Jump to content

Masking my PL 1/350 Enterprise


Recommended Posts

I am gettin ready to paint my big Enterprise. With all the small windows does anyone have any ideas of a good way to mask them off. I've thought about using tamiya tape, but i thought that if you cut circles that small, they could fall out easily. I also thought of using blue-tak in small dots.

Any suggestions, tips, or ideas?

jason

Link to post
Share on other sites

Well, the Tamiya tape holds up well enough that if you can cut it cleanly (i.e. use a fresh blade) then it shouldn't fall out and will hold up long enough. Liquid masks are available at RC aircraft and car shops and two brands I can think of are Bob Dively's and Parma. But, my experience with the liquid masks is they don't tend to work all that well. You have to layer them on thick (at least two coats) and they sometimes don't pull up cleanly, resulting in bad looking windows. Don't apply them over an already painted surface either or you might end up pulling up the paint.

I've also had pretty good results with the Cutting Edge Black Magic paint masks when I've cut my own masks with excess material. That stuff can stay on for months and pulls off nice and cleanly.

BTW, for painting one of the PL mosters, I highly recommend the Aztec Dummy paint masks from CultTVman.com or Federationmodels.com as you can't get a better looking paintjob any easier. They have them for the refit and the NX-01 in 1/350 as well as a set for the upcoming NX-01 in 1/1000 scale from PL.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Why not use White glue for the small windows and not use the kit's clear parts at all? The white glue will dry clear and you won't have to worry about masking since you will apply it after you are done with the model. Any excess can be wiped out with a moist Qtip.

Jose

Link to post
Share on other sites
Why not use White glue for the small windows and not use the kit's clear parts at all? The white glue will dry clear and you won't have to worry about masking since you will apply it after you are done with the model. Any excess can be wiped out with a moist Qtip.

Jose

I thought about that after i glued most of the windows in place. I guess i could pop them out and try it.

jason

Link to post
Share on other sites

Operation: Pop Tiny Windows Out went well. I got most of the windows out. The rest I will have to drill out, being careful not to melt the plastic.

Thanks for the help

jason

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...

There is a product called 'Krystal Klear' that works better than white glue. I use it on spacecraft and airliner models. It dries even more clear than white glue (if that makes any sense :thumbsup: )

Link to post
Share on other sites

Ok just an update. I used Testors Window Clear gule for the windows. It worked good. I am kinda getting burnned out on this project. I think it is a combination of working with a subject matter i am not a big fan of, trying to make it look as good as possible since it will be a gift for my dad, and trying to get it finished by this weekend. All that along with getting fustrated as i go, esp. while painting it and final assembly. oh well, i'll live. I think i may go back to airplanes for awhile.

jason

Link to post
Share on other sites

Jason:

Iam also an airplane guy but I do have this kit in the stash. What exactly has been your biggest frustration building this kit? Feel free to share with me any suggestions that you may have.

One of the concerns that I have is that several people recommend painting the model before bulding it. I do not think that is such a great idea since there may be seams to fix. Any comments?

Regards,

Jose

Link to post
Share on other sites

Jose,

I would not paint it before assemby. There are some sizable gaps that need to be filled before painting. mainly the gaps are on the bottom section. The largest being around where the engine pylons come out of the hull. There are a few other smaller gaps needing to be filled around the saucer area, but these are easy fixes.

I can't really say where my fustration stems from. I think it comes from being an aircraft fan mainly. The time restraint is fustrating too. I wanted to get it done by father's day, but I couldn't make it home then so I was blessed with another week to work on it. I usually work on kits at a pretty slow pace doing things as i feel comfortable and not rushing anything.

I know I am my own worst critic when it comes to my models. To the untrained eye, it would probably look ok. But I look at it and think of stuff I should have done different or better.

BTW, on a assembly note: Attach the neck section to the saucer section, then once that dries attach it to the seconday hull. I made the mistake of attaching the neck to the secondary hull first. It made glueing the saucer way harder than it had to be.

if anyone has any other questions about it i will be glad to try and help.

jason

Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...