SandBlasting Equipments & Supplies

What Is A Sandblasting Stencil?

According to the dictionary a stencil is “a device for applying a pattern, design, words, etc., to a surface, consisting of a thin sheet of cardboard, metal, or other material from which figures or letters have been cut out, a coloring substance, ink, etc., being rubbed, brushed, or pressed over the sheet, passing through the perforations and onto the surface.”

Well this is the formal definition, but in the common practice 99% of the uses can be solved with only a film. This film protects the parts of the item we don’t need to sandblast; usually glass. This film works as a sandblasting stencil that is easy to draw on, easy to cut and with an adhesive back.

As you can notice this is a generic item, but you can also find, at many sandblasting suppliers, predesigned forms and letters. Their use is extremely easy. Just put the adhesive side in contact with the glass and start your sandblasting work.

Question:

Hi folks. My question is short and sweet. I need to know if regular sand can be used to sandblast. I have a small project in a few days and I do not want to spend too much money. I understand that the sans I’m gonna use must be completely dry, but can I use regular sand instead of industrial sand?

Answer:

Well, it depends on the grade of quality you require, but in my humble opinion its not advisable. You need sand that is uniform in size; both for the nozzle of your blaster (it makes it run better and cleaner) and for you to better control the effect of the sandblasting.

Grains of regular sand are not of predictable size and may produce uneven finish; sand used in pro sandblasting are of more even size and will produce more even finish.

My recommendation is clear. Spend a little bit more and use milled silica sand for blasting. It is a consistence size, while it is more expensive then blow sand it is by far the fastest way to achieve optimum results.