So I’m about to sandblast my farmall super m. I was wondering if anyone had any experience? I was told to go around all the seals with a wire brush so I don’t get anything in the seals. I’ve started doing this for 3 days and it seems never ending: do any of you guys just sandblast everything? The tractor is stripped completely down to just the engine in the frame, the belly pump, and the belt pulls. Everything else is off of the tractor

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That's the problem. You CAN'T protect it. That sand has a way of getting in no matter how much packing and masking you do.

Lots of people do it and get away with it, and I suppose if you want to play the averages, you probably will too, but don't be surprised if you do have issues after sandblasting. It's a 1:1,000,000 chance vs. a 1:1,000 chance. Still overwhelmingly in favor of success, but 1000 times more likely to fail.

As a new collector/restorer I really appreciate all the comments and suggestions. I have at least one tractor I will be wanting to either paint or have painted and the replys here have been more than helpful. Thanks

I have sandblasted a bunch just tape off some places to protect seals ect prime as soon as you are done with the sndblasting.My comresser is an old Jeager 75 cfm @ 90lbs pressure.

I did the rear half and then the front. Although I blasted all the pieces off the engine I didn't blast it. I used a Sandblaster on my pressure washer. I'll never go back to dry blasting. Equipment much cheaper too. I pack around seals with rag strips and tape up with duck tape. Then replace the seals later. Just be conscience of this fact. If sand can get in a part that moves you must be careful and protect it.

Dad had a guy sandblast and repaint his 450 one winter. Took the better part of the winter and two trips back to the dealer's shop to get the hyd. and pto working right, many many $$$$. Clown that blasted and painted didn't even get all the sand off the sheet metal and painted sand right onto the hood & grill. The guys summer job was blasting and painting bridges and Interstate Overpasses.

Blast only parts you can remove from tractor. Wire brush or use oven cleaner to remove oil, grease, and paint in cramped areas.

Ive sandblasted one for a guy.
It was an h farmall. He removed the wheels and taped stuff up. It took a good day and then he primed and painted and the tractor is now done and when back home Its looks better than it did when it came from the dealer

Sand blaster part yes. Sand blasting a whole tractor NO unless you want things to stop working. There is no way you can keep sand out of place where it should NEVER be and bearings and other moving pasts can end up with sand in them and that in turn means parts will stop working

I'm with you. When I do a tractor restoration I only sandblast parts and not all parts. I do not sandblast hydraulic parts, because no matter how well you clean them there still may be residual sand inside. I also do not sandblast the engine block when it is apart, because there are too many passages to get sand in. When I sandblast the transmission case, PTO case, and other castings that have lubricant in them, I carefully pressure wash the inside after sandblasting and priming it to make sure all the sand it out of the crevices.

I see all these articles in magazines and on Youtube videos where people fix most of the mechanical issues and as a final thing they sandblast the entire tractor. Obviously, they are only doing it to make the tractor look good for parades and not for use.

Ya sand blasting a whole tractor is like sand blasting a carb. Once you sand blast a carb about all it is good for is a paper weight since you can never get all the sand out

I am not a fan of sandblasting the tractor after it is all assembled. I know a lot of people do it. The experience I have had is that the sand can get in any place there is the smallest hole. Example is the brakes where the boot is for the actuator linkage. Need to mask all places where sand can get in. Need to use heavy masking tape or multiple layers as the sandblaster will cut through a single layer of masking tape. Depending on who does the sandblasting, if they sandblast the seal area they can certainly damage the seal.

I took my "H" down to that state, and stopped right there. I wire-brushed the engine / frame / tranny, sand-papered it, scraped it, etc., and got the can of primer and primed that stuff. All the rest that I had taken off, I sand-blasted or had it done, separately, in different buildings, primed and painted. Very satisfied.