OK all, I also have the same cabinet that might have come from Harbor Freight, but I bought it from a nice lady who lost her husband to cancer. It was never used when I got it. Anyway, heres my firsthand experience with it....
The light setup is way wimpy, and went on the fritz almost immedietly. It has a transformer and a cheesy switch setup that despite my repeated attempts at repair, I had to ditch because I couldn't get any of the parts for it through Harbor Freight. I replaced it with a flourescent trouble light that I now have to plug in everytime I use it. (gonna make a switch someday)
Next, I would advise against running a shop vac with it as a shop vac simply cant run continuously and suck fine dust like the sandblaster puts out. It killed my shop vac in a smoky meltdown after about 2 weeks of off and on use at about 15 minute intervals. Pictured is my current setup of an industrial extraction fan sitting on a trashcan and exiting out through a dryer vent to the outside. I had a fine particle bag inside the can, but with the bag, the fan can't pull enough air through the small (2")portal that the cabinet comes with. It works great without the bag and minimal dust comes out of the vent.
The gun also was a crappy piece right out of the box and was a continuing source of maintenance. The trigger would stop allowing air to draw enough volume to suck up the sand and would give a little "pock" sound and quit working. I bought a Campbell-Housfeld gun from Tractor Supply for $20.00 and it has been working nicely ever since!!
I have a 3hp industrial compressor and it keeps up alright, but they recommend a 5hp, which would have no problem keeping up. I usually take a break after about 10 minutes anyway cause it strains my back and arms to constantly look through the window and my hand gets tired because the gun it comes with (and my replacement) is trigger operated. A pedal switch would be superior!
The door seal started to leak and fall off almost immedietly and you have to pound on the door to knock the sand off the inside detail of the door or it dumps sand on the floor when you open it!!
All in all, its a decent cabinet for what I paid ($100), but I dont know if I would pay $209 for it. Next time I'll step up to the $700 level and buy a real cabinet with its own evac system, foot switch and larger cabinet area!! This cabinet is alright for smaller parts that aren't too crusty, but not for rims, which would take forever to do!!
JMO all, but it's an informed one!! Geof
