Black Beauty Blasting media

I've always used Black Beauty, even in my blast cabinet. There are different grades available. You probably were given the Utility grade which is for the really big jobs using large blast nozzles. I use the general purpose Medium grade for most all work. That is the grade you are likely to find at your local automotive paint supplier that supports body shops using the smaller blasters. It is much safer to use than regular sand, cuts better than sand and lasts longer than sand. I don't think most commercial blasters use sand anymore due to the safety issues and requirements from regulatory agencies. I've always seen Black Beauty used instead of sand in a large industrial environment. I've also used the extra fine (or possibly the fine, I can't remember) for blasting aluminum that was going to be just clearcoated. That grade is more like a powder and doesn't leave a noticeable profile. You can get more details on Black Beauty here. The MSDS (in pdf) for it is here.

Rod