Hi guys:

Argggghhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Masking canopies just a nightmare for me.
Please can somebody tell me what is the best product for this. I use Tamiya Masking Tape or Scotch Magic Tape, but they leave the clear parts with sticked glue that it´s dificult to remove (I use WD40). Does exist a simple method for this task ? I hate it.

Hi Csch, I've got a set of fastframes for the canopy of my Tamiya Spitfire. I've never used them before but I've been told they are very good. I was also told that the pieces between the frames on the sheet are ideal for masking the canopy as well as they are already pre cut to fit the canopy and don't leave any residue. It gives two options for painting the canopy.
Martin

I use a liquid mask. Its great because I smear it all over the canopy and then I get a new #11 blade and cut out the frame that will get painted. It's very crisp and easy to do.
You could try rubber cement too.


When I get goo on the canopy I usually get a sharp toothpick and sloooowly scape it away.

This is what I use:






http://www.dxmarket.com/micromark/products/80923.html

Hi brandydoguk:
I know about fastframes but the problem is that here you don´t find them.

Thanks.

Hi slodder:

What liquid mask you use ? Here the only ones available are the Humbrol (Maskol) and another one similar, but I think they´re not easy to cut and obtain a sharp edge. Do you know if they can work ?

Thanks M1garand, this product isn´t available in my country.

Hi CSCH

I don't seem to get residue problems with Tamiya tape - maybe I'm lucky... For "filling in" and larger areas, I've started using latex liquid rubber, which leaves no residue and is much cheaper than Maskol. I got an enormous bottle - enough to last several modelling lifetimes - for only £8... and you can use it for mould-making as well.

All the best

Rowan

AS the token Parafilm M enthusiast, here's a reprint of a pro-Parafilm M manifesto I wrote up last year. HTH



Parafilm M -- It's not just for expert modelers anymore . . . and it never was!




Parafilm M is one of those modeling devices or substances that has some kind of mystical reputation that keeps people from appraoching it out of fear or awe.


Lighten up folks! It's laboratory Saran Wrap for test tubes, and it takes about two miniutes to learn the basics of using the stuff to mask canopies.

Parafilm is a stretchy, waxy, impermeable film that becomes very clingy when stretched in a single direction. That's what makes it perfect to seal up test tubes of concoctions and to mask surfaces for painting. It doesn't react with enamels or acrylics -- I have no personal experience with its compatibility with lacquers such as Floquil, but Testors Glosscote and Dullcote are lacquers and don't react with it either.

The beauty of Parafilm is that there is no real difference between using it or Scotch tape to mask a canopy. To activate the material, you cut a piece off the roll -- it comes on a wax-paper backing that removes easily -- grasp opposing edges and stretch about twice or three times its length in one direction. This is important -- ONE DIRECTION ONLY -- so you don't tear holes in the film . Holding the opposing edges firmly means that the film will not narrow appreciably during the stretch.

Because this stuff seems to stretch forever, you really need to cut off just what you can handle in a coordinated manner. I've found that a two-to-three inch long section is quite adequate to cover something like a 1/48 B-25 nose glazing with a fair bit of excess film.

You can cut the resulting length of film to size for whatever you're masking. Center the piece over the item to be masked and gently pull it down over the item. You can then press the Parafilm onto the surface and into the lines of the molded framing. If you need to use multiple pieces of Parafilm, don't worry -- the material adheres very well to itself.

Burnishing Parafilm often causes damage. The best technique to ensure the material is fitted to every nook and cranny is to use the end of a toothpick as a roller, rolling it across the film and into frame lines and seams.

Trimming Parafilm takes a little care, since it is a little more rubbery than Scotch transparent tape, but all you need is a FRESH No. 11 X-Acto blade.

Cut along the framing and panel areas to be painted, and make sure that cuts meet at all corners. After you're done, start by lifting up a section of masked framing with the tip of your knife. If you lift part of the masking over a clear panel, don't panic. Just press the material back down, recut the area and peel the frame off again.

After you finish uncovering the framing, go back and press over the masked surfaces as a precaution. If you manage to wear a hole in any part of the mask, use white glue to cover the hole.

After you've finished painting and are ready to remove the Parafilm, things get even better. The mask actually hardens a bit from the accumulated paint, so when you lift up a corner of the mask and start peeling, the Parafilm removes smoothly and with none of the residue you get from Scotch tape.

