Masking

[Guest]

I did my first camo masking in February 2013 on a £2.99 "Clip Together No Glue Needed 8 years and Up" 1/72 Mustang. What a mess! Never again. The White Tack stuck fiercely to the tape, and it took ages.

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So I have been experimenting. This tutorial is for beginners (as I still am). It describes two similar ways (Methods 1 and 2) to mask the wings of a plane which does not use Tack, and which provide masks which are very accurate as to shape, size and position. However, it does require a scanner or a camera, a simple image editing program and a printer . These two methods produces a fairly hard, sharp, transition between the two camo colours which might be suitable for a scale of 1/72 and a small model such as a Spitfire (subject to personal taste).

Using the same approach (Method 3) but with White Tack (but not messy), it also shows the use of a mask system which will produce a more fuzzy transition between the colours which many modellers think is more authentic for a big subject in 1/72 (like the Lancaster Bomber) or in a bigger scale.

The objective in all three methods is to mask a wing and the horizontal and vertical stabilisers (which are flat surfaces) to allow two camo colours (here, Dark Earth first, then Dark Green). The methods are not practicable for the fuselage because it has a more complex curved surface. There, the masks, it seems, must be made manually

METHOD 1

It starts with the 1/72 Spitfire model having been primed and its upper surfaces fully painted in Dark Earth. The mask will cover parts of the Dark Earth to allow the Dark Green to go on.

The first step is to scan (or photograph) and print a paper copy of the wing (left wing in this case) taken from the kit's instructions. Alternatively, and more simply, the kit maker's web site might have a PDF file of the manual which would include a digital image of the surfaces. The scale of the print must be adjusted to make it exactly the same size as the model wing.

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METHOD 2

This uses the same cut-and-peel method on the right wing of a 1/72 Spitfire, but the three green areas are positioned with great accuracy as to each other (a feature of Method 1), but also in relation to the wing itself.

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METHOD 3

This method involves making a shape in paper card (rather than ordinary paper) of each masked area using part of Method 1. These are fixed on the wing with small pieces of White Tack to keep them above the wing surface and therefore to provide a fuzzy margin between the two colours.

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[Ian M]

A very good way of doing it. All the Tamiya sets I have built have had a drawing of the aircraft camouflage. I take a few copies of them. (watch out that the scanner does not reduce them, some do!!).

I then either cut them up and use that as masks or I de-stick the masking tape and place that down on the drawing and cut the mask directly from the tape.

A good who to that Steve.

Ian M

[flyjoe180]

Thanks for that tutorial Steve, very interesting and handy.

[Guest]

I like it. I'd never thought of doing it that way. I agree that the "tape on blu-tak" is long winded & makes a right mess. I'll be giving this a go next time. Thanks.

[Guest]

I like it. I'd never thought of doing it that way. I agree that the "tape on blu-tak" is long winded & makes a right mess. I'll be giving this a go next time. Thanks.

Thinking of it, my pic of the tape-and-whitetack, horrible though it is, is quite interesting visually and could be exhibited in Tate Modern!

[Guest]

I like it. I'd never thought of doing it that way. I agree that the "tape on blu-tak" is long winded & makes a right mess. I'll be giving this a go next time. Thanks.

I have just seen a post (by Dave W I think) on his current build and he first masked by laying on pre-cut tape and then adding sausages of tack on and at its edge. Less messy.