There has been some discussion around Soda Blasting in Mark's 97 restoration thread. As I pointed out there, if you ask 10 different people about the hows, and their experience with Soda Blasting you will get 10 different answers. I'll post a couple of links that I think are pretty helpful. A couple of important items are:
The Soda you buy at the grocery store is not the same as used in Soda Blasting equipment. Industrial use product is more like a grain of salt which disintegrates upon impact with the paint you are stripping, hence stripping it off with minimal or no damage to the substrate material. Grocery store baking soda is more like powder. It does work for small jobs though. (see link below)
The Soda may rinse off with water but if you are going to paint the surface it must be neutralized. Most shops will agree that vinegar, soap, water and rinse, rinse, rinse will do the job. Paint jobs have literally fallen off of vehicles that were not neutralized properly after the Soda Blasting.
This link has some good info on Soda Blasting:
http://www.crankshaftcoalition.com/wiki/Soda_blastingThis is a great way to build a little blaster to do small parts like carb's etc. If you don't neutralize the metal after blasting (as long as you are not painting it) the soda left after rinsing with water acts as a corrosion inhibitor so your part will look new longer.
http://www.aircooledtech.com/tools-on-the-cheap/soda_blaster/