Zach, as you know I do a LOT of blasting both in my cabinet and with a pot blaster. In looking at those pics chas posted and in blasting a ton of rims myself, something important to keep in mind is that your light source is at the TOP. You'll need to be able to turn that rim up on the bead side (i.e., facing the window) to be able to see what you're blasting when you want to blast the area the tire covers. In other words, you'll have to stand that rim up inside the cabinet to be able to access / see the whole thing. Once you do there's not going to be a lot of room to work, and the rim itself is going to block a lot of your light. That's only a 14" rim too -- imagine a 16" in there. It'll be so close to the top of the cabinet you'll be hard-pressed to even roll it much to move on to the next area of blasting.
Now I know you'll be mostly blasting smaller parts and rims won't play a large part in your plan, but it's a good example. Get the largest cabinet you can afford.
Check these out ... might be right up your alley.
http://www.tptools.com/dg/142_Abrasive-Blasters-Kits.html. I get all my ceramic tips, gloves, etc., from them, and snagged a REALLY nice blast gun upgrade kit a couple years ago that made a big difference in my daily cabinet experience.
Definitely invest in an air line drier (often called a dessicant canister filter). You can get them at most home improvement / rural supply stores; a good one will run you upwards of $50 - $75, but it'll potentially save thousands in the long haul if you use a lot of air tools. If your uncle already has a decent compressor, chances are pretty good he already has one.
If you end up buying a commercial cabinet, the first thing you'll want to do is use it on the inside of itself. Of course, don't aim the gun at the light or your gloves, but blast off as much interior cabinet paint as you can ... otherwise, it'll end up
on every part you put in there as you work. (Parts rub against the back and all of them sit on the grate, and picking up each and every piece to move it as you work isn't going to happen since people are generally lazy creatures. :-D You'll slide that stuff just like the rest of us do, and it'll get red or blue or green paint all over it defeating your blasting purposes.)
Another handy tip is to stack as much in there at once as you can and still work comfortably. While you're blasting that alternator bracket, position it in front of your stack so the pulleys, upper control arms and hardware in the cabinet with it will get residual blasting and save you time and media.
I hope all of this helps! Of course, feel free to give me a call if you want particulars about any of it. Best of luck and above all, have fun!
