Masking tape tore off my paint

mjs101

New member
I've been working on the hardline British desert camouflage

View attachment 25016

I used masking tape (the blue kind) to protect the pale sand portions of the tank, but when I removed the masking tape, it torn away the paint and primer exposing raw resin. Not everywhere, but little swatches.

I primed by spraying Vallejo Game white primer (specifically primer, not white) thinned 2:1:1 primer:water:alcohol + tiny amount of Windex. I sprayed this through an airbrush.

I painted the light color using Vallejo Air sand

I used blue painter's masking tape (3M Scotch-blue painters tape for miltisurfaces). I tried not to press too hard but in some places I did need to press hard to protect some surface details. I am using a wavy pinking shears to cut a really nice edge on the tape, and I really happy with the resulting appearance, except for the damage.

So...am I using too aggressive a tape for acrylic paints or should I use a spray-based primer?
 

Bloodhowl

New member
Just out of curiosity, how long did you let the previous layers dry before masking it?

If you had sufficient drying time, try sticking the tape to your forehead before applying it to he model. The oil from your skin will reduce the tackiness of the tape enough so that it should not pull up previous layers, but still be sticky enough to adhere.
 

mjs101

New member
Just out of curiosity, how long did you let the previous layers dry before masking it?

If you had sufficient drying time, try sticking the tape to your forehead before applying it to he model. The oil from your skin will reduce the tackiness of the tape enough so that it should not pull up previous layers, but still be sticky enough to adhere.

I don't recall how long the primer had to dry, but the paint layer on top had at least over night.

I can see the logic of the forehead trick, and I'll give it a try, but I do have mental image of me wrapped up like a blue mummy.
 

Zab

Almost Perftec! Aw, crap.
You could also try silly putty instead, press it into place with a sculpting tool and it's fairly reusable :)
 

mjs101

New member
You could also try silly putty instead, press it into place with a sculpting tool and it's fairly reusable :)

Hard to cut putty with a pinking shears. (my wife informs me that since it is not zig-zag, it is a decorative shears. Who knew, besides my wife.) Anyway, the wavy-shaped shears gets a perfect effect that I haven't been able to do free hand.

And being a silly putty mummy would be...silly.
 

Zab

Almost Perftec! Aw, crap.
Oh sure, like you guys have never wrapped silly putty around your heads o_O Tamiya masking tape then. Worth its weight in gold. For the tank, not your head.
 

Ritual

New member
You should also let your primer fully set before applying any paint. I don't know how long Vallejo Game Color primer takes, but for Vallejo Surface Primer I've been told to let it set for two days.
 

Bloodhowl

New member
You should also let your primer fully set before applying any paint. I don't know how long Vallejo Game Color primer takes, but for Vallejo Surface Primer I've been told to let it set for two days.

The Game Color primer should set at least 24 hours, but then that's my default time period. Minimum 24 hours , even for those spray primers that say good in 6 hours.
 

Dragonsreach

Super Moderator
Blue Painters tape is Decorators tape, not really suitable for protecting models.
Best is Tamiya specifically designed for us mutts.
 

RuneBrush

New member
Completely agree with DR - the proper Tamiya tape is the best stuff for us to use. I've had exactly the same happen too and pretty sure it was because there was some grease on the surface of the miniature before I primed it. Generally once I've cleaned the model, I try and only touch it whilst either wearing gloves, or whilst holding a piece of kitchen towel as finger grease can be a complete mare. For resin I also generally spray with some automobile primer (can based) before priming with my 'normal' primer.
 

airhead

Coffin Dodger / Keymaster
another trick is to use an inter-clear. Spray it with a clear varnish to give a harder surface for the tape.

Thinning for airbrush reduces the binder content as well as the pigment. This results in a paint layer that does not stick as well as straight out of the pot paint does.
Automotive guys will add a light layer of clear before taping for the next layer to prevent the tape from peeling of the previous work.

Less aggressive tape is another great idea. Tamaya modelers or electrical tape (somewhat flexible around curves) have both worked for me.
 

mjs101

New member
Thanks. Next steps are:

1) rewash models and mount on posts so I don't have to touch them
2) seal either un-thinned brush on primer or a spray primer for models
3) Use tamaya tape as it is less agressive, or weaken the bite of the tape on my forehead.

I have sixteen tanks to go, and I want them to look their best. This is a repaint of an inconsistently painted army, so I really want it to shine. (naturally, I am modelling camoflaged tanks, so not too shiny.)
 

GTTechnics

New member
Did you use VGC 72002 "white primer"? If so, I'm pretty sure it's not actually a primer at all despite the name. That could certainly cause adherence issues.
 

mjs101

New member
Did you use VGC 72002 "white primer"? If so, I'm pretty sure it's not actually a primer at all despite the name. That could certainly cause adherence issues.

Yeah, exactly that stuff. Thinned, no less.

It isn't paint. If it is not primer, what is it for?

I don't really want to use an oil-based primer. It is rather too hard to remove if I need strip these models of second or third time. (Of course, I want that adhesion if the models work out well.)
 

Dragonsreach

Super Moderator
Did you use VGC 72002 "white primer"? If so, I'm pretty sure it's not actually a primer at all despite the name. That could certainly cause adherence issues.

Yeah, exactly that stuff. Thinned, no less.

It isn't paint. If it is not primer, what is it for?

I don't really want to use an oil-based primer. It is rather too hard to remove if I need strip these models of second or third time. (Of course, I want that adhesion if the models work out well.)
It's a paint designed to replicate the effect of thin primer. Fallen into that trap myself.
Experience is a great educator, but like Karma she can be a right Bitch sometimes.
 

mjs101

New member
OK, it was definitely my thinned VGC 72002 "white primer". I'd applied pretty light coat, cut two parts paint, one part water and one part alcohol with just the least amount of windex. I used some tamaya modeling tape and it also tore off the paint. So clearly skin oil or trusting too much in something mislabeled as primer was mistake.

Well, I have thriteen freshly washed and rinsed tanks glued to dowels and sprayed with 73.600 white primer. I'll give it 24+ hours before the next coat of paint. (I chose white because I really want these tanks to be pretty bright. Camoflague be damned, I want to see the models of the table.)

Now I have to wonder whether I should strip and repaint the first nine tanks I used the misnamed white primer on.

Thanks for the advice, and I'll post a completed photo once the squadron is complete. These are my first 15mm tanks, about five years old, and my technique has improved since then.
 

airhead

Coffin Dodger / Keymaster
have you tried post-it notes for masking?
They are very suitable for the one-shot sprays you're needing.
Blow so the air does not go under the paper - spray from the paper to the tank if that makes any sense.
 
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