Available in a wide range of sizes, glass beads are one of the most popular blast media used in abrasive blast cabinets today. Glass bead media is an all-purpose media used for honing, polishing, peening, blending, finishing, removing light burrs, frosting glass and cleaning most light foreign matter. Additionally, glass beads blasting can remove paint, rust, scale and surface residues. As a result, glass bead material generally will not change dimensional tolerances and can detect weld and solder flaws.
Glass beads are typically consumed at a slow rate in bead blasting equipment. Additionally, they also survive multiple impacts, and thus can be recycled several times. Glass beads, made of recycled glass. Therefore, they are chemically inert. Thus the leave no ferrous or other undesirable residue on the prepared surface. When used properly, glass beads leave a controlled and clean finish on the prepared surface.
We offer our glass bead media in 50 US pound pails. Thus, the pails are easy to lift and empty and are reusable after the media is exhausted. Next, when you are ready to order click the image and then select the desired grit size. With just your shipping address we provide a quote on any size order.
We offer the following grit sizes:
First, larger beads remove larger and/or tougher materials from the surface. Next, larger beads produce a more intense peening effect and peen deeper into the material surface. Finally, coarse glass beads are consumed faster at the same pressure as fine glass beads.
| Cyclone Part Number | Grit Size: US Sieve | Nominal Diameter (Inches/Microns) | Min % Round | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Max | Min | |||
| 5002 | 60-100 | .0098 / 250 | .0049 / 125 | 80 |
| 5009 | 40-60 | .0165 / 425 | .0098 / 250 | 75 |
| 5010 | 100-170 | .0059 / 150 | .0035 / 90 | 85 |
| 5011 | 170-325 | .0035 / 90 | .0017 / 40 | 85 |
In contrast to coarse beads, finer beads remove smaller materials from the surface. Therefore, fine beads tend to clean faster and produce a less intense peening effect and peen less deep into the material surface. Next, finer glass beads are more capable of reaching into smaller spaces on the material being prepared. As a result, finer glass beads can produce a matte finish, when properly used. Finally, fine beads also consumed slower at the same pressure as coarse beads.
For all sizes of glass beads: bead size, angle of the blast nozzle, shape of the workpiece, distance from the workpiece, air pressure all dramatically affect the ultimate surface preparation and media consumption. Additionally, direct vs. siphon feed bead blasting equipment also affect how glass beads usage and consumption.
If you hear the term "bead" blasting, now you know where it came from. Glass beads are used for cleaning, finishing, peening, and deburring applications. As a result, Cyclone glass beads are for sale in a variety of sizes. We can provide any size you need starting with a 50 pound bucket up to multiple pallets.
Throughout our site we use the term sandblasting or some variation. We use the word "sand" because it is a familiar term to our customers. However, the word sandblasting is as old as the industry itself, and refers to the sand used decades ago. Most importantly, there are many dangers with actual sand in blasting. Too many in fact to list. Above all, we advise against using ANY SAND in your cabinet or blasting process – ever.
NEVER use silica sand or any silica based media in ANY blast cabinet. We offer a broad variety of abrasive blast media specific for your project. Exposure to this silica is known to causes severe and often fatal damage to lung tissue (known as silicosis). Therefore, DO NOT ever use silica sand in abrasive blast equipment. Again, we simply DO NOT recommend using sand in a "sandblasting" cabinet – there are too many safer alternatives.
