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Model Forum / General / Models / July 2006Masking - Advice to a beginner
Hi all, I'm back to modelling after many years, and have discovered that my attention to detail has gone up with my increased (since being a kid) attention span. Along with learning how to use filler, dry-brushing and air-brushing, I'm trying (and failing) to get the hang of using masking tape. I'm building an Airfix 1:48 GR4A Tornado. The colour scheme I've chosen (because it looked hardest) has a dark grey on top, and a light grey colour underneath. So, my question: How on earth do I get a different colour top and bottom on the wings and fuselage? Anybody got any tips on masking, particularly on getting a clean line on the leading edges? Is my airbrush paint going to bleed under the edges of the tape? Also, any product recommendations would be appreciated? Sorry for the newbie question... I've searched and googled but not found any advice. Still waiting for Airfix to complete their modelling guide.. the last section will be on masking :( ( http://airfix.com/cs/resources/guides.aspx ) Thanks for any tips, Gary I've had good luck with wet newspaper. Neil > Hi all, > [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > > Gary > I'm building an Airfix 1:48 GR4A Tornado. The colour scheme I've > chosen (because it looked hardest) has a dark grey on top, and a light [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > airbrush paint going tobleed under the edges of the tape? Also, any > product recommendations would be appreciated? With this kit and scheme, I would think hard about painting wings and tailplanes before assembly, then masking them off while painting the fuselage. The areas of the wings that are only exposed when unswept are difficult to mask off successfully after assembly, but you can slide a thin sheet of paper into the wing glove to mask a prepainted wing. The same trick could help with the tailplane-fuselage masking, or you could rework them to be a plug-in fit. Make sure any painted surface is completely dry before masking over it. 24 hours may not be enough, but it depends on the paint chemistry. Spray light colours first, then dark; coverage is easier (he says, having made the mistake of trying to cover an incompletely sprayed Gull Grey coat on a P-3 with white :-( ). This will be difficult with the tailplanes pre-painted unless they are made to be plug-in. I almost never mask leading and trailing aerofoil edges: I find that the spray pattern is good enough on its own, providing quite a hard boundary at the steeply-curved surface. For the fuselage I'd use Tamiya tape, a masking tape made for modelling; thinner, conforms better to curves and seals well. Once the edges of the pattern are defined by Tamiya tape, the rest can be masked with ordinary paper stuck down with more tape. This saves you having to tape over the whole fuselage. The canopy will take the most work; use thin strips of tape to define the outline of the frames then fill in the rest with masking fluid. Don't forget to arrange for holding the model and setting it down once you're done. Leaving the jetpipes off and sticking a suitable rod into the holes usually works for me. Don't spray against the edge of the tape: spray perpendicular to it or slightly away, so as not to force paint against the edge: that will find any weakness. Don't try for solid coverage in one pass - several light coats will get a solid cover without risking the paint pooling or running. Don't leave the tape on for too long: it will eventually bond itself more strongly to the paint and pull some of it off. It's best to remove masking as soon as you can after finishing; the masked paint then has the opportunity to flow just enough to form a meniscus edge, curved and blending in much better than the step you will get if you leave the paint to dry completely. Thanks Alan, Looks like I got some of it right and some not.... I already painted the tops of the wings for exactly the reason you said (swept area problem) and also because the dark paint on the top of the fuselage does not cover the entire thing, so I had an idea I'd be doing some light colour on top BEFORE the dark. For some reason, I didn't pursue the logic far enough to painting the undersides of the wings, though. Nor did I consider painting lighter colours first. Total brain-lock. I did the same with the tailplanes, too. Never mind, I'll recover it. You've made me go and look at my leading edges again, and I see what you mean about the spay pattern giving a pretty good edge. I'll follow your advice and recover any mistakes with a small brush. I'll paint the undersides of the taiplanes in-situ, then cover the whole things with tape before completing the rest of the underside. Regarding the wings, and a lot of other advice I've read, I'm fairly close to a decision to fix them in the full-forwards position anyway: I want the model to be an on-the-ground, canopy up, no pilot kind