Liquid Masking tape

[tramcar trev]

I wanted to mask the lenses of my street lights to spray them with etch primer and topcoat so I tried the Humbrol stuff and I was not impressed.....

Ok turn to Latex moulding rubber, its cheap and it does work very well. It air dries and you can trim it in situ i.e. after application when it is dry with a scalpel... So say you want to paint a raised detail, brush this stuff on then cut away what you want painted with a sharp scalpel and paint. When the paint is dry enough to handle peel off the Latex... presto. Has the distinct advantage that the paint does not "wick" under the edge of the Latex and is easier to apply on compound curved surfaces than tape. I'm using pure unthickened latex 2 thin coats and I also embed a thread of cotton which is a "ripp cord" to get the latex off easily...

I spose I'm telling Y'all this and everyone has been doing this since latex became available. Oh well cest la vie...
Edited to say this; This will be brilliant when I paint my next batch of plastic figures......

 

[gregh]

Good tip Trev. Now where do yo get it?? (the latex I mean)

 

[tramcar trev]

I got mine from Aldax, they dont have a listing for #70 on ebay but the #72 slightly thicker is here: http://www.ebay.com.au/sch/i.html?_...1313&_nkw=Latex+#72&_sacat=See-All-Categories
Or contact Aldax directly. I would imaging that you could also get it from some decent craft shops, though Bunnings dont seem to carry it....

 

[trammayo]

Yes I used the latex moulding stuff to protect the decals on a bike fairing re-spray. The idea came from seeing watercolour artists use it (well, something similar) to protect something whilst adding a wash or two.

But using it on a smaller stuff is a good idea Trev.

 

[tramcar trev]

true..... If you dont protect it from light it cures and gives you a pot of solid condom....

 

[Cyclone]

Good tip thanks.