Masking Tape and Decals Don't Mix

[sequoiaranger]

Well, I dun larned something valuable--Don't allow masking tape to touch in-place decals!!

Masking off Japanese-style wing bars for some orange-yellow paint, I used the (supposedly) low-tack blue masking tape available at paint/hardware stores. I had already applied the main decals, and in fact the only reason I was now going to spray-paint the wing bars was that the decals I used there were too thin and exposed the paint patterns underneath (and had other problems). I admit that ideally the wing bars should have been painted BEFORE the glosscoat-decal phase, but since when do things always work out in proper sequence??

Remembering similar wing-bar spraying (Jinpu-Kai whif) that had the tape stick to and REMOVE decal work, I deliberately cut out small pieces of paper to place over the in-place decals (but larger than the decals), and allowed the tape to attach to the covering paper. When the tape had uprooted the decals on my Jinpu-Kai, I was a bit irritated (if that's what you call shouting obscenities at the top of your lungs), but they were "simple" Hinomarus that could easily be replaced from spares. My exclusive "German Pacific" markings for the Aichi 119 were extremely difficult to match up, and I had NO spares if something went wrong.

My "paper protection" scheme worked out perfectly, and I had no trouble with decals being ripped up off my model. It only took a few seconds, needed no precision, and I could do my airbrushing thing confident that my decals would still be there when the painting was done.

WHEW!!

[Allan]

Astute modelling there, Ranger. Good for you!
Allan in Canberra

[Mossie]

Good job!  I wish I'd done that on a pair of real world Spitfires I built a few years back.  The Techmod decals were particularly fragile & tore with normal handling.  When I finally got some on without tearing, I managed to let a bit of masking tape flop on them.  I wasn't too worried, as I'd coated it with Klear/Future, but it still managed to pull it off.  They're still on the shelf, awaiting some enthusiasm.