of model (though I've painted the pilot & nav and I'm pretty pleased with the result). This will certainly remove any problems with painting the swept area underneath. Another interesting little 'which bit first' with this model is that the engine intakes need a lot of blending with putty, but there is a gap between intake and fuselage...so: paint fuse, add and blend intakes, paint intakes, mask, paint rest of fuse - or something like that. Why didn't I just choose a single colour scheme? It's been 20 years since I last did anything like this. Regarding your advice on the canopy I thought I'd do it in two stages: mask the crosswise parts, paint, then mask the lengthwise edges and paint. Can you tell me a bit more about masking fluid? Do you peel it off once dry? Also, I've read lots about using some kind of floor wax sealer or protector or something on the clear bits? Is this a masking trick as well? Thanks for your advice so far, Alan, you've got me going on the next steps. I was beginning to flounder. Cheers, Gary > > I'm building an Airfix 1:48 GR4A Tornado. The colour scheme I've > > chosen (because it looked hardest) has a dark grey on top, and a light [quoted text clipped - 46 lines] > blending in much better than the step you will get if you leave the paint > to dry completely. > Regarding the wings, and a lot of other advice I've read, I'm fairly close > to a decision to fix them in the full-forwards position anyway: I want the > model to be an on-the-ground, canopy up, no pilot kind of model (though I've > painted the pilot & nav and I'm pretty pleased with the result). This will > certainly remove any problems with painting the swept area underneath. Fixing the wings is pretty much necessary for a detailed model anyway, as the pylons don't swing at all well. > Another interesting little 'which bit first' with this model is that the > engine intakes need a lot of blending with putty, but there is a gap between > intake and fuselage...so: paint fuse, add and blend intakes, paint intakes, > mask, paint rest of fuse - or something like that. I'd be inclined to prepaint the intake and fuselage sides of the gap with light grey first, then attach, fill and smooth the gaps, feather the edge of the prepaint, mask the canopy opening and paint the whole fuselage light grey. Dont' forget to paint the inside of the intakes before assembly :-). Once the fuselage is dry, mask and paint the dark grey upper surfaces. This guarantees that there will be no tidemarks where the underlying grey gives way to plastic. > Why didn't I just choose a single colour scheme? It's been 20 years since I > last did anything like this. > > Regarding your advice on the canopy I thought I'd do it in two stages: mask > the crosswise parts, paint, then mask the lengthwise edges and paint. You say you're doing canopy-up, so you have the luxury of being able to treat the canopy separately and attach it later. I've never tried the method you describe, so tell me how well it works! One thing you might want to try is painting the framing *interior* colour first, then the camouflage colour on top, so that the inside shows the right colour. > Can you tell me a bit more about masking fluid? Do you peel it off once dry? > Also, I've read lots about using some kind of floor wax sealer or protector > or something on the clear bits? Is this a masking trick as well? Masking fluid - Humbrol Maskol, Revell Color Stop etc - is a latex (I think) fluid that dries rubbery and sticks pretty well to plastic or painted surfaces. It can be used on its own, but doesn't like conforming to sharp corners e.g. in canopy frames as it has a high surface tension. Hence the use of masking tape to define the edges of the mask and fluid to fill in the middle. Half-stick a piece of tape in the middle of the fluid area and bend up the end, to act as a handle to pull the dried mask off. Don't leave it on for days, or it will harden and try to pull off the underlying paint. Floor wax - you're thinking of Future, or Klear as it is marketed in the UK. There is a web page that gives more detail than I could ever remember. http://www.swannysmodels.com/TheCompleteFuture.html As the page notes, masking fluid is usually ammonia-based and reacts badly with Future/Klear. > Thanks for your advice so far, Alan, you've got me going on the next steps. > I was beginning to flounder. Lord knows, I'm no expert - but some of them have added their advice as well, so between all the answers you should get a few ideas. In the end it comes down to what works for you - it's supposed to be *fun*, after all :-) Alan, Thanks once again for saving me... I hadn't thought about the interior colour of the cockpit glass edges. And yes, I'll let you know how the canopy masking works out (with pictures, if required) I'll be down to my local HobbyCraft to see if they have the masking fluid at the weekend. From a few other posts I think I've identified the same product as the Tamiya masking tape in my local B&Q store. The