Custom masking in place of decals with Cutting Machine

[pinehilljoe]

Has anyone tried making their own masking? I've been test driving Cricut and Silhouette software before buying a machine, and like Silhouette more. My thought is for older kits like Monogram, it would maybe be better than trying to use the 40 to 50 year old decals and over time lower cost than buying decal sheets online. I'm an engineer and work with people that fly through graphics software, I'm not one of them. I'll see how my learning curve is on the software before buying a cutter. I was surprised how well the "Trace" function in the Silhouette app worked. Looks like a powerful tool, it comes down to how you take to the software and creating the file. I can you can build a library of common items as you go, like national insignia.

Its a new turn to the hobby.



View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ha7Iccb9ZYQ

 

[talbot]

I have been using a Portrait 4 for about a year now and really like it, there is so much you can do with these
It is excellent for canopy masks, insignia, markings and camo (though note that it's usually a harder edge vs a soft)

My preference is for Tamiya masking sheets for canopies, and oracal 810 for everything else
I can usually get down to 1mm with good results
There are several ways to approach using them, but once you get the feel of it and know what works the results can be fantastic

The trace does work very well, I did purchase the upgrade so I can trace by colour as well as sometimes it will not trace on outlines

Not sure if I can link, but there is a forum for Scale Model Paint Masks with a repository of masks

 

[pinehilljoe]

talbot With your Portrait 4, do you use the Silhouette software? I'll send you a message for the repository info. What is your technique for creating the file for canopy masks? Painting vs using the year old decals could bring a lot of new life to the old kits.

 

[talbot]

Hi Joe,
Yes I use the Silhouette Software, it works very well and fairly easy to use
As mine is 8" in size, I'll generally work in 6x6" sizes that I'll cut from a roll of oracal 810, or a lot of the time cut to size tamiya sheets for canopies
PM sent for the site - there is a fair bit of templates available for canopies, insignia's and camo patterns, etc

For canopies, I'll generally use templates if available, if I can't find one I'll scan the included marking and decal sheets and work from there, careful on the shape and sizing
YMMV pending how good one is with design software, sometimes you can spend way too much time creating than what it might be worth
The good thing is once you build up a collection of good templates, they are highly re-usable with minor adjustments

You can also install the correct fonts on your computer and generate accurate numbering

Peeling the mask off to reveal a nice crisp insignia with no silvering is pretty satisfying

 

[Crimea_River]

I've used my Cricut Explore Air 2 a number of times. Can't speak for Silhouette but I have found limitations when cutting very small masks ( 4 to 5 mm ) with intricate shapes and lots of corners. There needs to be room for the knife to spin freely and small shapes are a challenge. Wing insignia and squadron numbers/letters are no problem.

I don't use the Cricut software for design. Rather, I import svg files from designs produced in Illustrator or QCAD and use the software only to copy/paste for multiple copies and to organize the masks on the cutter to minimize material use. I Use Oromask 810 vinyl for my masks.

 

[pinehilljoe]

Hi Joe,
Yes I use the Silhouette Software, it works very well and fairly easy to use
As mine is 8" in size, I'll generally work in 6x6" sizes that I'll cut from a roll of oracal 810, or a lot of the time cut to size tamiya sheets for canopies
PM sent for the site - there is a fair bit of templates available for canopies, insignia's and camo patterns, etc

For canopies, I'll generally use templates if available, if I can't find one I'll scan the included marking and decal sheets and work from there, careful on the shape and sizing
YMMV pending how good one is with design software, sometimes you can spend way too much time creating than what it might be worth
The good thing is once you build up a collection of good templates, they are highly re-usable with minor adjustments

You can also install the correct fonts on your computer and generate accurate numbering

Peeling the mask off to reveal a nice crisp insignia with no silvering is pretty satisfying

Did you buy an upgrade software? I'm thinking of of a Silhouette 5, the current model.

 

[talbot]

I did, one time purchase to the Designer Edition (it's frequently on sale)
It comes with the basic edition that is very functional and will most likely work for most needs

And they have a web version as well that seems good, not quite as good as a local install but pretty good for a web app

 

[pinehilljoe]

I ordered a Silhouette 5 with the upgraded software on their websites after Christmas sale. I'll start with the Hinomaru and work my way up. Thanks talbot for all the tips.

