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Building Tips and technical articles. => Paint and finishing => Topic started by: Dennis Toth on February 02, 2023, 01:25:26 PM
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What tape works well to mask off areas with basecoat? Since basecoat doesn't have much strength do you need to apply a clear coat to the bottom color before masking off the next color or just mask like we did with dope?
Best, DennisT
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I do a lot of curves and have had success using the 1/4" 3M blue vinyl tape with only about 1/16" if it actually contacting the surface. The rest tapes to paper covering the rest of the plane. It is like painter's edge masking tape that is 4" wide but only has sticky on about 1/2". Careful though, the 3M will bond if you leave it on too long. The problem with the easy lift tapes I have tried is that they don't stay stuck 100% and I get bleed points if I put the 1st coat on too thick or spray the wrong direction, both of which I do repeatedly. Most lifting problems I have had came with layers that had a different base. Eg, Nitrate to Acrylic. If you stick with the same base it tends to bond better. Another of my finishing crimes was not thoroughly cleaning the surface after sanding the last filler coat. Dust does not make for a great bond.
Ken
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I switched over to FBS tape a few years ago. i spend a good portion of my days taping (i paint custom motorcycles and cars). the FBS tapes leave a better edge and are more user friendly than 3M tapes. i have some jobs that takes a few weeks to paint and haven't had any issues with tape residue like i have with 3M. And they are better about lifting in the corners. All plastic style tapes have a memory to them but FBS tapes do do better in that department. If i need to have a tight curve on the project for a bit i will put a small piece of masking tape on the corner just to make sure it stays put until i paint that area.