The proper way to mask

[boostdfd3s]

hey every1,

I'm curious to see all of your tricks and tips you have concerning masking off a car. I own a 94 RX7 (pic below) and there are some tricky places and curves to mask and i cant seem to figure out how to mask like hood, door seals, etc....so any advice on the "proper" way to mask would be appreciated! :xyxthumbs



Thanks,

-Zach



(yea i know the paint is swirled....im workin on that )

 

[luke667]

best way for places like hood would be to open the hood, and put the maskin tape on the edges like that...easier, quicker, and neater

 

[imported_eggroll]

I don't know if there is a proper way to mask? I just mask the plastic trimming and door handles, any crevices wax could get into or stain.

 

[boostdfd3s]

like for instance around my front bumper lights, and the tops of the doors....just run masking tape along the seam *right* to the edge of the paint? and for hoods, just open the hood and put it right over hte rubber seals? :doh: another easy thing i overthought, lol

 

[Accumulator]

Whenever you can, tuck the tape under the edge of the trim piece so the edge of the trim piece is covered, but as much paint as possible is NOT covered. Then fold the tape up over the rest of the trim piece.



So on the in-bumper light, you'd tuck maybe 1/8"-1/4" of tape over behind the edge of the light's lens then fold it over. The sticky side of the tape will be sticking to the back of the lens, the edge of the lens, and the face of the lens.



Tucking the tape under things and folding it over (whenever possible) will make it stay in place better than just running the edge of the tape up to where the trim stops and the paint begins. The polisher's pad can mess up the edge of the tape when it hits it.



Sometimes it's simpler to just do a little disassembly, like removing lenses and other things that come off easily. What's left is often easier to mask.



Taping the underhod seals as you described should work fine, but unless you're a) using a rotary or b) using too much product on the PC, you might not have to do as much of this as you think.

 

[boostdfd3s]

:xyxthumbs another thing learned from accumulator! Thanks man

 

[usdm]

If you can, pick up some plastic tape to use first, and then

you can use regular masking tape over the plastic tape.

The plastic masking tape is nice, because it is more flexible,

stronger, and less rough on paint when it is being removed.

 

[kb798]

I like using a razor blade, especially along the windows.

 

[boostdfd3s]

hmmm, so put the tape on w/ a little overlap and trim it back? Dunno if id trust myself with a razor blade next to my or my customer's paint

 

[Accumulator]

Dunno if id trust myself with a razor blade next to my or my customer's paint

I don't think I'd trust *my* self with that...I'd worry more about messing up with the razor blade that I would about polish getting on something.



Actually, with the products I'm using these days, I don't worry all that much about masking unless I'm using the rotary.

 

[luke667]

is that a pinstripe going along the length of the car or a reflection of shine?

 

[boostdfd3s]

is that a pinstripe going along the length of the car or a reflection of shine?

Yeah its pinstriping...but has since been removed