I spent the day playing with the software and its very similar to other vinyl printer software I had used at work. We had a MakerSpace with commercial size printer cutters that we were free to use. At the time I used the machine to replicate Matchbox decals, when I went through a phase of watching Marty's Matchbox Make Over youtube videos.

 

[talbot]

No problem at all and good luck!
Looking forward to seeing some of your results with it

 

[talbot]

Oh one other thing while I'm thinking about it which you might already know, but when painting I've learned to be careful to avoid paint bleed

I usually try to reduce the thinner ratio slightly and spray a light first coat to build a bit of a seal on the inside of the mask to lessen the chance of thin paint running under the mask, particularly around panel lines
I found acrylic's susceptible to this

 

[buitre]

Has anyone tried making their own masking? I've been test driving Cricut and Silhouette software before buying a machine, and like Silhouette more. My thought is for older kits like Monogram, it would maybe be better than trying to use the 40 to 50 year old decals and over time lower cost than buying decal sheets online. I'm an engineer and work with people that fly through graphics software, I'm not one of them. I'll see how my learning curve is on the software before buying a cutter. I was surprised how well the "Trace" function in the Silhouette app worked. Looks like a powerful tool, it comes down to how you take to the software and creating the file. I can you can build a library of common items as you go, like national insignia.

Its a new turn to the hobby.



View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ha7Iccb9ZYQ

I use a PrismCut cutter with "Sure Cuts A Lot 4 Pro" software, which comes with the cutter. The whole thing was pricy, I spent close to $500. But I love it. I think if you are trying to save money, this cutter is NOT the way to go. The reason I got it, and the reason that I am so happy with it is that I am now free to design anything I want, as long as it is not way too tiny.

Look at the attached 1/48 Ki-100. All the "meatballs", as well as the three yellow Japanese characters near the wing trailing edge were done with stencils from the cutter, and I love how they came out. They look painted on --which they are! But the multiple tiny red circular or oblong signs with white lettering would be impossible to do with stencils. You also would not be able to do, for example, the tiny coat-of-arms that Italian fighters have at the center of the white cross on the tail. Or super-tiny numbers. For things like that, you will still need decals, or (as in my Ki-100) a tiny brush that pretends that there is actual white lettering there (instead of gibberish!).

I use Adobe Illustrator to make the designs. (This is an expensive program that I could not afford if it weren't that I get it for free because the university from which I retired makes it available to its retirees. But Illustrator is an overkill for what we are doing here; I am sure that there are other (much cheaper!) programs that would do the job equally well.) I can take a digital image from any publication, import it into Illustrator, trace any lettering (or whatever else I want) with a mouse cursor. That produces an Adobe Illustrator file, which I can then drag into the "Sure Cuts A Lot 4 Pro" software. Then I run the cutter with this software, and it makes the stencil.

As someone else has mentioned here, when using stencils the paint always tends to get pulled in under the stencil, by capillarity. I have learned the hard way that the best way to avoid this is to press ever-so-gently on the airbrush, not letting the paint pool at all. One brief pass, wait a few seconds for the paint to dry, another brief pass, etc.

I can't remember right now, but I think I had to buy this particular cutter because I am on a Mac, and I was told that some of the other cutters would not work well with a Mac.

Another example: In this 1/48 scale C-202, the ultra-tiny black-and-white sign on the tail cone, the coat of arms on the rudder, the Aer. Macchi sign, the MM9042 sign, the cat-and-circle, the blue+grey+white fascia ahead of the cockpit, and the triple fascia on the far wing are all decals. But the white cross, the "151", the red "1", and the white chevron are all stencils. The green irregular donut patches were also made with stencils, they were the hardest part to do, and required a lot of doing-over with stencil and counter-stencil until I was happy enough. The white band around the fuselage was done with simple masking tape, of course.

