PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

Hey Guys,
I have used the pin-stripes available from Great planes, Pactra, Goldberg, etc. They are fine on straight and slightly curved lines but I have some tight radiuses to go around on my current project. The striping material tends to crease and lift on these areas. In the past I have painted or cut "shaped pin-stripes" from trim sheets to do tight curves. I was just wondering if anybody has any advice on techniques or different striping materials to make this task easier and/or quicker.

Thanks,
Steve

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

I use pinstriping from automotive supply stores - NAPA, AutoZone, etc. They are in different widths and therefore you can easily decide on a trim plan and they are good on curves.

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

Yeah....I have also tried and have some automotive striping material. Its been a while since I used it, but I think I recall it acting the same as our "hobby stuff" on tight corners. I will play around with various stuff on my current project but maybe I am asking too much by going around tight curves.

Thanks,
Steve

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

Reply to Loser

I have used commercially available hobby pin striping , and auto pin striping with varying degrees of success. Both types will typically not do well on tight radius curves, and they will in time be effected by glow fuel.

I now use thin strips cup from appropriate colored Monokote. Strips as small as 1/16 inch can be cut using a straight edge that securely holds the Monokote in place, while using a fresh razor blade to cut. The Monokote goes around small radius curves very well, using a sealing iron as I go. Striping makes for a very clean edge between two different colors. Then too, Monokote will hold up to glow fuel. It's also a bit thinner then auto tape.

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

Bobby T., Good idea.....I may give that a try. The tight radiuses that I am going to do are going right on top of the junction of two overlapping colors so I wont have to worry about keeping a consistant gap between the stripe and the line being followed. Its a big plane and the stripes will be ~1/8 to ~1/4 inch so the stripes shouldnt be too hard to handle.

Steve

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

For cowls, I either mask off the pinstripes, or use the Great Planes stuff...

For everything else though, I usually use my Top Flite stripe cutter. I can get a pretty thin strip of monokote without too much of a problem. I'm dangerous with a metal straightedge and monokote, so I try using the trim stripe cutter more often ;)

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXHZ33&P=0

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

I just did this very thing last night with monocote. The trick is to get it tacked down at one end and while pulling slightly, use your trim iron to seal it down. As you go, the heat from the iron makes the stripe stretch a bit, and that's where you can use the elasticity of monocote to make smooth tight corners. it takea about 10 minutes or so of practice, but once you get it, it's no big deal.

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

From doing flames on motorcycle tanks to the scallops on my Gee Bee, I found using a low heat gun and a slight pull on the curved portion gets it to lay down very well when using automotive pin stripe.

It takes some practice to figure out how much of each to use depending on the radius though. 1/4" tape will be a bit harder to do but it can be done. I've also found that pulling it up and adjusting it after applying it wrong will cause it to lift and/or buckle later on too.

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

yea as stated above you need a steady hand and need to get it down in one shot what i do is find a childs ball.. i know it sounds silly but give it a shot

get a heat gun and some pin striping from the local parts store grab the ball between your knees and have someone help you with the heat gun slowly start to run it varying the amount of heat used make curves S shapes anything you can think of as a test for what and how your gonna do it later with a bit of practice you can lay it down super easy and the heat will actually make the glue adhere a bit better

its fun to me i love doing this kind of stuff i use pin striping from the parts store on lexan car car bodies to do flame jobs and such .. with them the only difference is the tightness of the turns and crevices and the body needs a cold cloth touching the back of it to keep it from warping in the heat.. works great try it youll find its a sure way to get the hang of it all

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

i guess i am a bit slow; whats the ball between the knees for?

V.

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

Steve:

Try using boat striping. You can get it at most marine supply centers. I was in a marine store last week and it had a nice dispaly of striping materials that I thought I may use on my next RC project. These stripes are made of good materials that stand up to the harsh environment of salt water. I am sure they can withstand RC usage.

Capt Lou

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

If you are going to paint the stripes, and just need to mask the stripes off, get some 3-M Fine line tape. It comes in various widths, will turn a tight radius, and will not bleed under. Expensive though.

Bill, AMA 4720
WACO Brotherhood #1

RE: PIN-STRIPING .....whats best.....
 

Thanks guys.....all good helpfull suggestions. I have done a lot of covering with monokote and am pretty decent with it so I will definitely play around with that method. I also will have to try some auto and marine stuff again with the same technique....

Stickb. ....Have used 3M tape to mask while painting before but only the 1/2" size....good stuff...worth the bucks. Will pick up some thin stuff to play with......

Thanks,
Steve