Masking Question

AFIntel.
The possibilities are almost endless. Scotch tape can be used, but there are lots of other alternatives that have a lower 'tack' and won't pull up the paint. Some things that I have used successfully:
1. Low-tack masking tape (often used by house painters)
2. Scotch 'magic' tape (sorta looks frosted.)
3. Parafilm M
4. Silly Putty (my latest favorite - very cool stuff)
5. Bare Metal Foil (makes razor sharp separation lines)

There's many others too, and I expect others will offer additional advice/opinions.

M.

I've used Scotch low-tack masking tape (the blue stuff) with some success, but it still tends to leave a residue that you'll need to carefully remove afterward, and it can still pull up paint and decals, especially around edges. Be sure the paint is thoroughly cured before masking.
Bare Metal Foil seems to be much easier on the surface to which it's applied, and it gives excellent, sharp lines. It will also bend and form to odd shapes much more easily than tape does. It's an expensive way to mask, but it works great. Rather than buy the modeling foil, I use art-store foil tape. Most well-supplied art supply stores will have large rolls of metal foil tape that will give you a huge amount of foil for about $12.

Tamiya also makes a very good quality masking tape in varying widths on a little plastic dispenser. It's fairly low tack, gives sharp paint edges, and sticks very well. I've had excellent results using it for things like control surfaces or OD anti-glare panels.
Bare-Metal foil is my favorite for canopies. As the above reply states, it conforms perfectly to all panel lines and contours, and gives razor sharp lines.
Cheers,
LeeTree

The best general purpose masking material is the Tamiya tape that Mr. LeeTree recommends. I have a roll of 18mm and a roll of 10mm that I use almost exclusively. Its very good stuff. I also use the 3M "blue" safe release masking tape (which was my favorite before I discovered Tamiya tape). I use this for rough fill-in work after I've taped off the border with Tamiya. For special purposes I use either parafilm, liquid mask, or frisket paper. Experiment!

Good Luck
Tom

Exactly what I was looking for. Maybe I was forcing the tape down too hard, so it stuck "too much" when I lifted it.

I'll have to try that Silly Putty idea. Sounds kinda cool...

Thanks
AFIntel (TSgt USAF)

AFIntel.

I'm working on a 1/72 Corsair right now and I've used the Silly Putty for all of the masking. I'm actually quite amazed with the job it's done. A few examples:
- I stuffed some into the 'engine' area on the front of the cowling to protect the insides from overspray. Worked awesome and was very easy to work it into all of the nooks and crannys around the edges.
- I used it to do the soft edge between the three colors (dk blue, lt blue, and white). I just 'rolled' it into a long sausage, then layed the putty along where the color separation was supposed to go. A gentle push on the putty will make it stick to the surface and create a very minute 'overhang'. Spray overtop and remove the putty to find a very nice feathered edge.
- Larger areas were easy to cover too. Just 'flatten' the putty out until it's really thin, then lay it on the surface. You can cut it with a knife and then just 'nudge' the edge back to wherever you want the line to be.

I've been using the same 'egg' of putty the whole time. When I'm done, I just roll the putty back together. Some of it has 'paint' on it, but so far that hasn't affected anything. I just keep re-using it and it doesn't seem to dry out at all. The one thing I'm not sure of is whether or not the paint that's stuck to the putty will come off sometime later when I don't want it to? I've been masking overtop of the white paint, and so far nothing has come off of the putty.

Give it a try. Cheap and very easy to work with.

M.

Just another question...

I'm currently "building" (i've quoted it because it's stopped, due to this particular painting issue) an Revell's USS Enterprise at 1/720...

The problem is that i've just painted the deck with the correct color, but i've stopped for the landing stripes, due to the masking problem (if the tape brings the paint, etc...)...

So, i've been thinking of building the landing stripes with decals!!!!

What do you think??

Should i stick to the decals, or try the masking tape????

See the pics in these URL's (copy and paste, sorry, i was unable to send HTML):
http://f14fan.no.sapo.pt/imagens/030.jpg
http://f14fan.no.sapo.pt/imagens/031.jpg
http://f14fan.no.sapo.pt/imagens/032.jpg
http://f14fan.no.sapo.pt/imagens/033.jpg
http://f14fan.no.sapo.pt/imagens/034.jpg

In addition to the above, check your local Art Supply store for Scotch brand #230 Drafting Tape. It looks like ordinary masking tape, but is low tack and won't damage painted surfaces. When sliced into thin strips it will stretch around curved surfaces and still lay flat. It's ideal for painting ID bands on fuselages, Invasion Stripes, etc. This tape and the Tamiya tape is about all I use. One word of caution on the Silly Putty. It can leave an invisible, but oily residue which may affect later Top-coats. May not on every model but sooner or later, WHAMMO!

Rick

Thanks for the head's-up Rick. I've been using it pretty regularly and haven't had that happen yet. However, I don't leave it on the model very long, so maybe I've just been lucky. I'll be on the look-out...

M.