i just bought some ace hardware brand (blue) low tack masking tape to do a checker board pattern on the tail of my citabra . first problem its not 3/4 width , its slightly narrower so i had to peel off what i had already done with the 3m. which by the way works excellent. problem 2 low tack ! its almost no tack, i had a hard time getting it to seal down. problem 3 after running my finger-nail along every edge and overlap. the paint still bled under every edge and i do mean EVERY edge. fourtunetly i had enough time to wipe off all the paint with mineral spirts befor it had a chance to set. .....spend the extra dollar, buy the 3M. ace brand is JUNK.
airnut

I've used 3Mbrand scotch tape, with excellent results. The sharp edge on the scotch leaves just that on your project when removed. You have to remove it just as the paint dries to touch, not a moment longer.

3M knows their stuff when it comes to masking supplies. The 3M fine line brand tape is a superb product. Use it to lay out your lines then use masking tape on top of it almost to the edge to block out what you don't want painted. The fine line tape produces a razor sharp paint line with zero bleeding.

Vince

Listen to Vince - he is right on. I use 3M fine line to mask off where I am going to shoot paint - it leaves a razor sharp line like exactly like Vince says. I just sprayed a 1/3 scale with dope over koverall - you would expect bleeding with cloth but not with the 3M fine line. I did red/white/blue and did not have anything but sharp lines. Once the fine line is on, I use 3M blue paper to for all the rest of my masking - I run it down the middle of the fine line and then attach my paper to that - and again using 3M blue to seal everything. After spending hour and $$ to get to this point, there is no sense in saving a few $$ to only have to fix it.

Dan

Dan - how wide is the 3M fine line tape? Jim

The 3M folks are adhesive gods!!!!

airnut57,

I think you may have been led to believe the hardware store blue low tack tape is what people are using to paint their models. Really, its only another variety of plain masking tape.

You're looking for the blue 3M Fine Line Tape brand that is generally only carried by automotive paint shops and maybe at the occasional LHS. It comes in multiple widths and is around $6-7 a roll. Mostly I use 1/4" or else 1/8" for sharp curves. There are wider widths. You have to burnish the tape down with your fingernail to make it run proof, particularly at the tape intersections. You can tell if you got it right because the tape turns a darker color when it's burnished down. if you're worried about pulling up the paint when you take the tape off, pull it back over itself after warming it up with your monokote heat gun.

There are other brands that come in green and red. I've used both but the blue fine line tape is the right stuff for paint masking. You can use the blue low stick stuff to hold the paper masking.

3M fine line tape can be had in almost any width from 1/32" up to about a half inch. You use this tape for the parting line only. You use masking tape to cover beyond the fine line tape. It's availiable at better auto paint stores. 3M also has a version for pin striping. It's a three piece tape that you lay down, then lift the center piece up to leave a perfectly spaced stripe to paint.

Vince