Some people say that masking something like a Ju 88 or He 111 canopy with Parafilm is a chore and a half. Think about it -- it's a chore and 2/3rds with something as unflexible as transparent tape, and you get another 1/3rd of a chore when you have to clean adhesive residue off your glazing.

So, pay some high school or college student to fift a few feet of Parafilm M from the lab -- just kidding!!!! Go to a lab supply store or check your favorite real or virtual hobby emporium. A roll lasts forever . . . . unless you're doing a full collection of Ju 88's in 1/48 scale. Then it may last only several years.

Go forth and mask!!!!

Here is a trick I used years ago, you may want to try it.

Paint scotch tape or decal paper the color of the frames. Cut the tape into strips and stick on the canopy as frames, instead of masking. Kind of a "poor mans" Fast Frames.

I hand paint them, then go back with some thinner and a toothpick, and clean up the paint on the windows. And to get rid of the dirty look on the windows because of the thinner and paint, I put Model Wax on it and polish it. Hasn't failed me yet.

~Chip

Fast frames and EZ masks, etc are all readily available from Squadron and Great Models. Their is no substitute for them, and many of them are very inexpensive. If this isn't an option, then you can try this:

Rather than doing the whole canopy at one time, mask off one "section" at a time and hand paint. This method works very well but requires a lot of patience.

I used to use liquid mask but rarely do so anymore, although it is much preferrable to hand painting freehand.

What ever method you use, dip your canopies in Future or Kleer first, then let dry for a minimum of 24 hours. This will help with your residue issues and really brightens the canopies up.

HTH,

Scott

Thanks modelcitizen62. The problem is that here doesn´t exist the Parafilm, maybe with another comercial name. I will check. What is the principal use of this thing in the house or industry? Maybe knowing that I can ask for it.

Well, I like this one and sounds realy easy. I will try it tonight. Tahnk you. :-) :-) :-)

Thanks Chip250.

Thank you Didiumus

I use liquid latex to mask. Paint it on, let it dry, and cut out the frames. Works like a charm, and leaves no residue. If you want to use tape, but hate the sticky gunk left behind, invest in some orange oil cleaner. This stuff will take of the adhesive without fogging your canopy.

Csch,

It's a laboratory material for covering test tubes and beakers, like a form of kitchen plastic wrap except stretchier and clingier. If you know someone who works in a college or hospital lab, they may be able to get some for you.

Hope that helps.

Hi!, I have tried clear decal sheets available from
http://www.bare-metal.com/synair.html
or
http://www.dxmarket.com/micromark/dir/26.html

I paint the the decal sheet , ( colors that go with the canopy frames )
then paint it with a flat or gloss clear or even Future, let it dry and then
proceed like you were applying decals.

It works great.
:-)

I use ordinary masking tapes only.

Try this technique:

After doing the painting and some of the sticky glue still remains, use a cotton, dip it onto water and clean the part.

Thank you all for the help. In your responses there are a lot of tips that will help me. I´ll try some of them.
This comunity is realy great. :-) :-) :-)
Yesterday night, thinking in what to do after having read all the posts again, something came to my mind and I did this (I´m working in a Ju 87 B2, wich canopie is complicated):
I placed thin strips (1 mm) of Tamiya Tape besides the frames and then covered the space
between the strips of tape with Maskol (Humbrol), when dried I airbrushed the canopie. This morning I pulled out the mask (strips of tape and Maskol) and
:-) IT WORKED FINE :-) Hurray !!!!! I made it. I obtain straits and neat frames.
I didn´t have problems with the residue of the tape because the strips where very thin and the Maskol doesn´t leave residues. The thing is that it takes some time and patience.
This idea was a mix of all the tips you people posted. Thanks a lot. Maybe some of you will want to try it. If so tell me how it goes.

I took a pair of pics that I think will describe better the method I used

Hi csch!

That's a fine looking Ju87! :-) Beautiful job!!

Glad the canopy trick worked. I don't think there's a really quick way of masking complicated frames. Buying a ready made set of masks or frames is probably the quickest but, one way or another, you still need patience! :-)

Nice one! All the best

Rowan

Ladies and Gentlemen,

One last thought on the masking is BARE METAL FOIL (Oh no another way to do this!) Either I read it in a book OR one of you all told me about this, but I have never looked back at anythig else (The paint masks are nice, but I am cheap!). At any rate, it seems to do the job for me with little mess and fuss.

Tracy

Hi Tracy

Guess I must be cheap too! :-) I never buy the masks either... of course if they're included in the kit (like Eduard models or the A.M. B25s) it's a different matter!!! :-)

All the best

Rowan