Painting Tip Needed - How to paint a straight line!

[javeryh]

I need some advice.  I'm a little unhappy with a tape line on my current cabinet - I taped off a section with the blue 3M painter's tape and had it secured to the surface as tight as possible yet the paint still bled underneath in a few areas ruining the nice crisp line I was going for.  Does anyone have any tips in this area?  I'm going to try to do some freehand touch up work when it's all said and done but any advice would be most appreciated.  Oh yeah, if it helps, the color transition is in a corner (not on a flat surface) so one piece of wood is supposed to be black and the piece meeting it is supposed to be pink with a nice crisp line in exactly the corner where they meet.

THANKS!!   

[unclet]

I never can get blue painter's tape to give me a clean line .... always bleeds underneath for me as well ..... 

[SavannahLion]

Scale modelers sometimes apply a clear cloat (flat, semi-flat, gloss, or whatever depending on their project) to seal the edges of the tape. I've never had satisfactory results with this technique. Try it on some scrap and see how it works for you.

My brother once told me to use a type of caulking to create the straight edge. I'll call him about it.

Another solution I've heard is to apply caulking to the sticky side of the tape to seal the edge when you lay it down. That seems kind of messy though.

Obviously, I'm not the painter in the family.  

[leapinlew]

I use the blue tape and have good luck with the lines.

After I apply the tape, I run over it with my finger a few quick times to generate some heat and create a better seal. I apply the paint and a few minutes after applying the tape I'd pull the tape off and it makes a good clean line.

[pointdablame]

Go get some different widths of vinyl masking tape at a model shop.  That's what I use for straight lines all the time, and I've never had a problem.  "Normal" masking tape has given me good results in the past as well.

[ahofle]

I also never had luck with that "painters" masking tape, even using leapin's method of running my finger over it. 

[ChadTower]

Too late now, but in this situation, the best way is often to paint before assembly.

[Chris G]

I've found it helps a LITTLE to:

1. use as little paint as will provide coverage around the edges - when you use too much, it always seeps under any gaps in the tape

2. if possible, paint the edges by coming from over the tape rather than painting toward the tape

I almost always have to touch up some areas with an artist brush, though.

[GAtekwriter]

For a few dollars, go to Home Depot and they're now selling, believe it or not, corner painter tape elements.  They come in small 90 degree blocks with curves cut in them - difficult to describe, but you can buy a small pack of them for a few bucks.

I've painted a LOT of rooms and I've learned three things:

1.  Put the tape on as straight as possible in the LONGEST possible run.
2.  Use a dry sponge or small towel to protect your finger and run it down the tape with as much pressure as you can get - use just your finger and you'll experience tape-burn.
3.  After painting, remove the tape IMMEDIATELY.  Do NOT wait until the paint dries if you can help it.  Painters tape tends to pull away drying or dried paint (especially latex) - when it's still wet, you'll get the chance to pull away the tape, leaving a very solid line.

I realize this may not help you with a deep corner, but the techniques still apply... good luck.

Jim

[mountain]

If you are painting over existing paint, make sure it is as smooth as possible. Any imperfections will allow paint to get under the tape. I would also use the vinyl tape as mentioned above like they use in the automotive painting process.

[RayB]

They sell devices for painting thin lines. It's a small glass jar thing you fill with paint, and then there's a metal roller wheel... The paint goes on the roller as you roll it along and it leaves a stripe on the surface you roll it on.

I'm talking 1/4" or less stripe here... not sure what size was being discussed here...

[psychotech]

..do NOT dilute the paint too much, the thinner the paint is the more it'll bleed ..!!

And use a good quality roller!

I had the same problem with Bombjack's (link: see signature..) speaker panel. Fortunately I tried to do the lines only on the speaker panel first.. Jack is painted mostly with water soluble acrylics and the main thing in being able to do the speaker panel & the sides without bleeding was to use the paint more or less as it is!

(EDIT) Start here.. http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=61679.msg638906#msg638906

And as GAtekwriter said: "After painting, remove the tape IMMEDIATELY. ..!"

Good luck!

Psychotech

[javeryh]

Thanks for all the great advice guys.  I'm putting on a coat of paint tonight after I tape everything - I'll report back.  I guess if I want to do multiple coats I'll have to tape each time.  I DEFINITELY let the tape stay on too long - like weeks.  I had to score the latex paint with a razor so it wouldn't peel off with the tape. 

What is your experience with the paint running after you remove the tape?  I guess i'll find out...

 

[GAtekwriter]

You don't have to rip the tape off the exact second after you paint over it, but don't let it get super-tacky... when latex paint becomes super-tacky, it'll tear like paper... you may have seen this if you've ever pulled tape off of a recently painted door frame or baseboard - the tape will pull up on the paint that's bled through and the tackiness will then cause it to pull on the surrounding paint.

