Body shell cleaning after masking

[Aerobert]

As many of you I don't like masking body shells for painting. This leads to a stack of unfinished projects as painting still needs to be done. But every now and then I'm in the mood of doing some masking (even if it's gone as fast as it came) and this sunday morning I was in the mood to mask the canopy of my Thunder Dragon body.  Easy job, nothing really special. Washed the shell with warm soapy water and dried it thoroughly. Then I thought "when I wear gloves there will be no fingerprints or something else after masking on the shell". But masking with gloves is a pain for me and so they were thrown away after a few seconds.

So now my question: What do you do after masking to degrease the body and remove residues of masking tape? I can't wash it again with soapy water as it would also remove the masking tape. Is Tamiya Polycarbonate Cleaner a good solution or does it leave a film on the shell? What about silicone remover from automotive painting systems? Is it a bad idea for polycarbonate bodies?

Thanks for your tips.

[skom25]

Just use IPA alcohol ( Isopropyl) or just clean alcohol which you can buy in shop. It should be around 95%.

IPA is much cheaper but it is also bit toxic, so if you need it just to clean body from time to time, it is not worth. Of course if you use few mililiters, you will not die. It is more like using half of bottle at once. IPA is also well used in work with electronics and people do not turn into Zombies, so it is not super toxic. Just do not inhale it too much.

If you want to be on safe side and not to make funny smell in home, use clean alcohol. If people can drink it, it is also not toxic. Downside is fact, that 100 ml bottle is more expensive than 1l of IPA.

As I wrote. If you will just clean body once per month before painting and will use 5 ml, buy clean alcohol. It is expensive but it will not ruin your budget. If you have plan to do body every day, clean residue and fingerprints after each step ( e.g. when you remove masks), buy IPA. 

Choice is yours.

[alvinlwh]

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[skom25]

BTW. I believe that Tamiya paints contain so much solvent, that it will just "eat" some fat from fingers. You can see it, if you compare how much you spray and how tiny layer is.

[Pylon80]

3 hours ago, Aerobert said:

As many of you I don't like masking body shells for painting. This leads to a stack of unfinished projects as painting still needs to be done. But every now and then I'm in the mood of doing some masking (even if it's gone as fast as it came) and this sunday morning I was in the mood to mask the canopy of my Thunder Dragon body.  Easy job, nothing really special. Washed the shell with warm soapy water and dried it thoroughly. Then I thought "when I wear gloves there will be no fingerprints or something else after masking on the shell". But masking with gloves is a pain for me and so they were thrown away after a few seconds.

So now my question: What do you do after masking to degrease the body and remove residues of masking tape? I can't wash it again with soapy water as it would also remove the masking tape. Is Tamiya Polycarbonate Cleaner a good solution or does it leave a film on the shell? What about silicone remover from automotive painting systems? Is it a bad idea for polycarbonate bodies?

Thanks for your tips.

I think @OoALEJOoO had a comprehensive list of tips on masking and painting but I can't seem to be able to find it anymore 😐

[Andreas W]

I use Blåtind Blårens,  which is isopropanol. Takes fat and fingermerker, but is nice to the masking. 

[Willy iine]

I just keep my hands as oil free as possible while masking.  I use rubbing alcohol to clean any smears, then a weakened post it note adhesive to tack away any lint.

But then polycarbonate is super forgiving vs TS painting so I don't think too hard.. 

[OoALEJOoO]

+1 for keeping hands as much oil free as possible during masking. I wash them about once very 30 minutes.

Most of the "oiling" happens right at the edges of the body where one often slides hands and wrists/arms while wiggling the tape into position. A tip for this is not to cut the bottom body edges until the very end or until when needed for masking, this way you rub and oil a temporary edge that will later be cut. I normally mask windows and as much as possible, then cut the wheel arches, then the cut the bottom edges. After this, the last bit of masking on the edges is done. I've found this to be sufficient to prevent needing to clean or wash a body after masking.

I exclusively use Tamiya masking tapes 2, 6, 10 and 18mm (yellow) and their masking tape for curves 3 and 5mm (white). These only leave a very faint residue if left for a long time in very hot weather (>35C). Even then, I've tested painting bits of lexan over this residue with no detrimental effects visually or in adhesion. Tamiya's wider yellow tape (can't remember the thickness), which is clearly a rebranded tape, does leave a ton of residue - I avoid it like the plague.

If for some reason you do grease-up the body (e.g. are masking while eating a hotdog ), perhaps gently using alcohol pads is a good way as others have recommended.

[Aerobert]

Thank you all for your comments and tips! That's really helpful.