Soda Blast vs Sand Blast vs Acid dip????

[Mopar1979]

I have a 69 Charger SE 383 4bbl that needs both rear quarters and a trunk pan. the rest of the car is pretty solid. I have heard everything you can think of from you cannot get rid of sand and too abrasive to warping metal on sandblasting to Soda blasting wont cut it good enough on rusty areas. i was also told not to dip because the acid still lurks under the joints for years to come and can cause trouble down the road. What should i use on this car?
thanks,
Shawn

[JB400]

First off, looks like you got a pretty decent car.  Very minimal rust.  Good score.  As far as which one to use, it's up to you.  The key is proper cleanup.  Sand blasting can and will warp panels.  That is why it's not recommended on large panels.  Soda blasting is just the same thing except it uses industrial grade baking soda instead of sand, slag, walnut shells, or glass beads.  You do need to spend a lot of time blowing out and vacumning out all the little nooks and crannies.  Dipping works just as well.  Best thing about dipping is it leaves all your panels intact even if they're really rusted.  Blasting will knock out your rusted panels.  But, you need to spend a lot of time rinsing off your car really super well or otherwise acid will weep through.  Choice is yours.  Good luck on your build

[Lennard]

In my opinion it comes down to personal preference. Sand blasting doesn't always warp the metal, it CAN happen if the blaster doesn't know what he's doing. Soda blasting is more forgiving and is usually done when glass and moldings are still on the car since it doesn't hurt those.
There are several videos about it on YouTube.

[Mopar1979]

I will check out YouTube for info on soda blasting. I do want to get all of the original undercoating off this car and I know that might need to be done with some kind of paint remover or something. This car has all of the original panels on it. I will check the motor and see but I think everything matches!
Shawn

[Lennard]

The (factory) undercoating will not come of with any kind of media blasting.
The easiest way to get it of (in my opinion) is with an oscillating power tool with scraper blade.

[440]

The other issue with acid dipping is that it removes all the crud and stuff in the nooks and crannies that prevent rust. You can't necessarily protect all those areas afterwards which means seams and stuff are susceptable to rusting in the future.

[tan top]

 depends how bad the body shell is !! 
acid dipping  has its good & bad points 
just the same as any type of blasting

would only Acid dip  if the car has had a fire   

[Mopar1979]

Does that aircraft paint remover work on stuff like the rubber undercoating?

[69fourspd]

I have had good luck getting all the rubber undercoating off with a standard paint stripper.  It is messy, but once you leave it one 30 min. you can just scrape off with a plastic putty knife.  I had to do a few coats to get it clean off.  Once that was done I took mine for soda/media blasting.  Excellent results with no warped panels. 

[Mopar1979]

I think that sounds like a good idea. Did you have yours on a rotissere when you sent to blast?

[FLG]

If the undercoating is solid there is no need to touch it IMO.

[Mopar Nut]

If the undercoating is solid there is no need to touch it IMO.

[Chatt69chgr]

I had my car blasted with crushed glass at "Blast from the Past" in Lebanon, TN.  Then sprayed with epoxy primer.  This gets all of the rust off including down into pits.  They also blasted the doors, trunk lid, hood, valance panel, and both front fenders.  Worked out just fine.  Even though he spent quite a bit of time using compressed air to blow the car out, stuff still came out later.  My body man spent another 1/2 day blowing out more stuff. 

Since this subject came up, I am going to paint the underside of my car body color so needed to remove all of the undercoating.  I used a small propane torch, flexible putty knife/old flat blade screwdrivers/etc, and large and small wire brushes.  Worked a small area at a time.  I removed the rear end and K-frame and installed casters putting the car about 23 inches off the garage floor.  It took me three weeks of evenings and weekends to get it done.  It's a dirty job but was something I could do myself and in my own time.  Also gave me a chance to carefully inspect the entire underbody of the car.  I'll be reinistalling the undercoating in the wheel wells only. 

I tried some chemical removers to get the undercoating off but the above method was the easiest.  The blasting folks said they could also blast the undercoating off for an extra $900.  Didn't learn this until later but still would have done it myself.