 

[pinehilljoe]

I use a PrismCut cutter with "Sure Cuts A Lot 4 Pro" software, which comes with the cutter. The whole thing was pricy, I spent close to $500. But I love it. I think if you are trying to save money, this cutter is NOT the way to go. The reason I got it, and the reason that I am so happy with it is that I am now free to design anything I want, as long as it is not way too tiny.

Look at the attached 1/48 Ki-100. All the "meatballs", as well as the three yellow Japanese characters near the wing trailing edge were done with stencils from the cutter, and I love how they came out. They look painted on --which they are! But the multiple tiny red circular or oblong signs with white lettering would be impossible to do with stencils. You also would not be able to do, for example, the tiny coat-of-arms that Italian fighters have at the center of the white cross on the tail. Or super-tiny numbers. For things like that, you will still need decals, or (as in my Ki-100) a tiny brush that pretends that there is actual white lettering there (instead of gibberish!).

I use Adobe Illustrator to make the designs. (This is an expensive program that I could not afford if it weren't that I get it for free because the university from which I retired makes it available to its retirees. But Illustrator is an overkill for what we are doing here; I am sure that there are other (much cheaper!) programs that would do the job equally well.) I can take a digital image from any publication, import it into Illustrator, trace any lettering (or whatever else I want) with a mouse cursor. That produces an Adobe Illustrator file, which I can then drag into the "Sure Cuts A Lot 4 Pro" software. Then I run the cutter with this software, and it makes the stencil.

As someone else has mentioned here, when using stencils the paint always tends to get pulled in under the stencil, by capillarity. I have learned the hard way that the best way to avoid this is to press ever-so-gently on the airbrush, not letting the paint pool at all. One brief pass, wait a few seconds for the paint to dry, another brief pass, etc.

View attachment 861787

I can't remember right now, but I think I had to buy this particular cutter because I am on a Mac, and I was told that some of the other cutters would not work well with a Mac.

Another example: In this 1/48 scale C-202, the ultra-tiny black-and-white sign on the tail cone, the coat of arms on the rudder, the Aer. Macchi sign, the MM9042 sign, the cat-and-circle, the blue+grey+white fascia ahead of the cockpit, and the triple fascia on the far wing are all decals. But the white cross, the "151", the red "1", and the white chevron are all stencils. The green irregular donut patches were also made with stencils, they were the hardest part to do, and required a lot of doing-over with stencil and counter-stencil until I was happy enough. The white band around the fuselage was done with simple masking tape, of course.

View attachment 861788

Beautiful work! Have you tried a very light spray of clear flat after applying the mask, this might seal the mask and minimize capillary action of the color paint. Do you make your own canopy masks? I'm playing with a scan of the Ki-61 canopy mask Tamiya included in the kit. It doesn't trace well with Silhouette Pro, I'm using the scan to draw the outline in the software.

 

[buitre]

Beautiful work! Have you tried a very light spray of clear flat after applying the mask, this might seal the mask and minimize capillary action of the color paint. Do you make your own canopy masks? I'm playing with a scan of the Ki-61 canopy mask Tamiya included in the kit. It doesn't trace well with Silhouette Pro, I'm using the scan to draw the outline in the software.

The spray with clear seems like a good idea, at least in principle. I don't know if it would actually work, but it may be worth a try.

I don't usually use canopy masks. I normally use a whole bunch of tiny strips of Tamiya yellow masking tape. Even in the rare occasions when I use a canopy mask, I will supplement it with masking tape. I really like this guy's explanations:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxUYHNr9Yzo This guy is very good too:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9fLpzoKmQI They complement each other very well.

 

[buitre]

The spray with clear seems like a good idea, at least in principle. I don't know if it would actually work, but it may be worth a try.

I don't usually use canopy masks. I normally use a whole bunch of tiny strips of Tamiya yellow masking tape. Even in the rare occasions when I use a canopy mask, I will supplement it with masking tape. I really like this guy's explanations:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxUYHNr9Yzo This guy is very good too:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9fLpzoKmQI They complement each other very well.

Note: I never paint the inside of the transparent plastic piece. What I do is a first layer on the outside (usually a dark color, whatever color the frame is supposed to have when the pilot looks at it from the inside of the cockpit). Then I do a second layer (again on the outside) but this time in the final outside color of the frame.