wings move pretty well on my model, but I did extend the pivots with reshaped sprue parts so that they picked up the top surface of the wing and glued to the upper fuselage. I'll probably still fix them in place, though. Thanks again, Gary PS: Your e-mail address bounces, even with correct bits removed. I think I've got mine attached to this message (with obvious removals) so if it works I'm happy to talk back-channel. I'd love an experienced view of my pictures so far... >> Regarding the wings, and a lot of other advice I've read, I'm fairly >> close to a decision to fix them in the full-forwards position anyway: I [quoted text clipped - 63 lines] > it comes down to what works for you - it's supposed to be *fun*, after all > :-) > Alan, > > I'll be down to my local HobbyCraft to see if they have the masking fluid at > the weekend. From a few other posts I think I've identified the same product > as the Tamiya masking tape in my local B&Q store. Tamiya tape looks like DIY masking tape, but is thinner, of finer weave (so it conforms better) and has a lower-tack adhesive. It also comes in a range of widths suitable for modelling. Automotive masking tape is more likely to stick too hard, and pull up paint on removal > The wings move pretty well on my model, but I did extend the pivots with > reshaped sprue parts so that they picked up the top surface of the wing and > glued to the upper fuselage. I'll probably still fix them in place, though. Moveable wings can work if you have no pylons attached. > PS: Your e-mail address bounces, even with correct bits removed. I think > I've got mine attached to this message (with obvious removals) so if it > works I'm happy to talk back-channel. I'd love an experienced view of my > pictures so far... The email address is valid - don't forget to remove the . as well as removethis - and nothing else. Bleeding of paint under tape edges is very common. One method to prevent this is to spray another coat of the existing paint after the edge is masked. Personally, I have gone to spraying with a coat of clear to seal the edge- dullcoat if it is over a matt color, clearcoat if over a gloss. These 'seal' the edge of the tape. > Hi all, > [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > > Gary If you're wanting to mask, freezer or masking tape is out of the question. They make a tape just for modelers, guarranted not to bleed. I don't have the name in front of me, but tamiya comes to mind. Its a dark yellow tape. The results are flawless. Whether you're brushing with acrylics, enamel or spay, the modeler's tape is the only way to go for contrasting division lines. HTH > Hi all, > [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > > Gary  Signature- Trailer For Sale or Rent - Always always always use good tape. Tamiya makes a great masking tape. Check your local auto body supply house too, the tapes body painters use to mask is great...3M Brand comes to mind. Just watch how much tack it has as it might pull off previous applied colors. 3M also makes household painters tapes that work well, they are low tack but seal well along the edges. Remember to pull the tape off towards the color you just applied, while it is still slightly tacky. Good Luck Gerald http://www.hawkeyeshobbies.com > Hi all, > [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > > Thanks for any tips, For an actual hard edge, try Tamiya masking tape. http://www.hannants.co.uk/search/?FULL=TA87030 It's a *leetle* bit expensive but it is very good. The airbrushed paint will not bleed underneath it. Use the Tamiya tape for the actual edges and for anything else, use a low-tack masking tape from your local DIY store. If you use this as an actual edge, the paint *will* bleed under it, but it is great for large areas. For a softer demarcation line, I use tracing paper cut to the shape of the camouflage line and stuck to the surface with Copydex glue. Don't brush the Copydex up to the edge of the paper, leave about 5mm clear. Therefore, when you spray the second colour on, the edge will flap about a bit in the breeze and will produce a nice soft (but not *too* soft) edge. You then simply peel off the tracing paper mask. Hope this helps. Oh... and by the way... please don't apologise for the "newbie question". We were all newbies at one time or another... and whatever our current skill levels, we call all benefit from the experience of others. I know I certainly do! :-D SignatureEnzo I wear the cheese. It does not wear me. >> Hi all, >> [quoted text clipped - 46 lines] > our current skill levels, we call all benefit from the experience of > others. I know I certainly do! :-D #M is the original producer of the Famous and not-been-beaten-yet Tamiya tape. Ask your local paint supplies store for it (its golden-yellow low tack paper tape, by far not as crumpy as the tape the painters normally use) It does about US$ 6.- for a roll (about 2cm wide) HTH Cheers, Dennis |
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