Glass Bead Blasting

GLASS BEAD BLASTING SERVICES FROM MICRO PLATING IMPROVE MATERIAL SURFACES

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CORROSION RESISTANCE

Corrosion Resistance Can Only Be Guaranteed with Excellent Surface Condition


Are you working with materials that are exposed to corrosive elements and materials? If so, there is one key aspect of your materials you need to keep in mind: surface condition. To function reliably, a plated part must have adequate plating thickness, a plating with the right chemical makeup, and surface consistency. If a part has burrs or slivers of exposed metal, it will fail miserably in salt spray tasting, making it a poor choice for any corrosion exposed environment. With this in mind, it is crucial to utilize plated parts with excellent surface condition. Here at Micro Plating, we can help improve the surface condition of existing parts and newly plated materials with glass bead blasting services. As you read on, you can learn about what sets glass bead blasting apart compared to blasting with alternative angular abrasives like sand blasting.

CLEANING

Cleaning Must Take Place Before Glass Bead Blasting is Performed


When you contract Micro Plating to perform glass bead blasting services, we will first clean the part to be blasted. This process does not work as intended if a part has rust, oxidation, oils, or grease on it. To remove these contaminants, we can utilize chemical cleaning methods and alkaline cleaners depending on what buildup your materials have. Once this important initial step is complete, we can proceed with performing glass bead blasting to substantially improve the surface of your corrosion exposed materials.

DEBURRING

Debur Your Material Surfaces with Glass Bead Blasting


When metals are fabricated, machined, shaped, sanded, and turned a common result is the formation of microscopic burrs. If these burrs are not fixed prior to the plating of your parts, they can result in future corrosion exposure. Even microscopic burring can lead to future large-scale issues to your parts in their intended application. To avoid this, you can contract Micro Plating to perform glass bead blasting prior to completing high phosphorus electroless nickel plating or one of our other plating solutions. As we will outline below, the peening style of glass bead blasting differs from other commonly used abrasive processes. It is an ideal solution if you want to debur your parts without risking any impact to their dimensions.

PEENING

Glass Bead Blasting Peens Rather than Cuts


Common blasting techniques like sand blasting can be efficient in certain circumstances, but its sharpness can create issues with corrosion exposed metal surfaces. Where sharp mediums like sand cut materials they are blasted at, glass beads act in a peening or hammer-like method. This helps maintain surface consistency and avoid some of the drawbacks of angular abrasives like sand blasting. Glass bead blasting will provide your materials with a smooth, non-reflective surface. We achieve this surface condition by utilizing  medium fine glass beads for our work.

BENEFITS OF GLASS BEAD BLASTING


  • Effective on all metals regardless of plating hardness or thickness
  • Leaves behind no embedded contaminants or surface residue.
  • Smoothly removes surface defects while improving corrosion resistance.



  • Increases part lifespans of stress-exposed machined and forged parts.
  • Produces a smoother, brighter, and more resistant finish than angular abrasives.
  • Maintains part dimensions while brightening and strengthening surfaces 

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Micro Plating will, at your request, glass bead blast your parts prior to coating with any of our nickel products.

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