Also, in contrast with the second of those two web pages, I never use liquid mask on cockpit transparent parts. After marking with very skinny tape the boundaries of what will be the transparent panels, I fill the inside of the panel with small yellow Tamiya rectangles, overlapping them over each other. Here are some examples of final results: a 1/24 scale Zero and a 1/48 scale Ki-100.

I never cut any masking tape with an X-Acto after it is on the clear part: too much risk of scratching the clear part. If there is something wrong, I pull the tape partly off with tweezers, and cut it with scissors. Then I may add an additional piece of masking tape as needed. (There is no disadvantage in applying a gazillion layers of masking tape!)

 

[Casor]

I have painted a lot of markings both on plastic models and scale flying models. I use my laser to cut the masks but a knife equipped cutter would be better for plastics. To keep paint from getting under the edge of a mask, properly reduce the paint and shoot at a very low pressure - less than a pound. Apply the paint in multiple passes after letting ea pass set up about 30 seconds or so. This way, the mask does not have to have a perfect seal but you should get the mask down as firmly as possible by hand. The paint is almost dry as it hits the model so the mask does not need to seal, only to block the paint. If you get the capillary action noted above, you are applying way too much paint.

 

[pinehilljoe]

I use a PrismCut cutter with "Sure Cuts A Lot 4 Pro" software, which comes with the cutter. The whole thing was pricy, I spent close to $500. But I love it. I think if you are trying to save money, this cutter is NOT the way to go. The reason I got it, and the reason that I am so happy with it is that I am now free to design anything I want, as long as it is not way too tiny.

Look at the attached 1/48 Ki-100. All the "meatballs", as well as the three yellow Japanese characters near the wing trailing edge were done with stencils from the cutter, and I love how they came out. They look painted on --which they are! But the multiple tiny red circular or oblong signs with white lettering would be impossible to do with stencils. You also would not be able to do, for example, the tiny coat-of-arms that Italian fighters have at the center of the white cross on the tail. Or super-tiny numbers. For things like that, you will still need decals, or (as in my Ki-100) a tiny brush that pretends that there is actual white lettering there (instead of gibberish!).

I use Adobe Illustrator to make the designs. (This is an expensive program that I could not afford if it weren't that I get it for free because the university from which I retired makes it available to its retirees. But Illustrator is an overkill for what we are doing here; I am sure that there are other (much cheaper!) programs that would do the job equally well.) I can take a digital image from any publication, import it into Illustrator, trace any lettering (or whatever else I want) with a mouse cursor. That produces an Adobe Illustrator file, which I can then drag into the "Sure Cuts A Lot 4 Pro" software. Then I run the cutter with this software, and it makes the stencil.

As someone else has mentioned here, when using stencils the paint always tends to get pulled in under the stencil, by capillarity. I have learned the hard way that the best way to avoid this is to press ever-so-gently on the airbrush, not letting the paint pool at all. One brief pass, wait a few seconds for the paint to dry, another brief pass, etc.

View attachment 861787

I can't remember right now, but I think I had to buy this particular cutter because I am on a Mac, and I was told that some of the other cutters would not work well with a Mac.

Another example: In this 1/48 scale C-202, the ultra-tiny black-and-white sign on the tail cone, the coat of arms on the rudder, the Aer. Macchi sign, the MM9042 sign, the cat-and-circle, the blue+grey+white fascia ahead of the cockpit, and the triple fascia on the far wing are all decals. But the white cross, the "151", the red "1", and the white chevron are all stencils. The green irregular donut patches were also made with stencils, they were the hardest part to do, and required a lot of doing-over with stencil and counter-stencil until I was happy enough. The white band around the fuselage was done with simple masking tape, of course.

View attachment 861788

What material do you use for the stencils? I'm waiting for my cutter to arrive.

 

[buitre]

What material do you use for the stencils? I'm waiting for my cutter to arrive.

I'm sorry I'm so late answering, I did not see your query until now!

I use Frisket film, Matte, 0.002-inch (=0.05 mm) low tack removable film. I bought it through Amazon, a pack of 6 sheets (9 inch x 12 inch) for $15. Amazon.com