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by **Easy** on Mon Jan 14, 2013 12:22 am

Do any of you guys know which kind of blasting is better for aluminum? I'm thinking of having the darley beacon blasted, and coating it with some kind of dull clear finish to give it a natural look. The aluminum has rust where the bolts are, and a lot of road grime that will have to be removed with the media blasting. Has anyone tried this? Any suggestions?

by **mcha9797** on Mon Jan 14, 2013 12:38 am

I had the same issues with mine, and decided to paint it. Will bead/sand blasting remove the stains?? I am also interested to see what other members have to say on this question. I took the easy (not "Easy") way out and painted mine.

by **Easy** on Mon Jan 14, 2013 12:45 am

mcha9797 wrote:I had the same issues with mine, and decided to paint it. Will bead/sand blasting remove the stains?? I am also interested to see what other members have to say on this question. I took the easy (not "Easy") way out and painted mine.

What kind of issues did you have? I'm hoping that the media blasting will clean the parts. :blink:

by **mcha9797** on Mon Jan 14, 2013 1:08 am

Easy wrote:
mcha9797 wrote:I had the same issues with mine, and decided to paint it. Will bead/sand blasting remove the stains?? I am also interested to see what other members have to say on this question. I took the easy (not "Easy") way out and painted mine.

What kind of issues did you have? I'm hoping that the media blasting will clean the parts.

I had the same stain's that you are talking about, and not knowing how deep they went into the metal, I elected to paint mine. Maybe someone will be able to share their experiences with media blasting a Darley. As crude as the castings are on these signals, I think they are a great signal to have in a collection, no two of them are exactly the same. Looking forward to seeing yours restored!!

by **Easy** on Mon Jan 14, 2013 2:14 am

Is there anything that can take the rust out of aluminum? I would like to try to take out the rust before having it media blasted. If the rust doesn't come off I will have to resort to painting it, but since the aluminum on this thing is so crude the industrial enamel paint might not come out all that great.

If bad come to worse there is a place near my house that will give me 50 cents a pound for it. :yes:

by **gwlreno** on Mon Jan 14, 2013 5:01 am

For me, glass bead blasting is the way to go. Other types of media such as aluminum oxide are too aggresive and leave a surface that's real rough. Also, the AO and its bretheren tend to warp softer metals like aluminum.

I've also heard about a process called soda blasting which uses a form of baking soda. It's supposed to be much gentler but will stll remove the rust and crud.

by **SignalLab** on Mon Jan 14, 2013 6:39 am

gwlreno wrote:For me, glass bead blasting is the way to go. Other types of media such as aluminum oxide are too aggresive and leave a surface that's real rough. .

I agree

by **Old-Timer** on Mon Jan 14, 2013 8:07 am

SignalLab wrote:
gwlreno wrote:For me, glass bead blasting is the way to go. Other types of media such as aluminum oxide are too aggresive and leave a surface that's real rough. .

I agree

Ditto! Bead blasting will take the aluminum to bare metal and leave a dull finish that can be rubbed to a shine with steel wool.

by **rustyfoot** on Mon Jan 14, 2013 8:33 am

Easy wrote:Is there anything that can take the rust out of aluminum? I would like to try to take out the rust before having it media blasted. If the rust doesn't come off I will have to resort to painting it, but since the aluminum on this thing is so crude the industrial enamel paint might not come out all that great.

If bad come to worse there is a place near my house that will give me 50 cents a pound for it.

Easy, if push comes to shove, I'll do 55 cents a pound!!.....send it to me .. :tease:

Seriously, bead blast is the Only way to go with the darley IMO. The aluminum will not be damaged using 80 grit glass bead with just enough air pressure to remove everything. Darley's are heavy thick crude aluminum and will not warp like thin sheet aluminum. Blasting will get down in the pits and groves and remove the crud and rusty places and cleans the aluminum very well. If you go with an aluminum oxide type paint, like I used, there is no need to primer coat.
Darley's are rough casts and crude, but they are what they are! IMO, the natural aluminum look suits a Darley.. :grin:

by **BigTbird1974** on Mon Jan 14, 2013 8:38 am

Easy wrote:Is there anything that can take the rust out of aluminum? I would like to try to take out the rust before having it media blasted.

I haven't tried, but would sure wonder if Evapo-Rust would remove the stains from the aluminum as well as it removes actual rust from steel parts...? :scratch:

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