Help with masking tires

Try a 4-5 dollar circle template from the local Hobby Lobby or alternate. I paint the whole thing tire color first and then use the appropriate sized circle to block the vehicle color and spray the centers. Works like a charm!

Hi there,

What I like to do when painting tires, either road wheels for tanks, or normal tires on wheeled vehicles, is paint the entire wheel flat black. After that dries, I use a circle template, and line up the hole that matches the diameter of the rim. I center it over the rim,effectively masking the tire portion that I already painted,  and spray the camo color. Presto: a nice, cleanly painted wheel!

Here's an example of one that I just finished using this method.

There is also a brand of purpose built masks, just for armor kits called Quick Wheel. These do work well, but are rather expensive, and each one is only for a particular kit. In other words, you'd have to buy different ones for different kits, whereas a circle template is about $5 at an arts and crafts store, and has many different sizes.

Hope this helps.

Nate

Beat me to the punch, Jester!

Nate

Hehe, this tip helped me keep my sanity building PzIV's and Stugs!

It's lame, but I still use a paintbrush to paint them seperately.

OK...go to staples or office depot or michaels....go to the drawing supplies asile....pick up a "combination circle template".....you now have a mask for EVERY tire size.

Paint tires with you favorite rubber color...I prefer a 50/50 mix of NATO Black and Flat Black. After it dries use the circle templte to mask the rubber and expose the rim....Now paint the rim

So easy...even us cave men can do it!!

Rounds Complete!!

tigerman

It's lame, but I still use a paintbrush to paint them seperately.

It's not lame... it's the manly way to do it.  (making Tim Allen monkey grunts now)

I usually use a circle template as most of the other guys do. I use them specially if the wheel will be of a lighter color as desert sand or dark yellow. If the model will be in olive drab, I paint the whole thing in dark grey darken a little bit more with black. When the paint is dry, I adjust my airbrush to a finer spray and just spray the wheels. The overspray does not show much on the tire black so it comes out quite alright. Beofre I also struggled with the wheels. It is just a matter of developing what is more convinient and good. Most of what I do now I got from other guys too.

Hi buddy,

I'm with most of the guys on this: road wheels are pretty simple. I get my wheels cut from the sprue and clean them up. I then sort them into groups ie inner wheels, middle and outer wheels as per the instructions. I mount each wheel onto a cocktail stick and use a block of Flower arranging foam (Oasis) to hold the sticks.

I spray the upper sides of the wheels all over with my 'rubber' mix (Dark Grey mixed 1:1 with Flat Black). When dry I flip them over and do the other sides.

Finally, I get the trusty circle template out and cover the exposed tyre leaving only the inner hub exposed. I then use my Air Brush to colour the hubs (don't forget to do the reverse sides of the hubs). This method gives me perfect wheels every time

These are the wheels from a recent build of mine (Dragon Panther G). In the photo you can see one of my circle templates.

Usually a bog standard stationary circle stencil will do with metric measurements but occasionally you'll get some odd diameter hubs where you'll need an imperial stencil if you want 100% accuracy.

If I have only one or two wheels to paint (ie for stowage etc) I'll happily brush paint them - I won't get the Air Brush out for two wheels! Just thin your paint well and work slowly.

HTH & ATVB

Ben

Great input from everyone, thanks a lot!!!  I just used the technique on the road wheels for my Tamiya 1/35 Sdkfz.222, but the tires protuded out, so I couldn't get the stencil all the way up to the wheel, but the overspray actually looks like dust on the tire, (the color of the vehicle is dark yellow), and I just did a little unintentional weathering that looks great, so I have less to do later.  I'm excited to use this on several tanks, and I feel so much more confident about tires now. And to think I almost didn't ask the question...

Hey SFM,

Yep, unfortunately this method is very best suited to the flat sided tank road wheels.

If you wanted to use mask for a tyre you could choose the suitable sized hole from your stencil and draw a hole onto some paper or similar andcut out the holed area and try to Blu-tack the holed area over the rim? Just a thought?

Best of luck

Ben

Actually, I did just that about three days ago with some Tamiya 40mm tape, for a small motorcycle (1/35). It worked well, just took a while to cut out the circle

Hello folks!

I do not use masks for tieres. I just paint the wheels with the airbrush, and I use a paintbrush (fine one) to apply a thin wash of the desired colour. After the wash a second layer of a thicker one is applied and finally a coat of paint (50%paint-50%thinner) is applied. Capilarity will do the trick when the tireis separated from the ring by a rim.The correctttchnique was published in FSM special issue How to paint & weather scale models. Dislpayed until JUly 31 2007.