[1970Moparmann]

How much does blasting (media or sand) cost anyways for a typical car?  Might need to put this in a future budget.

[Chargen69]

dip it, if i had it to do over, that is what i would do. as mentioned before, neither blasting get rid of crud.  we put a hose on the front of the frame rails and you wouldnt believe the crap that came out of the car.  I'd rather figure out a way to spray acid sealer down the frame holes than deal with getting the sand and crap out of every hole you could imagine

[69fourspd]

I didn't have the car on a rotisserie. I actually had it on two 4x6s. The wood was then attached to some large casters which made moving the car around easy. The blast company had a pit so they were able to get under the car.

[Mopar1979]

What is blast from the past phone number in tenn? What did it cost to blast?

[bakerhillpins]

dip it, if i had it to do over, that is what i would do. as mentioned before, neither blasting get rid of crud.  we put a hose on the front of the frame rails and you wouldnt believe the crap that came out of the car.  I'd rather figure out a way to spray acid sealer down the frame holes than deal with getting the sand and crap out of every hole you could imagine

So you just hose down the freshly dipped car? I would have thought that water on bare metal was a big no-no. 

Also, after dipping do you spray primer or sealer inside the frame rails or do they dip the car in primer?

[Chargen69]

didnt dip it, mine was sand blasted, then acid etched, then primed. we hosed just the frame rails out after the metal on the body was secured.  I was saying that if i had it to do over again, after seeing all that crud come out, i would dip it and figure out some way to spray protection down the frame rails. that would be better to me than knowing my car is all done, except for all the areas you dont see.

[Ghoste]

There is something about dipping a car that just makes me really nervous.

[Mike DC]

      
         
People who have blasted a car usually wish they had dipped it.  And people who have dipped a car usually wish they had blasted it.  People never come out entirely happy with either method. 


There's one thing you can take to the bank:  Either method can ruin a car if not done properly.  Either one needs to be done by someone who specializes in using that method to strip cars.  Don't just go with someone who uses that stripping method for various industrial purposes and is willing to do your car.

[Chatt69chgr]

http://blastfromthepasttn.com/contact-blast-from-the-past-of-lebanon-tn.htm

Tel---615-453-3002

$1200 and I supplied the epoxy primer.  If I had to do it over, I'd let him supply that.  I think it was a couple of hundred extra if he supplied it.  I was a little concerned with panel warpage.  When I went by to talk to him initially, he had a car sitting ouside that he just finished.  It looked fine to me.  And mine came out fine too.  In fact, he told me that my unibody was one of the best three that he has ever blasted.  Their place isn't the prettiest or the cleanest but they worked with me and did a good job.  Helped me unload my car from the float, helped me load it, and also met me on a Sunday when they are normally closed.  Very nice and friendly folks and willing to work with me any way they could.  I recommend them.  They have been on tv on PowerBlock since they are pretty close to Nashville.  That's actually how I heard of them.

Although they said they spent 3 hours blowing crushed glass out of frame rails, rockers, etc., my body man spend anothr1/2 day doing the same thing.  And I'm sure that we even now don't really have all of it out.  But whats left I think I can live with. 

I have had my body man install weld in frame rails (that weld to the floor) and torque boxes.  Also installed a 11 gauge steel lower radiator support.  We put a steel tube through the drivers side frame rail to pass the emergency brake cable through.

I bought a kit of pieces to strengthen the K-frame and had them welded on plus added to the factory welding.  Then had it blasted and powdercoated.  You can lift the car from any corner now and there is no flex.   

[Mopar1979]

Do you have any pics after you got your car back? I am going to give them a call tomorrow. Thanks

[charger_fan_4ever]

For the exterior panels I would use a big electric grinder with 80 grit to "scuff it up" and a round orbidal sander to finish stipping it to bare metal.

Mini sand blast any speckles of rust on the sheet metal. If you have the option only sandblast where this is rust. To strip the under and top sides of the floor ect i'd soda blast.

