The most DANGEROUS way to mask canopies

This is the most fragile and delicate part of your scale model On top of that it is very hard to replace and still in my previous canopy masking tutorials many people commented that the best and easiest way to mask your canopy is to directly cut the masking tape on the plastic. In this video I am going to show you why I think this is wrong I am going to show you how to do it if you really want to do it this way and then I am going to give you an alternative option for an easy and fast masking with good results and no risk for damage Before we start masking I would like to present you the sponsor of today's video.

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Now lets get back to the masking Here I have some tamiya masking tape which is wide enough to cover the part I want to mask The next task is to place the tape into position and then burnish it down using very little force so I don't crack the canopy. A q-tip is a good choice of tool for the burnishing of the wider areas. I am going to work my way from one side of the window to the other This way it will be easier to avoid air bubbles or wrinkles. and here comes one of the downsides of this method When it comes to masking complex surfaces a single piece of tape cannot conform perfectly and wrinkles or lifting is pretty much impossible to avoid. which can lead to paint bleeding underneath the tape. If you don't believe me check out any aftermarket canopy masking set. They never come with one big piece of mask for the larger and more complex areas. They are multi piece deal and usually have cutouts that you have to fill with masking liquid When you are finished watching this video, let me know in the comments below if you agree with me or disagree To burnish down the corners I will use a toothpick.

Again due to the limitations of the masking tape it is very easy to tear it while burnishing down the edges And here comes another downside. And here comes another downside.
If the frames of your canopy are not sharp and well pronounced you simply cannot use this method If the frames of your canopy are not sharp and well pronounced you simply cannot use this method which means that there is no waty that you can mask the interior of the canopy this way. Anyhow, burnishing down the edges I can already see some wrinkles despite this part is not that complex.

Before you put your hobby blade on your clear part and start cutting I suggest to lay down some Before you put your hobby blade on your clear part and start cutting I suggest to lay down some
guidelines to get a better Idea what track your blade should follow. guidelines to get a better Idea what track your blade should follow. A sharp pencil is good choice. I have seen many people using flashlights under the canopy so they can see the frames but I personally just get blinded by the light. Now let's start cutting the tape, obviously here we need a brand new blade Remember that using this technique you have only one go at getting a clean cut. You should not put too much pressure to avoid cracking the part and also too big of mark. On the other hand the pressure should be enough for the blade to go trough the tape on the first pass. Every wrong move here will result in a catastrophic failure All right, I managed to cut the tape without issues this time.

And although I am not going to use this canopy I am not going to intentionally ruin it just to prove my point. Nevertheless inflicting damage is a very real possibility So I think that this method is best avoided. Now let me show you another option that is just as easy and fast but carries no real danger with it. This is a liquid mask from Abteilung I have no affiliation with the brand but in my experience this is the best masking liquid on the market So this is my alternative to the previous method First I am going to give it a good shake as there is some sedimentation on the bottom And then I am going to decant it in this container We are also going to need a cup of water and a fine brush Since the masking liquid is a fluid capillary action will help us with the application.

All we need to do is get close enough to the edge and the fluid will do the rest of the job As you can see I have some surface tension issues As you can see I have some surface tension issues
Which might be caused by the fact that I did not clean the part with soapy water Which might be caused by the fact that I did not clean the part with soapy water or simply because the clear part is super smooth any ways with a little persistence this issue will be resolved Like with the previous technique, here we need to have prominent and sharp frames.

The masking liquid needs time to cure so this might be perceived as a disadvantage. Frequent brush cleaning with water is necessary because other ways the mask will dry on the brush and will be much harder to remove. In my experience acetone works for removing dried masking liquid fro m the brush. Now the exterior part of the canopy is masked. It took me about 10 minutes for each side. Now let's apply some paint and examine the results After the paint is laid down the problems start to become evident. Here obviously I was not able to precisely follow the frames And I assure you I did not do that on purpose.

But since there is only one shot at getting this right it will have to stay like this. Of course you can try and remove the excess paint but the mark left by the blade is there to stay. Removing the masks is pretty straight forward Lift and peel type of action for the tape side For the masking fluid I use a toothpick to get it started and then remove the rest with my finger While things look OK from distance, when you get close to the detail the issues are visible with both techniques The masking fluid fails at creating crisp edges both because of unevenness due to application and inability to cleanly cut the pain on removal. And I already outlined the disadvantages of cutting the tape directly on the canopy That's why I strongly recommend my other masking tutorials is you want the job done with precision Hope that this video has been useful for you Thanks for watching and until next time happy modeling.

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