stunthanger.com
Building Tips and technical articles. => Paint and finishing => Topic started by: Harold Brewer on August 17, 2017, 11:39:38 AM
-
I am getting tired of cutting/slicing masking tape when I need a narrow width. Does anyone know of a source for various widths of tape which provide good adhesion and a nice sharp edge?
Brew
H^^
-
Harold,
Your local auto body supply store will carry all the 3M "Fine Line" plastic tapes they use in the industry.
I use much of the .25" green tape for straight lines and some corners. I use the blue tape for corners. I use the .125" in the blue. Makes a tight corner. Not easy to mask the .125" tape but if careful it can be done and done well.
I have a paint Build on the 007 Flite Streak over at CFC Graphics, pictures and all using both tapes.
I wouldn't recommend anything I don't use myself.
I'm guessing you can Google for these products and find them on line.
Here's the proof of the pudding, my Skyfall 007 Flite Streak. Both those tapes were used and, as you can see, they leave a great edge!
Plastic tape is all I use except if I cut a mask. Masking material leaves the same kind of edge. Perfect.
Good luck.
Charles
-
3M Fine line
Best,
Tom
-
Yep, 3M fine line or equivalent. There are a couple of off brands that work fine. My local body shop carries some stuff called Superfine. Looks like an orange version of 3M fine line. Widths from 1/16" to 1/2"
-
Signwriters (such as myself) use a fine lining tape for straight edges which is easy to use give a nice crisp edge and you can tear it if needed (Not that I'm suggesting anyone could be so rough) Comes in different widths too. I currently use one which is 1/4" wide. Can also be stretched around curves if needed.
Not sure who's the best supplier in the States though - try looking up a supplier of One Shot signwriting paints and see what they have.
Paul
-
I went to my local O'Reillys and picked to a 1/8" and 1/4" of the blue fineline tape; very pricey. I'll be tryint it in a few days. I have tried other brands of vinyl tape and had problems getting a sharp edge. In particular, if I am spraying lemon yellow or white, and have to apply several coats. When removing the tape, the paint does not stick to it, and leaves large aread that need to be scrapped off (credit card?), resulting in a very jagged edge. Any thoughts?
-
One old trick with tape that bleeds is to spray the same colour as the background first; so if you are spraying a white line on a red panel spray a coat of red first. This bleeds under and when you spray the white you get a nice sharp edge.
Cheers
P
-
I went to my local O'Reillys and picked to a 1/8" and 1/4" of the blue fineline tape; very pricey. I'll be tryint it in a few days. I have tried other brands of vinyl tape and had problems getting a sharp edge. In particular, if I am spraying lemon yellow or white, and have to apply several coats. When removing the tape, the paint does not stick to it, and leaves large aread that need to be scrapped off (credit card?), resulting in a very jagged edge. Any thoughts?
Harold,
In this case I've had good luck running a very fine Scotchbrite pad, steel wool, or 600 grit sand paper along the tape before pulling it up. Just be careful not to get in a hurry and scratch the painted surface. I draw the pad away from the painted area and this tends to "cut" the paint along the tape line. The paint tends to flake off pretty easily but some minor cleanup is usually required.
Paul
-
This is what I use for plastic models when I spray. Works great. You get different widths in MM
https://www.tamiyausa.com/articles/feature.php?article-id=222#.WZ4dJiVOnqA
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk