Perfectly straight edges?
 

Any of you figure out how to make nice straight edges when masking something. Whenever I try the paint always gets under the mask or something else goes wrong. It seems impossible on curves like arms or legs. I can never get a 100% sharp edge. I need to do some line work like this:

http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/...ps7da2b086.jpg

http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/...psc9241a03.jpg

All those tiny thin lines how can you do that???

The trick is to know all your options for "working out" edges and straightening them. Masking is usually just the first step... once you remove the mask, you have to also know the techniques for cleaning up your edges. I do this by either using a toothpick dipped in alcohol to scrape away excess paint, or by deletion (meaning, painting over rough edges or overpaint by going over it with your base color).
As you get better with all these techniques, you'll find that you won't even need to use tape to mask edges in a lot of cases. A steady hand and knowing how to "erase" rough edges is all you end up needing. Oh, and spend the money on some good detail brushes too. Hope that helps.

So there's no way to mask it, paint it & then pull the mask off & get a perfect edge? It happens for me once in a while but it's too random. I was hoping there would be a trick or technique to get it perfect every time.

If I have to clean up the edges like you mentioned it will never work. I've tried that before & no matter how much time I spent on it I couldn't get it to be perfect. I tried to paint Decepticon purple stripes on a Captain Power Phantom Striker. It never came out right. I spent hours going over the edges trying to get it perfect but it just wouldn't cooperate. I finally lost interest & abandoned it.

I can't make perfect lines like the ones shown above. Unless there's some technique I don't know about.

Masking works well if the surfaces you're trying to mask off don't have many irregularities. Problem is, they're action figures, so they're all irregular. lol
If you're masking and paint is getting under the tape, your tape is not sealing off well. Try pressing it down thoroughly so that no air pockets are visible. You can also tape off larger areas completely, press the tape down really well, and then x-acto the lines you want out of the tape.
I think you're hoping for a trick to make this process easy, and unfortunately there isn't really one. It's just practice, and trial and error.

Hmm......that gives me an idea. Put the straight edge of tape down then scratch a line in the plastic along the edge of the tape. A little sculpting before painting.

Hey Catatronic, I like your idea. In future I will definitely use that. I think, A little sculpting before painting is very cool.