Glass Bead vs. Crushed Glass Grit

We get a lot of questions about the difference between Glass Bead and Crushed Glass Grit. Below are some before and after pictures of a copper pipe after blasting with similar grit sizes of both of these materials. [Note: The pictures are not great but you should be able to see some clear differences.]

Welding burns & discoloration on surface

Glass Bead is a round particle that produces a very smooth, satin-like finish. This media can be re-used multiple times and is typically used in a blast cabinet. Crushed Glass Grit is an angular grit that offers very goood strip rates but breaks down very quickly. Crushed Glass Grit is generally used in portable blasting equipment where collection and re-use is difficult.


Glass Bead - Bright, smooth, satin-like finish


Crushed Glass Grit - Lightly etched finish, very short blast time

Beijing Olympics

Wow! An impressive show by the Chinese with these 2008 Olympics. Many of the controls the government put in place to control pollution (stopping construction, closing factories, significantly reduced traffic) seemed to work - although a couple days of well 'placed' rain also helped.

A couple of random thoughts now that we are beyond these Olympic games:

• China spent A LOT of money on these games. While impressive, most of this $$$ came from western countries buying less expensive Chinese goods (one individual purchase at a time) leading, of course, to China's continuing economic growth. Is this really best for our local and global economies?


• Construction and factories were shut down across China to reduce horrible pollution for two weeks. Now that the Chinese have seen what a blue sky looks like again, I wonder if there will be any continuation of this environmental policy. If the Chinese return to the pre-games norm, I suspect that pricing and supply pressures on many materials (Aluminum Oxide, Silicon Carbide and Steel among many others) will be back in full force along with the pollution it generates.

London 2012 has a very tough act to follow. I hope that the world has learned important lessons about balancing the environment, global trade policies and individual consumption to springboard our (collective) path towards a better future.

Crushed Glass Grit

The 'hottest' abrasive blast media right now seems to be Crushed Glass Grit. This media is sourced from recycled glass - mostly bottle (beer) glass. It is generally a mixture of clear, green and brown glass. Crushed Glass Grit has lots of great advantages:

• Clean, white-metal finish
• No free silica, heavy metals or other contaminants (like in many coal slags)
• Angular shape offers quick stripping (similar to silica in hardness)
• Cost effective use

Two issues to keep in mind when using Crushed Glass Grit: (1) Media is considered consumable and is not generally re-usable; (2) Source quality can vary dramatically - we use New Age Blast Media.

What experiences and performance have you had with Crushed Glass Grit?

Reducing Freight Costs

We sure do understand the pain of an unexpectedly high freight bill. With fuel costs being what they are right now, fuel surcharges can add 70% to an already high freight bill!

Here are a few tips to your freight to keep costs to a minimum:

• Consolidate orders, if possible (if you purchase 1,000 lbs. twice a month from a vendor, order 2,000 lbs. once).
• Large LTL (less than truckload) shipments are sometimes charged at full truckload prices and surcharges. Splitting a large order into multiple shipments can actually reduce the overall cost.
• Deliver freight to an occupied commercial address with access to a forklift truck. A residential delivery with a lift gate as well as delivery scheduling and notification can add as much as $400.00 to a freight bill.
• Talk to your vendors and freight carriers. They can assist in uncovering other options to avoid spending more than necessary.

Blast Cleaning Steel - Pictures

I posted some information a few weeks ago about using Crushed Glass Grit to strip/clean steel. Here are some before and after pictures using Coarse Crushed Glass Grit on a cast iron part to remove some moderate to heavy rust. The total blast time was less than one minute and the total surface area is about 1 cubic foot.