Obviously paint will run if it's slopped on to much - pulling the tape off will only give it a place to run.  Since you're painting a "moveable" object, you could consider turning the painted area so that if paint is going to run, it's going to run in the opposite direction of the tape... does that make sense?  If the tape has been put on properly, the capillary effect won't occur.  Any spaces not sufficiently taped will pull in the paint, even against gravity.  (Sorry to turn this into a physics discussion!)

Again, it goes back to properly applying tape or using a paint shield and then getting it away from the paint before it gets too tacky.  And yes, weeks of leaving tape will definitely pull paint away. 

And, to keep kicking this dead horse, when putting on the tape, be sure to limit how much of your fingers touch the sticky side... the oils from your skin will cause the tape to not stick properly.  Most pros don't tape, but if you watch some that do, you'll see that when they tape manually, they won't apply the little 1-2" of starting tape because that's where fingers have torn it off.  They'll use it as a tail and leave it dangling as a pull-tab.

Feel like you could start painting for a living with all this info??

Jim

[javeryh]

Grrr... didn't work.  Not only did the pink paint run into the black, but removing the painter's tape completely stripped the layer of black paint I had applied previously.  I'm changing my color scheme to accomodate this little problem... the 3/4" strips going down the back of the cabinet are now going to be pink to match the back panel.  This is the spot I'm having trouble with:



See the black strip?  I'm going to make it pink now.  It will be up against the wall so it won't matter but I'm still a bit annoyed.

[leapinlew]

Ahh, now I see.

That does make things a bit more difficult. To avoid this problem, I do the insides first and then put it together. Here is a pic of my latest cabinet:



In your case, I don't have a suggestion except for to stick with the tape and do the best job you can if you cannot pull the side off to repaint it.

[bfauska]

I suppose it's too late, but in case anybody else is interested in a possible solution to painting an inside corner like that, this is what I've used in the past.  I used to paint apartments in a building I was living in, we used these pads all the time to cut in corners and they work great, you just have to be sure to keep the wheels and edge of the pad from getting paint on them.

I am not necessarily recommending the seller, it was just the first site I found with the product I was looking for.  I think that both Lowes and Home Depot carry these as well.

[Chris G]

I've tried those in the past and had no luck.  Quite possibly user-error, though...

javeryh - how long had you let the black paint dry/cure?  It shouldn't have ripped up like that, especially with low or med adhesion painters tape...

[ChadTower]

I have tried them with zero results, too.

[javeryh]

javeryh - how long had you let the black paint dry/cure?  It shouldn't have ripped up like that, especially with low or med adhesion painters tape...

The black paint dried for over 24 hours (I put the last coat of black on Saturday afternoon).  I'm not sure what happened but I agree it would have been a good idea to paint prior to assembly - I'll keep that in mind for the next one. 

I'm going to paint that strip pink tonight when I add another coat to the back panel and continue to add layers of pink paint.  Once I'm done, if I don't like how it looks, I'll try painting it black again but I'll cross that bridge this weekend I guess.

[Chris G]

Depends on climate, etc, but it generally takes a while longer than that for paint to cure.  I usually allow a few days, just to be sure.

[deadkenndys1105]

I just recently painted a computer case and I had some problems with the tape pulling off the other paint.

[leapinlew]

Depends on climate, etc, but it generally takes a while longer than that for paint to cure.  I usually allow a few days, just to be sure.

I agree. Maybe a single layer of coat would do fine after 24 hours, but you probably had multiple layers. I would suggest a good few days in a warm climate.

[javeryh]

Well, the first two coats had about 2 weeks worth of drying time - the last two got about 24 hours each in 55-65 degree weather (inside an unheated garage).  All 4 coats came right off with the tape.

[ChadTower]

Sounds like the first coat didn't bind, and if that happens, none of the rest will.  They'll bind to each other but not the object if the first coat will come right up.  What did you prime with and did the primer come up too?

[leapinlew]

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=53105.0

Here is my buddy Bleems situation - same problem.

[javeryh]

Sounds like the first coat didn't bind, and if that happens, none of the rest will.  They'll bind to each other but not the object if the first coat will come right up.  What did you prime with and did the primer come up too?

The primer did NOT come up but I did sand the primer smooth using 220 grit paper - that might have been my mistake since the smoother the surface the harder it is to get something to stick...

[ChadTower]

220 isn't going to make it smooth enough for anything like that to happen... the only thing I could think of there is not getting the sanded off dust off the surface, maybe, or using a primer that doesn't play well with the paint.  The primer is there specifically to give the paint a good bonding surface.