Kabuki Tape versus Plastic Masks

[Jboldt007]

i'm pretty new to modelling aircraft - i love all the masks one can get now - not just canopies but for insignias, camo  and so on. I've just tried some Montex crosses for my G6 and despite trying to burnish the edges, paint got under the edges and it was triage time. This isn't the first time with plastic masks. I was using Vallejo Air and spraying as low as i could, albeit outside in 5 degree (Celsius) weather. So should have been fine. I went back and did repairs with Kabuki tape and no issues. I love Kabuki tape for this reason and because it's easy to reposition and doesn't pull up paint (usually). Just wondering if there's a technique for the plastic masks - they looked burnished to me but clearly there was room for the paint to get under. Thanks for any comments. 

[Greif8]

On 12/12/2022 at 5:12 AM, Jboldt007 said:

i'm pretty new to modelling aircraft - i love all the masks one can get now - not just canopies but for insignias, camo  and so on. I've just tried some Montex crosses for my G6 and despite trying to burnish the edges, paint got under the edges and it was triage time. This isn't the first time with plastic masks. I was using Vallejo Air and spraying as low as i could, albeit outside in 5 degree (Celsius) weather. So should have been fine. I went back and did repairs with Kabuki tape and no issues. I love Kabuki tape for this reason and because it's easy to reposition and doesn't pull up paint (usually). Just wondering if there's a technique for the plastic masks - they looked burnished to me but clearly there was room for the paint to get under. Thanks for any comments. 

 

I was never able to get consistently good results using Montex type masks had the habit of slightly pulling up at the edge as you describe above, or the shrank in storage making them unusable.  I use kabuki tape type masks exclusively now.

 

Ernest

[Woody V]

Here's my two cents.

 

Either the paint you've masked over is too rough or the paint you're spraying is too thin, or a combination of the two.

 

I've had the same shrinking problem with Montex masks, but it's the nature of the masking material, not Montex's fault. I cut my own masks using the same Oramask 810 but I don't cut them until I'm ready to use them. I use lacquer paint, just stick the mask on with finger pressure and never had a problem with the paint bleeding under the mask. Among the many, many advantages of lacquer is that successive coats melt into the underlying coats, whereas water based paints do not.

[KUROK]

I have not used the Montex masks I own yet...but I see the material has shifted as Woody describes.

One question...you said you were spraying in very cold conditions.  Could that have caused issues with adhesion and/or shrinkage?  Any movement of the mask would have or could have caused this issue.

[Jboldt007]

Thanks for comments. yeah the cold could have delayed drying time. i also could have sprayed down a gloss coat - it strikes me now that a smoother surface might have helped. I can see the advantage of lacquer - drying nearly instantly. Any time wet paint sits on a mask there is risk i presume. i must admit masks are cool but the challenges include not just this but if there are colour contrasts and several coats are needed (like white crosses) there is risk of the paint thickness or ridge at the edge showing- with acrylics anyway. of course one can do the 'white' first and then the darker colours. And i've read on the forum ways to sand down the finish to eliminate or reduce the apparent thickness difference. Which works. Anway that's a digression. I'm more comfortable right now with the kabuki tape I guess ....

 

in the end by coincidence i had a. set of HGW Bf-109 G6 water transfer decals which i used instead after fixing the sprayed stencil ones. I'm on the fence with water transfer decals - they look awesome (they truly look painted on) and are easy to apply - but the technology is iffy - i've had sheets (like positive rivets) where half the decals just fell apart - like they have a shelf life. Plus one has to remember to remove all the carrier sheets which aren't easy to spot after drying - until you paint over them - D'OH! anyway this probably belongs on another thread...

 

 

[PlamoSnep]

I like to spray clear gloss of a different type of paint other than the top coat over paint masks so that if any paint does bleed under the mask it can be removed or painted over with the same clear gloss.