This is theresult. It's not a wonderful tank, but the wheels are OK (aren't they?)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

greetings from Mexico

polikarpov_mesteno

Nice work! I am new"ish" to armor, but in my opinion, that tank looks pretty nice! 

Jester75

Hehe, this tip helped me keep my sanity building PzIV's and Stugs!

Have you ever seens what lurks under a Tiger?  Pure masking evil!  That many wheels are still a pain in the but even with a mask.

I don't even use paint most of the time, i found this neat trick on these forums awhile back, i use regular old sharpie pens small and large to 'paint my roadwheels, after a little weathering and such, they look pretty darn good.'

Yep,

I'm about to start a 1/48 Tiger. God all them wheels

I try and leave them to last along with the Friuls!

ATVB

Ben

I have some of the Quick Wheel templates and to be honest they are great! All the wheels at once for a Tiger, Panther, Panzer IV what can I say. Just push them in and hit them all with the AB takes seconds. What I also do is cover the template with some masking tape to keep them clean and they will last me for years. I know they cost a bit but if they last me a life time I can live with that

Pmitch

I'm with everyone else here; the easiest method is to just paint the wheels black or some other tire colour, and then use a circle template to mask the tire and spray the wheel.

There is another technique I use which I find a bit useful in some wheels that are not a perfect fit to a circle template; I use a paintbrush to paint the tire around the rim of the wheel, but I use water only, as I can control it better. At that point, while still wet, I touch some tire-black paint to the water, and allow capillary action to carry it around the rim. Usually creates a perfect circle, right on the tire, outside of the rim. Once dry, I'll paint in the rest of the tire.

It's funny I bought a circle template from Staples some years ago,and I have yet to find a road wheel from any tank that fits right in one of the circles,I mean if its not a perfect fit,if the hole is just a little to large,then you get overspray.Am I doing something wrong,because it seems like a simple solution,but it has not worked for me.So I just paint them all by hand.

Ive tried the circle-template technique before, but i found that a perfect matrch for the diameter of the wheel was almost impossible.  Plus i often found that my paint would often scrape away.  Because i like to glue all the wheels to my tracks so its all one piece, i just use a fine paintbrush and Vallejo Black-gray paint. Thinner is better! weathering will hide any oopsies

Your template may not have enough sizes. The one I found has the holes go up in increments of 1/32 of an inch.  You literally can't see the difference between a couple of them. They fit perfectly, and I've tried them now on some spare Panzer wheels, and they work really well.

For those who are struggling to find just the right circle templates to use...try this one on for size: http://www.draftingsteals.com/21318.html It's the one I use personally and it's extremely rare that I can't find a circle to fit what I need done.

thanks Bill I will give that one a try

Oh my... Being the old Mecahnical Draftsman that I am... or, er, was, I just hate to see a perfectly good circle template get ruined with spray paint (I still have many templates from the old days). I spray the hubs the vehicle color (while painting the rest of the model) then I stick each wheel on a piece of sprue with double-sided tape, and spin while painting the 'black' by hand brush. Piece of cake with the proper brush and it only takes a couple of minutes +/- for each wheel/tire. Luckily, in the twilight of (my) life LOL, I still have a fairly steady hand and I don't have to clean the air brush... again.

Obviously, your mileage will vary.

Kevin,

No circle templates are actually harmed in this exercise...just a little bit of thinner and voila! overspray comes right off.

minimortar

Oh my... Being the old Mecahnical Draftsman that I am... or, er, was, I just hate to see a perfectly good circle template get ruined with spray paint (I still have many templates from the old days).

Now you and I are of the same gas passer generation....you can do it the Bill method or like any good Draftsman or Engineer, you take out your Gum Eraser and clean everthing up. Then you sweep up from the gum eraser and use it for ground effects.

Now I have to go before my India Ink dries....I am working on some scale calculations using my slide ruler (batteries never die).

Don't drop your T square!! remember velum cuts are the worst and no sniffing the ammonia copier!!

Rounds Complete!!

Thanks for the link Bill! They also have ruling pens, I've used these for years for liquid glues and just killed my last one dropping it on the tile Much easier to control the weld type liquids by adjusting the nib.

I've tried them all.  After I discovered the chisel-tip marker method, I've never gone back.  FAST - EASY!