Help with masking tires

Wow, that is literally EXACTLY what I did a few weeks ago on my Panzer III, took a little while, but it looks good so far.

If you recall doog I was right there with ya bud.  Real men paint road wheels by hand.

Well... until yesterday anyway.  I always put 'em on a stick of some sort so I can kinda spin 'em a little.  Don't know what it took so long to take the mental leap to try this but I did all 8 wheels in maybe 5 minutes.  Seriously, this was fast... and better than when I do them by hand.  After you chuck them just adjust a little if needed to get them to spin as round and flat as you can.  Fingers on the thumb steady both hands.

Can't help ya--I paint 'em by hand, every one.

I don't use the circle template, but reverse the method.

Paint the wheel appropriately, allow to dry & use the white version of Blue-Tac from the £-Land or $-Store, to blank off the wheel part, then spray the trye part as desired.

Peel off white-tac & a quick wipe round with wheel colour to touch-up if needed.

I just find it easier this way

I must be doing something wrong. I have a couple templates and ever have the Allianace Model Works 1/35 German Vehicle Wheel Mask Set, within these I can find a circle that fits perfect on any wheel.

My problem is I always have paint getting through.

I tried to lay the wheels down and hold the template/mask in my hand but that didn't work. I ever tried to hold both together in one hand and still have paint coming though.

Do you guys stand up and paint down while holding the template or are the wheels turned toward you? Please try to explain it or better show some pictures. If you know of a youtube video showing painting wheels with a template that would be great.

PontiacRich

anthony2779:

wbill76:

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.

 

 

Bill,I ordered one and used it today to paint the wheels on my 1/48 Stug III,it was great, there's no going back,I simply masked off the hole I was using,then wiped off any overspray with alchohol,great addition instead off the cheap one I got from staples.

 

Holy mackeral...that's a lot of holes!  But the shipping cost is more than the product cost???

Yes,it was tough to swallow,but for a one shot deal I dealt with it,you can see if there is something else you can use then the shipping doesn't go up right away.

anthony2779

wbill76:

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.

 

 

Bill,I ordered one and used it today to paint the wheels on my 1/48 Stug III,it was great, there's no going back,I simply masked off the hole I was using,then wiped off any overspray with alchohol,great addition instead off the cheap one I got from staples.

Holy mackeral...that's a lot of holes!  But the shipping cost is more than the product cost???

There are some really great responses to this question!  AND it saves me from having to ask the same question!  So I'll ask a different one...

How can I save this thread, or "subscribe" or "follow" this thread so I can refer back to it whenever I need to?

Thanks all!

I tape them and use a sharpe knike to cut the tape works for me.

Glad it worked out well for you Anthony!

Circle template and a Sharpie..

wbill76

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.

Bill,I ordered one and used it today to paint the wheels on my 1/48 Stug III,it was great, there's no going back,I simply masked off the hole I was using,then wiped off any overspray with alchohol,great addition instead off the cheap one I got from staples.

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

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.

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!!

Kevin,

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

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.

thanks Bill I will give that one a try

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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

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 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.'

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.

polikarpov_mesteno

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

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?)

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greetings from Mexico