damn these black window trims...

I'm having sooo much trouble doing the window trims of my models...i've done about 6 models now, and none of them seem to have good results on window trims, as well as the black on the windows...

i've read all the tutorials and "tried" to follow all the different methods, but it's still not very good. Many of you have such good detail to this part...and since it's almost the last step, it makes or breaks the finish, and it's making me really frustrated that the model is nicely built, and then the windows ruin it :(

any of you gurus have any specials tips besides the tutorials? or maybe i just need more practice and stop ranting hahahha

Thanks for reading anyways.

Mainly its all about taking your time, and a sharp (new) blade. Using tamiya tape, and then using your finger nails or a tooth pick to press down on the edge of the tape. In the long run, practice is your best way of achieving good results.

Maybe you could show us a pic of the finished window line and we could give you suggestions...
As the saying goes: A picture is worth a thousand words...
Also, what types of paints are you using to paint the window lines? And what type of masking tape?

i use the yellow tamiya tape, and i've tried painting it with regular tamiya flat black, or a black sharpie hahahah

my biggest problem is, i can't seem to be able to outline the trims straight... :(

There is normally an edge which you can use as a guide line...
Just keep the center of the edge and your knife (make SURE its a sharp blade) is kept at near 90 degrees, and go light (just enough pressure to cut the tape) and slow.
Like this:
http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb85/speedsnipe/misc/windowtrip-1.gif
The edge will be a guide for your blade...
Be sure to burnish after cutting..
HTH
Steve

I mostly use a wide and flat black marker for the windowtrims and "use" the side of the windows to guide my marker. If I go to far, I can easly remove it with a toothpick soaked in alcohol.

I was just painting some trims and used a trick that worked well for me. Like you, I found that with a brand new blade it's so damn sharp and pointy (giving almost zero contact) that it can wander out of the groove and you don't even know it's happening until it's too late. So I took an old blade which had a much blunter V in it, and a slight curve on the end of it (it's a #11, but they curl up a bit at the end as they age), and sharpened up just the edge on some very fine sand paper, ie, I did not make the V any finer, more like a boat with a flattish but sharp keel, and with the slightly curved tip. This blade tracked in the groove very well for me, much better than a super pointy new blade. I will make a dedicated boat keel blade for this purpose going forward :)

Unlike some of the chaps here I never use this method where you apply the tape and cut it with a blade as I always seem to cut into the model or end up with jagged edges.My method is a little different.I place the Tamiya tape onto a cutting mat and using a fresh scalpel blade and a steel ruler I cut the tape into very thin strips of no more than a mm in width.When you transfer these thinner strips to the model you can place them onto the outline of the window trim much more easily and they will bend and follow any curves in the trim with ease because they are so thin (if you use wider pieces of tape they will just wrinkle when you try to bend them)
Once the windows are taped off I burnish the edges down using a special tool for this which I purchased from MicroMark.The paint I use is Vallejo Air Satin black as I feel matt black looks unrealistic.I also always airbrush the window frames as if you hand paint them I always find the paint bleeds under the tape.
When the paint has dried (doesn't take long with the Vallejo paints) I remove the masking tape and take a look at the finish.If there are any slight imperfections I use a wooden cocktail stick sharpened to a chisel like point and remove any small unwanted areas of paint until I am happy with the result.
This is the method I have always used because it works better for me than cutting them with a knife.

I used this method on my 2 Celica's which the frames are pretty tricky to do because of the curves.But it worked very well.

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b61/stevenoble/Toyota%20Celica%20St185%20Castrol/IMGP1800.jpg

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b61/stevenoble/Toyota%20Celica%20ST205/CelicaST205-9.jpg

Hope this helps you a little.

Hi - just added this post (http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=5032069&postcount=142) to my thread. It might be of some interest to you.

What exactly are you doing? What kind of paint for the trim, what kind of paint for the body, how are you applying the paint, and what problems are you having? We can't really help unless you give us details.

Here are some pics of how I go about it, as clearly as I can show it. There are descriptions to go with them in my Revell Porsche 993 thread (http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=4956895&postcount=40).

http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb112/andrejmiller/993-037.jpg

http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb112/andrejmiller/993-038.jpg

http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb112/andrejmiller/993-040.jpg

http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb112/andrejmiller/993-042.jpg

I have had these same issues but thought many things. I have learned:

A. Hand painting the trim never really works the right way as it always seems to bleed.
B. Sharpie is ineffective as it is not a complete coverage and too shiny.
C. Spray cans can be done effectively but have to be light coats and tape pulled immediately. Still I get runs.
D. I think the best approach is airbrushing.

As I am waiting to get a compressor I think this is best. After looking at MPWR's above post it seams (get it) that this is the way to go.

Unlike some of the chaps here I never use this method where you apply the tape and cut it with a blade as I always seem to cut into the model or end up with jagged edges.
Steve, if you have any BMF in your supplies try using that next time. It cuts smoothly and cleanly at the mere sight of fresh knife blade. No ridge and no bleeding. The weight of the knife alone is enough to cut it.

BMF is actually the best material for window trims IMO and it is not as expensive as you might at first think. Use thin strips to mask up to your edges of your trim and cover the rest of the body with regular Tamiya tape.

Worth trying it - you'll see

BTW, Super Celicas! :thumbsup:

The others have shown well how they mask/spray the trim from outside. I use this technique frequently. You have to be good at trimming the masking tape cleanly, and making sure it's burnished completely.

As for the black "masks" on glass, I do this mostly w/a chisel-point Sharpie now. It sometimes takes a few passes for it to be completely black. The tip of the Sharpie takes a "set" on the edge of the glass, making it relatively easy to guide it without going too far. If I have any remaining transparency issues, I can fill the areas in w/some carefully hand-painted black acrylic paint.

Sometimes I brush paint the black trim. It's almost too easy for it to bleed under any mask (so I generally don't mask); spraying is easier to control the bleed if you spray it in thin coats. When I brush paint the black trim, I start by outlining the area with a black .005" pigment liner pen. Then I use a special watercolor brush-one that's narrow but has very long bristles...these are often used for lettering. They're not unlike what a pinstriper uses on a 1:1 car. I find this brush is the easiest to take a "set" on the trim while I carefully apply the paint, trying to paint a piece in one slow, steady motion. This makes for few, if any, brushstrokes-and this brush allows you to paint a long enough section w/o having to stop and reload. If you have to go over it again, let it dry first. I like brush painting w/Testors Acryl flat black or interior black; it tends to dry in a satin finish, and it covers so much better than Tamiya flat black acrylic. Acryl is a pain to spray, but for brush painting is actually pretty decent.

Basically everyone has a learning curve w/painting black trim; practice a lot, and practice some more. It's one of my least favorite tasks (same can be said for metal foil), but it's necessary for a model to look good and properly finished.

In short; practice.
We can all tell you how we do it but that doesn't mean it will work for you or that you will automatically get the same results.

"MAN" Steve Noble those Toyotas' are awsome. Rene taping it some times can be the hardist part and keeping it taped. D Monkey is right just practicing, your going to get the hang of it.

what does "burnish" mean guys? :banghead:

Alex has a brilliant photographic example of burnishing in this tutorial on his site:

http://italianhorses.net/Tutorials/BareMetalFoil/bmf.htm

In short, burnishing is the process of pressing the foil or tape down firmly.