WarmGlass.com

Happy New Year to all!

I am adding to my home (garage) studio, and trying to decide on a wbs or a sandblaster...Not sure which one I would get the most use out of. Most of the work I do is functional (bowls, platters, wall hangings, etc), usually nothing over 20" or so. I do not do casting. I do a very small amount of jewelry. Any suggestions?

I guess it depends upon what type of coldworking you want to do . They are two very different tools.

If you are creating functional pieces, that probably means you need to clean up edges and flatten bottoms. If that's the case, I would get the wet belt sander (or a flat lap).

2 cents,

Dana W.

Those are both serious commitments of time and money and space. Aren't there studios nearby where you can rent time on both? I took my stuff to a rented sandblaster about an hour away until the inconvenience answered the question.

buy the tool that addresses the problems you are having, or what you want to do to the glass.

these 2 tools don't have any overlapping capabilities, whereas a wbs and flat lap have some, making that decision a harder one. we can't answer your question because we don't know what problems you are having, nor whether you can borrow/rent/trade time on one or the other more easily in your location.

As Charlie said, these tools do different things. I was able to get a new inexpensive blast cabinet (about 24" wide) that works for the size pieces I do. Cost about $200. The Compressor was more money (around $350). I was able to get a Somaca wet belt sander off of Craigslist (not that easy to find used btw) for under $300. Considering what they cost new, I was thrilled beyond words.

The good news is that small scale work uses small scale tools. You may well get away with a diamond wet grinder with a 4" flat lap for grinding, and a little sandblaster designed for cleaning small parts.

I'm sure some of the glass jewelry makers here can chime in with what tools work well for them.

Thanks so much for the suggestions. I really don't have any studios near me to rent time on either of these tools. I suppose that I really do more edge work on sinks, thick bowls, strip work and drop outs so I guess that a wbs would be a more useful purchase for me. Most of what I would use a sandblaster for I could probably do by hand...

but a sandblaster is so fun!!!! I actually want both of these things too...