[Nacho-RT74]

I haven't read all replies, but I have access to any of the three method to temove rust... acid will be the one I choose. Can reach all the areas like the sand or media won't ever get

[Dino]

Dry ice blasting.  It'll take care of that undercoating as well.

[Mopar1979]

Where could I find more info on dry ice blasting. Sounds like an option

[Chatt69chgr]

Here's some of my 69 Charger blasted with crushed glass at Blast From The Past

[Mopar1979]

Looks real good! Did you have them blast off undercoating or did you scrape it off. My body guy wants it blasted before working on mine. I figure that I am wasting money on the panels that I am cutting off . The quarters, taillight bezel , and front and rear valances. Maybe I should remove them first

[Lennard]

Looks real good! Did you have them blast off undercoating or did you scrape it off. My body guy wants it blasted before working on mine. I figure that I am wasting money on the panels that I am cutting off . The quarters, taillight bezel , and front and rear valances. Maybe I should remove them first

ALWAYS cut out / cut off the rotton sheetmetal before you blast, that way you can see what's behind it and it can be blasted/treated too.
This is how mine goes to the blaster:

[JB400]

Was the whole skin on your car shot, or did you just decide to replace the whole skin Lennard?  Any before deskinning pic?

[Chatt69chgr]

I scraped off the undercoating myself.  They said they could blast it off for an extra $900.

[Dino]

Man this stuff has become pricey!  I used to have entire cars done for under a grand.  Inside and out, all separate panels included. 

How much is dipping these days?  3 grand?

[Lennard]

Was the whole skin on your car shot, or did you just decide to replace the whole skin Lennard?  Any before deskinning pic?

It was a bondo bucket and I hate rust so every panel that had (in my opinion) to much rust on/in it had to go.

[Mopar1979]

I found a guy who was recommended that uses glass beeds. He says the glass will clean up better and get the undercoating off. I may use him instead of acid because of what many have said about leaching thru the paint

[Mike DC]

    


Glass is basically sand, and sand is notorious for warping panels.  

[elitecustombody]

Like it's been said, both methods have good and bad, but I would blast. Dipping creates more rust problems. And if you decide to dip, make sure it's alkaline dip,not acid. I had to do some collision work on a Pro-Touring 79 Formula that was dipped and restored by a reputable shop in OK with $30k bill just for paint. Car was done about 3 years ago. Now all the edges around the trunk lid, all pinchwelds showing some major rust,some areas are literally blistering. I can tell you that I would never dip my car after seeing that 79 Formula. The guy has over quarter of a million dollars in it and it's slowly rotting because of dipping. 

[Dino]

Like it's been said, both methods have good and bad, but I would blast. Dipping creates more rust problems. And if you decide to dip, make sure it's alkaline dip,not acid. I had to do some collision work on a Pro-Touring 79 Formula that was dipped and restored by a reputable shop in OK with $30k bill just for paint. Car was done about 3 years ago. Now all the edges around the trunk lid, all pinchwelds showing some major rust,some areas are literally blistering. I can tell you that I would never dip my car after seeing that 79 Formula. The guy has over quarter of a million dollars in it and it's slowly rotting because of dipping. 

Woah, that's a lot of dough for a Formula!  That must really hurt to see your baby rust before your eyes.   

[elitecustombody]

Like it's been said, both methods have good and bad, but I would blast. Dipping creates more rust problems. And if you decide to dip, make sure it's alkaline dip,not acid. I had to do some collision work on a Pro-Touring 79 Formula that was dipped and restored by a reputable shop in OK with $30k bill just for paint. Car was done about 3 years ago. Now all the edges around the trunk lid, all pinchwelds showing some major rust,some areas are literally blistering. I can tell you that I would never dip my car after seeing that 79 Formula. The guy has over quarter of a million dollars in it and it's slowly rotting because of dipping. 

Woah, that's a lot of dough for a Formula!  That must really hurt to see your baby rust before your eyes.   

