bead blasting

This is our bead blaster. It is exceptionally large, having two stations and two bead blasting guns inside. We have decided the ideal height to use this machine would be 5'8", or roughly half way between Steve and my heights. Steve is too tall and has to bend over to see in the window. I have to stand on a box. Now standing on a box is difficult in that there is a foot control to activate the blowing of the beads. So the foot control has to stand on the box too. And when I move from side to side I have to move the box with me. But none of us are 5'8", and blasting has fallen into my job classification. The main thing we blast is the stack, or "action frame".  It is the width of the keyboard and extremely unwieldy, making the job a challenge. I am developing my technique however. I am realizing that the key to shop work is developing techniques.

My project this week was to sift the beads that have all ended up in the hoppers on the bottom of the blasting cabinet, remove the debris and then add more beads. This has not been done in awhile, judging from the job labels I found in the sifting. I developed my technique for this too. And given the weight of the sifted beads, Steve was called in to help me pour the beads back into the blaster. This was actually an amusing scene, because we both were wearing respirators, and I was trying not to laugh at the piece of paper towel he had stuffed on top of his nose because the spare respirator had some sticky substance in the nose piece. I think maybe our respirators could use some sifting.