Tamiya NSX

[GTRRR]

I am just about to start my NSX and am seeking a bit of advice. I want to paint the body blue and the roof black like the older NSX's. What I want to know is should I paint the whole body blue and then mask off the top and spray the black over the blue or should I mask off the top and spray the bottom blue then mask the bottom and spray the top black. I was thinking the first option would be better but I am worried about the paint being really thick. Please Help.

[mp3z24]

masking the areas seperately would probably be your best bet.

that way, when you spray up to the masking tape, there will be a ridge created against the edge of the paint, but when you mask and spray the second color, the ridge will be painted up to by the second color.

if you are not ready to paint and mask like that, then i would tell you to paint the blue first, and then mask off and paint the black area. black over blue would be a lot easier than blue over black!!! painting it this way may leave a ridge where the masking tape was at, so you might run the risk of ruining the base coat if you try to rub the paint down to make the transition smooth. however, if you do this method, you can try to smooth the transition with clear coat...

many options!!

remember to primer the entire car first!!! then do your masking.

~Mike

[Veyron]

If you are going to mask one time, spray the body, mask and spray the top and immediately turn it upside down so at least some of the paint will flow away from the edge. Also, don't spray toward the edge of the tape, try to spray at a 90 degree angle, or somwthing to that effect, so as to reduce the build up at the edge of the tape. If you are using lacquer or water acrylics, you shouldn't have too much of an edge because of the amount that they shrink.

[lotus_man]

I find realy thin coats of paint help, they 'seal' the edge of the tape without ridging to much. Also really good quality (i.e. thin) masking tape like Tamiya tape helps. Some people use Baremetal foil as a mask as it's about as thihn as you can get, so there is no edge for the paint to ridge against, but I've never tried this.

[Jay!]

When I did mine (sse it in the gallery), I painted it TS-8 Italian Red, then masked off the roof and painted X-1 black acrylic over it. The first time I masked off the "waistline" with bare metal foil then the rest of the body with Tamiya tape, the black bled all underneath the mask... I had to strip it totally.

The second time, I did it the same way, but after painting red and masking, I put down a light layer of TS-13 clear over the masking tape (I only used the Tamiya tape, fearing the bare metal foil was part of my problem the first time.) This served to seal the edge of the tape down and prevent any leaks this time. Much better result.

I don't think you really need to worry too much about the intersection line between the two colors, since it sits down in a pre-existing ridge along the body.