Masks & placement (and chrome paint)

[Amoeba]

Gang,

So I've got some fairly intricate custom masks I'm working with and I'm having a devil of a time getting the placement done well.

You got any tips or tricks on ways to float vinyl mask on the lexan for placement adjustments until things are where they need to be? Thinking along the lines of water & a tiny bit of shampoo or something that I can float the vinyl on and squeegee the water out from under or something.

Second question: I'll be using some Spaz Stix ultimate mirror chrome in some sections. I should back that with black right?

 

[Candyman]

1. Placing masks is inherently difficult. I suppose you could use the Windex or soap-and-water method. But then you'd have to make damn sure that all residue is clean and dry before painting. And that could take a while. I will sometimes put marks on the outside of the body to help line up the mask. That makes it a bunch easier. It's pretty easy to design and cut the mask on flat vinyl. The trick is to get it to work on a curved body!!!

2. Mirror Chrome is awesome. Just a couple notes. Shake it well. And then shake it again. Spray light coats. And let the coats dry fully, and on their own, between coats. No fanning. No hair dryer. As it dries, the chrome flakes align better. If you try to dry it, it may come out hazy. It usually takes 3-4 coats to get a uniform chrome. The problem is that it's not easy to see until you back it. But if you take a piece of black cloth and just hold the body over it, you can essentially "back" the chrome to see if there are any light spots. Then just back the chrome with a couple thin, even coats of a water-based (ie Faskblack, Createx Black, Pactra Acryl Black or Spaz Stix backer) black paint. When it's done, it'll look amazing. I did this one in Mirror Chrome:

 

[slowngreen]

wait wait wait, theres actual reflextive chrome spray paint? every time I've bought "chrome" paint its just silver....may i ask where to buy this?

edit....found some at amain, 12 bucks for 2 oz, is that enuff to do enuff coats on a normal sized body? like 1/10th???

sorry to thread jack amoeba.

 

[NCNitro]

Spaz stix mirror chrome is amazing, it looks like real chrome. I use the airbrush version often, but I have heard the rattle can chrome is really nice too. And definitely back it with water based black.

 

[Amoeba]

Spaz stix mirror chrome is amazing, it looks like real chrome. I use the airbrush version often, but I have heard the rattle can chrome is really nice too. And definitely back it with water based black.

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Yeah, it's the rattlecan. I'll definitely back it with black and go slow with lots of very light coats to get a good coverage.

 

[savagefan04]

so tell us about these masks...

 

[Beaver]

never use Windex it has ammonia in it which is bad for plastic
i would use a plastic cleaner NOT WINDEX

 

[Amoeba]

so tell us about these masks...

Well, here's the body with the "easy" masking part done.

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss200/amoebacowboy/circuitmask.jpg?t=1235114973

The hard part will be the sides & connectors for the circuit tracings. Damned curved bodies... Grrr..

 

[savagefan04]

interesting concept. good luck with it. whats your color scheme?

 

[Scrogg]

I would have monotoned that puppy after about 5 minutes of trying to lay those masks...
Very nice, i can't wait to see the finished product.
The Rallly stripes on the C10 body in my Avatar took me 5 hours to get them straight from front to back within 1mm. I hate masking!

 

[Amoeba]

interesting concept. good luck with it. whats your color scheme?

PCB design (forest green base & chrome circuit lines) with some red splash for text & hood graphic.

I would have monotoned that puppy after about 5 minutes of trying to lay those masks...
Very nice, i can't wait to see the finished product.
The Rallly stripes on the C10 body in my Avatar took me 5 hours to get them straight from front to back within 1mm. I hate masking!

Well, this is my second attempt. The first body I did will have to be two-toned or mono'd since the masking wasn't as secure as it needed to be and there were runs that occurred under some sections

What you see there was about 4 hours worth just for the top. I'm going to take my sweet time with this one. If it comes out as envisioned it should be pretty damned pimp

 

[Lessen]

That's gonna be pretty cool I think.

 

[NCNitro]

killer concept! I can't wait to see it finished.

 

[slowngreen]

PCB design (forest green base & chrome circuit lines) with some red splash for text & hood graphic.

thats gonna be hot!!!!

 

[RC Addict]

Definitely computer-geek sheik!

 

[Rolex]

What a unique idea for a paint job. I think that's just great. If you want to do the lands in copper, like on the board, get the Spaz Stix gold, and use several coats. It's just used as a light tint, then backed by their silver, but too much gold will give you a copper look.
Here's an example of the copper, the first time I tried getting gold, and below is my first paint job with the Spaz Stix silver. It's the first time in my entire modeling life that I actually got CHROME!

The lower trim strip got too much gold. Trial and error, you'll need to experiment.

This is my first chrome attempt with Spaz Stix, and I was stunned by the perfection when I pulled the plastic wrap off.

 

[RC Addict]

Dang, shiny stuff! Looks nice, Ralph! Good luck with the project, Amoeba!

 

[slowngreen]

the bed is sick!!!! killer work rolex.

 

[Amoeba]

What a unique idea for a paint job. I think that's just great. If you want to do the lands in copper, like on the board, get the Spaz Stix gold, and use several coats. It's just used as a light tint, then backed by their silver, but too much gold will give you a copper look.

I thought about gold but decided on chrome since I had heard the same issues you found with the "coppering" effect if not done just right. Plus, the chrome matches the wheels quite nicely

 

[Amoeba]

Just to give you an idea of the side masking: http://s575.photobucket.com/albums/ss200/amoebacowboy/?action=view&current=sidemask.jpg