Paint on Masks (i.e. masking fluid)

[RuneBrush]

Hoping that tonight and over the weekend (tomorrow evening is Six Nations so no time ) I'm going to do a bit more airbrushing and I need to mask some areas off on the project I'm currently doing. I've got masking tape (tamiya stuff, so super low tack), but there's some fiddly curves and it would be a lot easier to just use paint on mask.

Now I have a pot of Windsor & Newton Art Masking Fluid and a pot of Humbrol Maskol... Has anybody used either of these products on a model before? Any tips? Are they likely to mess up the airbrushing I've already done? My mind keeps floating back to when I (stupidly) used blue Blutak to mask an area off and the grease stained what I'd already done - yes I learned my lesson that I should only use white Blutak

 

[Einion]

Other than Parafilm-M the W&N stuff is my primary masking material. I wouldn't recommend you try applying it with a brush... unless you happen to have any strong ammonia around to clean it afterwards. I find it easiest to apply with my sculpting tools, whatever size or shape seems to suit the area I'm masking - the plastic and wooden ones mostly, I tend not to use the steel ones to help prevent cack-handed scratching of existing paintwork.

My main tip is about refining the masked edge, something I've never read but I'm sure other people do as it seems very obvious. When you're applying it it's easy to blob it slightly over the lip of something you're masking but don't panic, just wait for it to go clear (can speed this up with a hairdryer) and then gently push the latex back from the line with something like a cocktail stick. Presumably the same technique can be used with any similar product.

Are they likely to mess up the airbrushing I've already done?

Unlikely but possible. One time the W&N stuff peeled off the paint underneath in huge flakes when I was removing it. Not sure why and as far as I can remember I've never had it happen again so IME it's not common, but like most things it's best to test first to avoid problems.

Maskol is supposedly about the safest stuff you can use, but I'm not sure if the formula has been changed since I last read about it.

FWIW I've found that it isn't an issue how long you leave Art Masking Fluid on for - a couple of hours through to more than a month makes no difference to how well it'll peel off the surface, although it is slightly tougher and more resilient after a day or two.

Einion

 

[RuneBrush]

Thanks for that info - very helpful and has given me the confidence boost to give it a go. Especially nice to know that you can leave it on for as long as you want, I had visions of having to rush through and get it all done and the mask off in a day

I've just done a test piece and out of curiosity used both the W&N and Maskol - the W&N seems hands above the maskol which just seems really thin and watery and infact looks like a complete sod to try and remove... Hmm, it's a bit late to start airbrushing

 

[Einion]

Thanks for that info - very helpful and has given me the confidence boost to give it a go. Especially nice to know that you can leave it on for as long as you want, I had visions of having to rush through and get it all done and the mask off in a day

I've left it on for long periods without problems, but I'm not using the same paint as you. Hobby 'acrylics' are usually vinyl paints in actuality, while I'm generally using true acrylic paint; while the chemistries are very similar it would be best to test to make sure using whatever paints you're working with.

I've just done a test piece and out of curiosity used both the W&N and Maskol - the W&N seems hands above the maskol which just seems really thin and watery and infact looks like a complete sod to try and remove...

A thin mask can be a good thing, as it'll help minimise or avoid getting a slight ridge at the masked edge. But if you really want to I presume you can thicken it up a bit by leaving the cap off and letting it dry out a little.

Einion

 

[Dragonsreach]

I wouldn't recommend you try applying it with a brush... unless you happen to have any strong ammonia around to clean it afterwards. Einion

Use a reasonable brush wiped in soap. Stops the Latex sticking to the bristles and still allows afair amount of control around fiddley areas.
Rine out brush regularly and re-apply soap, works out nicely.

 

[Einion]

Use a reasonable brush wiped in soap. Stops the Latex sticking to the bristles and still allows afair amount of control around fiddley areas.

I've tried that, didn't work a damn (It's in the instructions.)

My main problem is if it sticks a bit it sticks and then you're kind of snookered unless you have an appropriate solvent. Using harder tools just seems like less hassle in the long run, since it'll peel off them easily - which gives you a new 'rubber' to help remove any tricky bits of the latex clinging stubbornly to recesses.

Einion

 

[RuneBrush]

Well the test piece seemed to go ok. To my eyes (and twenty to eleven at night with light from my dining room energy bulb) the maskol has left a slight 'damp mark' where it was painted on, however it did peel off really easily once something else rubbery had caught it. I'll look at it tomorrow in a better light and see if there's any marks, but a combination of both could be a nice addition to the tool box. I do need to be a bit more forceful and cut into the corner a bit tighter.

Thanks both for your knowledge and advice