Air Operated Scalers

[Tungsten dipper]

Do they work? I have a 54" box brake that needs some rust and paint removal in hard to reach areas and around bracing, and in corners.

Any other thing they are used for?

[boslab]

Needle scalers can do it though I’d be tempted to sand or media blast myself, if you do go needle start gentle ie turn the air down
my edwards 4’ needs the stand cleaned also, she was outside a while
mark
oh great for cement mixers too!

[JRouche]

Do they work? I have a 54" box brake that needs some rust and paint removal in hard to reach areas and around bracing, and in corners.
Any other thing they are used for?

They do work, learned that removing heavy duty non skid before..

Problem? Not all are the same. I made the mistake of buying a HF unit years ago. It sorta worked. Then I got this IR unit. Now THATS a scaler. Weighs about ten pounds and it eats. Most of my air tools are IR these days.. JR

[tom in nh]

I would be very mindful of using it on machined surfaces. On those areas it is better to use a more gentle method.
Like JR, I own an IR unit. It is a beast.
Rust removal is what I use mine for.
Best of luck,
Tom

[wmgeorge]

Ditto they work fine, I purchased one with a handle and did not pay much $35 or so took the rust off my receiver hitch and laying under my truck to do it.

[RB140]

Yes they work
I used them at an iron works I was employed at great for heavy rust but be careful they will make dimples in the iron so try not to use them on machined surfaces we used a wire wheel or cup brush on a 4 inch angle grinder on delicate areas
the one Jr has was just like the ones we used them take a beating and keep on scaling

[wierdscience]

Yes they work and for what they cost it's worth having. If you're worried about dimpling, just run it on an air regulator and turn the pressure down a bit. You can also use a PVC pipe tee and a short section of pipe to connect a shop vac to it for dust/rust/paint removal.

[JRouche]

Yes they work and for what they cost it's worth having. If you're worried about dimpling, just run it on an air regulator and turn the pressure down a bit. You can also use a PVC pipe tee and a short section of pipe to connect a shop vac to it for dust/rust/paint removal.

Sharper Minds do prevail. I left out the regulator method. They can be regulated for stoke on the tool. Air control is up to you. I usually run it full bore and rip away.

Oh? The tacky looking chit on my needles? Thats undercoating from a 60-70 car. That stuff is nasty. I have to remove it before welding on some dudes car see. Rip the entire under coating out he said? Yes, I wont weld untill. JR

[polaraligned]

I used my IR unit to strip a couple of Bridgeports, and it was excellent. I doubt they would be as effective on painted only surfaces where the paint is still holding solid. The Bridgeports have filler under the paint that is fairly soft.

[metalmagpie]

Where I worked we called those "needle guns". I think they are best at removing multiple layers of old paint. They will remove a lot of a heavy rust buildup, but won't take the piece all the way to shiny. For an old box & pan brake, I'd pull all the fingers and related fasteners and derust those using evaporust or EDM or bead blasting. Your needle scaler would work pretty well on the remaining part of the machine.

I used my needle gun on an old turret punch recently:


I also own an IR model (made in Taiwan) and value it highly.

metalmagpie

[MichaelP]

What model(s) of IR do you use, guys, 125?

[JRouche]

What model(s) of IR do you use, guys, 125?

Yes, one, two five. JR

[BCRider]

Been watching a lot of the Cutting Edge Engineering videos lately. He uses one for removing the slag off welds between passes. Quick and easy. And the needles flex around and reach in where a chipping hammer can't.

[Tungsten dipper]

Been watching a lot of the Cutting Edge Engineering videos lately. He uses one for removing the slag off welds between passes. Quick and easy. And the needles flex around and reach in where a chipping hammer can't.

I love his dog. He's a hard worker!!!

[Bob Engelhardt]

Air scalers use a lot of air - why don't they make electrical ones? Well, they do make multi-100$ ones, but that's not what I mean.