and almost bought the bench top model but ended up not buying anything.   I was going to order the paasche air eraser off of amazon today but I am still on the fence. 

[npace 110]

I do not have, nor have I ever used an air eraser. But I can tell you, the cabinet is well worth the investment. There are a lot of opportunities to recoup the cost. Outside of custom orders & gifts, I do a lot of wholesale orders for other companies. 

[Ravenwind / One Off Grafx 187]

I picked up a cabinet from a yard sale  it did not work but after i got it home cleaned out the intake line and remover the rock in the spray tip i love mine also got a 20 pounder to do stuff larger think i got both for less then $100. The cabinet is way better even with it there is still clean up.

[OWJones 1,981]

Air erasers are a good, cheap way to get started, but overall I found them disappointing for regular use.

 

An air eraser is very much like an air brush, and if you have talent for manipulating an air brush and are going to free hand a lot of etching, then it could be the tool of choice.

 

If, like most people, you're going to cut a vinyl (or other material) stencil and just blast away at the exposed areas, then a regular cabinet type blaster is far more efficient and generates a better result.   It can take several minutes to etch a mug with an air eraser, vs. <1 minute with a cabinet blaster.  It's not only faster, it tends to be a more even blast.

 

If you were going to spray paint a sign using a stencil, would you paint with an air brush or would you use a rattle can that produces a much larger spray and a heavier single pass coat?

 

The blaster I use costs around $20 and looks like an automotive paint sprayer.  I bought a cabinet from Harbor Freight's clearance area that had a defective blaster and got it for less than half price.  I use my $20 blaster inside the cabinet and I can etch a beer mug in less than a minute and it's a good solid etch that doesn't turn translucent under condensation or a greasy fingerprint, unlike the results I got when using an air eraser.

 

An air eraser produces a result that is more like a frost than an etch.  Some people like that look, and it does look better on things like fancy stemware, but it just doesn't feel like a real etching to me.  It's more like the result you get when using chemical etching.

[efimage 42]

Maybe it would be best then to skip the air eraser and get the blast cabinet if I am going to do it.

[Jay2703 704]

I agree with OW. I started with an Air Eraser and it took ten times as long and you can't get a deep etch. You still need some sort of cabinet or you make a mess not to mention the possibility of breathing in some of the abrasives. I found a blast cabinet online that was $99 with free shipping. I attach my shop vac to it to keep the airborn particles down.

[darcshadow 1,626]

I too bought an air eraser but wasn't ready to make the leap for a full blast cabinet. I bought a large plastic tote, cut the lid and replaced it with some acrylic, cut some holes and attached some cleaning gloves, and another hole for a vacuumed. Cost was about $30. Has worked well for me with virtually no mess. While I am happy with the results I do foresee myself getting a true blast cabinet in the not to distant future.

[Wildgoose 4,200]

I have a small 20lb pressure pot that is very aggressive but even with it I use it inside my cabinet. I pretty much use the siphon gun that came with the cabinet for 90% of what I have done to date. Fast simple and reasonably clean.