So I just finished masking and painting some stripes on an airplane wing. The masking tape was carefully cut very straight and placed on. When I removed it after the painting I realized that with the curve of the wing I had beautifully painted, slightly curved, stripes. Then I look at the decal that was supposed to be the stripe and noticed that it was curved to make the final product look straight.

In the future would I be smart to just use the decals or is there a trick? Thanks.

Placing a decal on a curved or compound curved surace is very difficult. You might want to draw a line that is straight on the surface before layjng your masking tape down.

Hi there

Getting straight lines around a compound curve is tricky!

I seldom use decal stripes - maybe it's just me, but they either don't follow the contours or don't match the rest of the paintwork.

I find the easiest way is to use thin (1mm) strips of masking tape to define the edges of the stripe and fill in the centre once you're happy.

One thing to remember is that ground crews faced similar problems on the full-sized aircraft. When you look at "Invasion Stripes", they are often incredibly crude; depicting that convincingly on a model is an art in itself.

Hope this helps

Rowan

There is a trick used in ship model building that might help. The idea is to have the model set square on a flat surface and then use a fixture (block of wood, etc.) with a pencil attached to draw around the waterline at a constant height. This basic concept can be modified as is needed for lines on wings, around fuselages or any other curved item that needs straight lines as it appears to the eye. Yes, I paint lines rather than trying to use the decals if possible. Seems to make a better finished product to me.
capnjock

Thanks all. I see that drawing a line ahead would help make things straight. Then I like the small 1mm starter tape. I assume this is so that it is a little flexible and can bend to be "airplane straight" ??

Hi again

That's right... the thin strips of tape are flexible, so it's easier to follow the contours. Tamiya masking tape is particularly good for this.

All the best

Rowan