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    • #14651

      I had a hard time trying to make the white lines without damaging the blue painting job, my masking needs experience and improvements so I had to do corrections that did not come out as expected

    • #14652

    • #14653

    • #14656
      Avatar photoKen

        Cool looking car Luis. Practice makes perfect. Nobody was born with these skills. We learn from our mistakes. It took me a long time to figure out why I was getting dust on some cars, but not others. :wacko:

        What does the chassis look like? What brand of body?

      • #14660

        Hello Ken, Thank You for your comments, it is a Thunderslot white kit, it brings a lot of parts for one to decide the type of livery of your preference.

         

      • #14676

        Very nice job, Luis. I can see some beautiful detailing.

        In terms of the experience you were referring to, this example is not one of the easier masking jobs to tackle.

        I can’t tell from the photos whether you have done so already, but just in case, do spray the white colour first (perhaps over a Tamiya white primer that goes on finer than the grey). The blue colour will always cover it well.

        In terms of the masking, these symmetric patterns are very difficult to replicate from left to right. I’m not an expert, but I’ve had some success with this approach; you may want to try it on your next finishing job. Buy a couple of widths of Tamiya masking tape, thin and flexible. Before doing any painting, stick the tape over the areas – on one side of the body, that you want to stay the light colour (white in this case). Take a pencil, pen, or marker and draw as smooth an outline of the perimeter shapes you want to achieve. (Doesn’t need to be perfect at this stage.) Find a piece of Lexan (clear plastic sheet) from a container of some sort. Remove the strips of masking tape that you have scribed from one side of the body. Stick those scribed strips of tape spread out onto the Lexan sheet. On the back of the Lexan sheet, stick new strips of tape to coincide with the ones on the front.

        Remember, your original scribing did not have to be perfect; now the next step does have to be perfect!  Find a large sharp pair of tailor’s scissors (made in Germany in the 1950’s !) from your mother’s sewing room!  Carefully cut a smooth line (through the three layers) along the scribe marks you made while the tape was on the car body. You now have sections of flexible masking tape back-to-back in symmetric mirror images. Save these until later.

        You can now start the first stage of painting. Prepare the body with sanding and washes as you see fit. Apply your choice of primer, fine grade white in this case. Do any follow-up smoothing and further preparation; a second coat of primer may be needed. After curing, apply your light colour finish coat (white in this case). Let cure fully then do any follow-up smoothing.

        Now, carefully peal the tape pieces from both sides of the Lexan and place them at the corresponding positions on the car body. Make sure they are stretched properly and that the edges are smooth and tightly adhered to the body. You are ready to start the spray of the second colour coat (blue in this case) over the taped pattern and the rest of the body. Do the appropriate spray steps. Let the final coat cure partly but not to a full hard shell. Now, stop and pray!  Carefully remove the tape masks after the final paint is dry to the touch, but still has a bit of flex.

        Hope this works a bit for you; I’m no expert. You may be able to improve on the method.

        Felix.

         

      • #14683

        Thank You Felix for your advise I will try it on my next two color project

      • #14693

        Mirroring the pattern on 2 sides of lexan is a great idea Felix! I’ll add that one to my knowledge base if I ever need to do one of these paint schemes.

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