hey what the best masking tape on the market for cut laps. i am get ready for my 1st tint job and want to get a tape that does not give me any trouble, one that does not bleed i donot mind pay a bit more for the best stuff. i have been using cheap stuff on my last no-tinted boards but seems to leave residue from sticky side that i have to sand of after. what you guys use?
oh the glassing is in poly not epoxy
cheers
Hi Twistedstump -
There are those who disagree with the blue painter's tape but I have found that it doesn't leave residue. If I use compressed air to get rid of dust on the blank, it sticks OK. It does need to be pressed down really good with a tongue depressor or something.
The standard is 3M 233. It needs to be pressed down good too.
Both are pretty damn expensive but I've had decent results using either.
Do a search thru the archives but the end result will be the same as John mentioned above; 3M233+. There is the Crepe 233, but I noticed online that 233+ is almost the only thing you come up with in a search.
cheers guys
For the best results use 3M 233 series of tape. The 233 is the beige automotive line of tape and it is the industry standard. The 233+ green is ......is the same tape, except one big thing..it's solvent free. The solvent free aspect is great for surfboard building because you won't get the "hey the resin is eating through my tape because I didn't kick it fast enough syndrome"
The new blue tape in my opinion is hit or miss in surfboard application.....as John said, you really need to do a lot of preping to get good results, and even then sometimes it will bite you. The blue is great for laytex applications. So blue is pretty good if your painting a surfboard water based, but if your doing cutlaps with poly resin, even hot coats (how many times have you had a pile of tape on the floor, and stalagmites hanging from your rails...from a hotcoat taking too long to kick?) you might want to consider 233, 233+
There's also a yellow tape 3M auto refinishing masking tape that kicks butt. It leaves the crispiest lines you even seen in a masking tape, but that's for another discussion.
Not so much brand, but waht I find is important is the tape width.
I use 1/4 masking tape. Not sure of the brand, but leaves no residue… I tape the 1/4" down first and then use a thicker 1" tape just slightly on the iside of the 1/4"
The 1/4" bends and flexes to match the outline perfectly while at the same time being able to stick down the entire width of the tape, unlike the 1" where you ahve to really work the outside edge of the tape and then pray it stays down.
Much cleaner laps are the result. But that is just my method. I have seen some people that are magicians with the 1" tape.
Drew
BRILLIANT