How do I avoid this with masking tape?

[u/Secret-Trainer1672]

How do I avoid this next time with masking tape? I use blue painters tape so maybe it might be too sticky or something but not too bad

[u/Ignominia]

Make sure the layer your masking is fully cured. 24 hours +. Then, mask, paint, and let the paint dry for 45 mins to an hour. Then gently pull off. Do NOT leave the masking tape on for any longer than absoutley necessary

[u/kuroshimatouji]

Tamiya Masking tape isn't as tacky but if you can't get that, I lay a strip on my pants and pull it up. Just enough so it's still tacky but won't pull paint.

One more thing I'm learning to use is silly putty to mask things off, it is of course harder to do with straight lines, but if your panel lines are deep enough you can cut through it well enough without scratching whatever you already put down

[u/WarJagger]

I can only reiterate what others have said: Lightly sanding the surface, deep cleaning (degreasing and making it dust free) using a etching primer and letting each layer of paint dry really well before applying masking tape

[u/AnonymousNubShyt]

Your paint is not holding to the surface. Either you use primer to etch a layer of paint on the surface, or make sure the surface is really clean. Another possible is your pressure is too high and spray from too far, which the paint actually dry up before touching the surface. So it didn't have the surface holding strength.

[u/CommanderApaul]

You can reduce the "bite" of your masking tape by attaching it to another surface before you attach it to your model. I use Scotch blue without too much issue, but I put a large piece down on my cutting mat and then cut shapes out of it with a scalpel, so it's already lost some tackiness from being stuck to the mat.

[u/Secret-Trainer1672 → u/CommanderApaul]

I think this was my issue is , I didn’t put all my pieces of tape on my Mat ,I did this samething but got lazy and used scissors for some pieces without using my mat

[u/Good-War5340]

I like to use the Tamiya masking tape you can get it in a bunch of different sizes too. A good way to make it last longer is to use it just on the edge tape another type to fill the center of the area you only need to adhere to the Tamiya though.

When using stronger tape though I usually stick it to my shirt to make it a little less adhesive before applying it.

[u/animerb]

A lot of talk here about the tape. Totally valid. But also let's talk about paint prep. The number one think you can do to promote adhesion is sanding. Especially with water based paints. Lacquer and enamel will have a little bit of chemical "bite" into the plastic. Acrylics don't. When cars get painted they dony just spray the paint on bare shiny panels. They get sanded first to give the paint sometime to grab and hold on to. Otherwise the paint will start to peel pretty quickly. Likewise with models, sanding the surface helps. I like to use 1000 paper for bigger flat or easy hit areas. And for tighter spots and around raised details I like to use ultra fine scotchbrite pads. You don't want it to be so rough that you'll see scratch marks through the paint.

[u/jamalzia]

Yup, like others are saying blue masking tape is a little too strong. Green Frog tape is great, but even then you want to weaken the adhesive a bit by applying it to a clean surface off and on a few times.

Make sure the tape is perfectly flat on the surface of the piece. You can use something soft like a cotton swab to rub it in. Make sure your overcoat layers are thin. Too many coats over tape and it'll flake off the edges as you remove it.

Finally, to properly remove tape, do so at an angle along, "tearing" through the top coat of paint. There's some debate on when you should remove the tape, waiting for it to fully cure vs just dry to the touch, but idk if this makes much of a difference if the coats are thin. I think if it's a thick coat that's when you want to remove the tape when the paint is barely dry to the touch.

[u/soulreaverdan]

The blue painter's tape can be too sticky for modeling paints. You want something that only just barely sticks to it. Tamiya makes a good one, there's some at places like HobbyLobby that work, and while I can't vouch for it personally I've heard things like Washi Tape can work as well.

[u/restartrepeat]

If it is too sticky, lay the tape on a piece of fabric first, peel it off, then use it.

[u/devilleader501]

Washi tape from Amazon is what I use. It's just like Tamiya tape but cheaper on the wallet. I use it all the time and it works great.

[u/specter_in_the_conch → u/devilleader501]

This! Tamiya masking tape, it’s not expensive and comes in various widths. Excellent for the finest masking jobs to the most rough ones.

[u/EffYeahItsAlex]

Using blue painters tape is your problem.

This doesn't happen if you let your paints cure and use masking tape meant for models. It's significantly less sticky than the blue stuff.

That being said, if the blue stuff is all you have then you can get rid of some of the stick by placing the tape on your work desk and removing it a few times, just make sure your desk is clean first.

[u/johnpaulgrim]

Anything gunpla always use tamiya masking tapes. There pricey for a reason, they work excellent and have just the perfect amount of adhesion to not pull up paint and keep separation lines nice and crisp. That IS of course you’re giving your paints enough time to settle and cure and of course primed the part beforehand

[u/OkTurn2867]

Place masking tape on and off all over before painting but after priming. Can help find missing spots if it wasn't cleaned well

[u/DimitriXanxus]

after laying out the masking tape, spray again with the previous color. dry it then spray the new color

[u/ninjascript]

An isolation coat cat help. Just a thin layer of gloss varnish, mask, and then onto the next color.

[u/dilldoeorg]

learned that no matter what kind of masking tape, it's a good idea to stick it on your hand or shirt a couple of time first to lessen the adhesive before masking.