It  hurt me to see that and it wasn't even my car.  I miss that car, it was fun having it for few months and working out all the  rattles,noises and other issues from another shop's work

[Dino]

Like it's been said, both methods have good and bad, but I would blast. Dipping creates more rust problems. And if you decide to dip, make sure it's alkaline dip,not acid. I had to do some collision work on a Pro-Touring 79 Formula that was dipped and restored by a reputable shop in OK with $30k bill just for paint. Car was done about 3 years ago. Now all the edges around the trunk lid, all pinchwelds showing some major rust,some areas are literally blistering. I can tell you that I would never dip my car after seeing that 79 Formula. The guy has over quarter of a million dollars in it and it's slowly rotting because of dipping. 

Woah, that's a lot of dough for a Formula!  That must really hurt to see your baby rust before your eyes.   

It  hurt me to see that and it wasn't even my car.  I miss that car, it was fun having it for few months and working out all the  rattles,noises and other issues from another shop's work

I hear ya, I still have fond memories of cars I did ages ago that weren't mine.  If you miss fixing rattles and noises, lemme send over my car.   

[elitecustombody]

Like it's been said, both methods have good and bad, but I would blast. Dipping creates more rust problems. And if you decide to dip, make sure it's alkaline dip,not acid. I had to do some collision work on a Pro-Touring 79 Formula that was dipped and restored by a reputable shop in OK with $30k bill just for paint. Car was done about 3 years ago. Now all the edges around the trunk lid, all pinchwelds showing some major rust,some areas are literally blistering. I can tell you that I would never dip my car after seeing that 79 Formula. The guy has over quarter of a million dollars in it and it's slowly rotting because of dipping. 

Woah, that's a lot of dough for a Formula!  That must really hurt to see your baby rust before your eyes.   

It  hurt me to see that and it wasn't even my car.  I miss that car, it was fun having it for few months and working out all the  rattles,noises and other issues from another shop's work

I hear ya, I still have fond memories of cars I did ages ago that weren't mine.  If you miss fixing rattles and noises, lemme send over my car.   

Well, it was fun because I got to drive it for few months working out the bugs,having all new full DSE package,BAER big brakes,LS7 makes it much more fun than stock

Here is a pic

[JB400]

It's always fun driving everyone else's toys.  Especially when you get paid to fix them.   Someone has a nice toy

[Dino]

Like it's been said, both methods have good and bad, but I would blast. Dipping creates more rust problems. And if you decide to dip, make sure it's alkaline dip,not acid. I had to do some collision work on a Pro-Touring 79 Formula that was dipped and restored by a reputable shop in OK with $30k bill just for paint. Car was done about 3 years ago. Now all the edges around the trunk lid, all pinchwelds showing some major rust,some areas are literally blistering. I can tell you that I would never dip my car after seeing that 79 Formula. The guy has over quarter of a million dollars in it and it's slowly rotting because of dipping. 

Woah, that's a lot of dough for a Formula!  That must really hurt to see your baby rust before your eyes.   

It  hurt me to see that and it wasn't even my car.  I miss that car, it was fun having it for few months and working out all the  rattles,noises and other issues from another shop's work

I hear ya, I still have fond memories of cars I did ages ago that weren't mine.  If you miss fixing rattles and noises, lemme send over my car.   

Well, it was fun because I got to drive it for few months working out the bugs,having all new full DSE package,BAER big brakes,LS7 makes it much more fun than stock

Here is a pic

Yeah I'd cry as well if that was slowly rotting away.  Very nice car.  What a damn shame.

That reminds me of this little Italian Alfa roadster we restored.  It was in '90 so I was just starting out as an apprentice.  I learned a lot working on that car and after months of tinkering with it and seeing it come back to life you get a special bond with it.

The owner was in 7th heaven when he got his old car back looking better than new. We fixed just about everything on it and heard from the owner's wife a few weeks later that he was hit by a young punk in a moving van.  The owner was a bit beat up but lived to tell, the car did not.  I saw the pictures months later, the entire passenger side was gone.  The only thing that looked decent was half of the engine bay and the driver's seat.  I'll never forget that.

My boss at the time told me that the owner wanted it fixed again but he declined and when I saw those pictures I could see why.