Peewit masks coming to mojehobby / super-hobby

[TheKinksFan]

I wasn't sure what would be the right section for this, so moderator, please move, if necessary.

 

This applies mostly to us living outside the UK, as at least Hannant's have Peewit in their catalogue. But they are quite hard to find outside Czechia, and the shipping from Czechia to other EU countries is quite expensive. Some days ago I emailed mojehobby and asked if there's a particular reason why they don't have Peewit masks. They have quite a few brands, lesser known like New Ware and MH Models. From the reply I got the impression that maybe they weren't even familiar with Peewit, but they promised to consider the suggestion. Now they are listed as 'announcement' on mojehobby.pl, but there's no date yet when they will be available.

 

Peewit has masks for many aircraft that no one else has, especially short run kits, so this is good news. 

[drake122]

I am not sure if I remember correctly, I apologize if indeed I am wrong, but is Peewit the brand that produces these black colored masks? Or is that Montex? In any case, those black ones seem awful to me, they stick very hard and are difficult to remove especially after a longer time. They often leave a residue that is extra work to clean up. New Ware kabuki or ordinary Tamiya tape is the best in my opinion...

Edited November 18, 2022 by drake122

[fightersweep]

17 minutes ago, drake122 said:

I am not sure if I remember correctly, I apologize if indeed I am wrong, but is Peewit the brand that produces these black colored masks? Or is that Montex? 

 

Peewit masks are more or less the same as Eduard masks, the Kabuki stuff, and generally a lot cheaper too. Have to say I'm another one that can't get on with the vinyl type masks.

 

I like the Peewit products. All the sets I've used so far have been great.

[alt-92]

50 minutes ago, drake122 said:

Or is that Montex?

Montex do vinyl ones - often black.  Not my favourite, especially in smaller scales. 

[TheKinksFan]

10 hours ago, alt-92 said:

Montex do vinyl ones - often black.  Not my favourite, especially in smaller scales. 

Montex masks are made of black Avery Dennison vinyl tape, and it's quite stiff and not sticky enough, a bad combination when you are trying to mask aircraft canopies which are usually not flat. They might stay in place, if the frame is complete flat, but most of the time the corners will lift. Some use them as template and cut their own masks from kabuki tape. Montex masks are affordable, but I think they are the last resort if nothing else is available.

 

There's also another Polish company Pmask -or maybe I should say was, as I think they are out of business- they are made of some Oracal Oramask which is stickier, so they usually stay better in place, I had a bad experience with the masks for Airfix A6M2b, it left a sticky residue which was impossible to remove and ruined the canopy. After that I usually tested a small piece of the mask on a spare canopy. After the A6M2b I've had no similar problems, if there has been some sticky residue I was able to remove it with a piece tape. I think that Jason Champion had the same issue with that particular mask set.

 

Hobby 2000 kits used to have Pmask masks, but the latest of their kits come with white Oracal 811 masks. KV Models masks are the same material, although they have also masks that are transparent, probably the same material that AML uses for their camouflage masks. The KV Models mask have stayed on my Airfix 1/72 Blenheim Mk.I for several months, without lifting. That is, except the turret, the parts for the round section lifted almost immediately.

 

11 hours ago, fightersweep said:

Peewit masks are more or less the same as Eduard masks, the Kabuki stuff, and generally a lot cheaper too.

To me it seems that the yellow kabuki tape that Peewit uses is less fibrous than the one Eduard arre made of. It's really annoying when the cut is not through the tape, and there's a risk of tearing the edge of the mask. This problem is less common with the Peewit masks, at least in my experience. I haven't used the latest releases of Eduard masks, but in my opinion the Peewit masks are generally of higher quality, as the cut and the edge is sharper.

[alt-92]

5 minutes ago, TheKinksFan said:

use them as template and cut their own masks from kabuki tape.

Yep, that's what I did, or trace them with an engineer's pencil.  Really need to dig into the Silhouette software a bit more so I can cut my own. 
btw: I have noticed that Ed nowadays has a distorted picture of the layout in their mask sets- probably to prevent copies.

[TheKinksFan]

Just now, alt-92 said:

Yep, that's what I did, or trace them with an engineer's pencil.  Really need to dig into the Silhouette software a bit more so I can cut my own. 
btw: I have noticed that Ed nowadays has a distorted picture of the layout in their mask sets- probably to prevent copies.

I noticed the same, the decals have been distorted already previously, Special Hobby sometimes does this too. 

I can't understand why these companies use vinyl masks, if they have the machines to cut tape, couldn't they use kabuki tape instead? Is it just the cost, or is there another reason? I'm so technically challenged, that making your own masks sounds like witchraft, how on earth do you measure the canopy to get the right shapes and dimensions?

[Giorgio N]

Can't comment on the reasons why each company chooses one material or the other, what I can say is that with my cutter I can cut both Oracal and Kabuki tape with no problem, although both materials have pros and cons.

I've not tried Peewit masks yet but sounds like I should.. will give them a try!

[Paul Thompson]

4 hours ago, TheKinksFan said:

 how on earth do you measure the canopy to get the right shapes and dimensions?

You don't, so long as the framing is pronounced sufficiently. You cover the canopy with the thinnest Kabuki tape you can find. Baremetal Foil works better but is more expensive and if left on too long can leave a residue of adhesive. Whatever the material, use a cocktail stick to burnish the tape down and make sure it goes right into the edges of the framing. Finally, and you'd want to practice this on a dead canopy until you get confident, which doesn't take long, use a fresh (scalpel) blade and run it around the frame lines, then just pull the stuff off where you want the paint to go. Give a final burnish before painting. If the framework is too sloppy to do this then either buy the Canopy Survival set, which over here is around 15 quid and consists of 3 A5 sheets of die cut Kabuki tape in many useful shapes. I've used this a lot and it goes a long way. Just give the bit you want to mask a good eyeballing and cut segments off to run around the frame edges, then fill in with cheaper (Tamiya) tape. You can do the same of course with Tamiya tape alone, but the pre-cut bits make it quicker, and a little easier.

 

Paul.

[TheKinksFan]

12 minutes ago, Paul Thompson said:

You don't, so long as the framing is pronounced sufficiently. You cover the canopy with the thinnest Kabuki tape you can find. Baremetal Foil works better but is more expensive and if left on too long can leave a residue of adhesive. Whatever the material, use a cocktail stick to burnish the tape down and make sure it goes right into the edges of the framing. Finally, and you'd want to practice this on a dead canopy until you get confident, which doesn't take long, use a fresh (scalpel) blade and run it around the frame lines, then just pull the stuff off where you want the paint to go. Give a final burnish before painting. If the framework is too sloppy to do this then either buy the Canopy Survival set, which over here is around 15 quid and consists of 3 A5 sheets of die cut Kabuki tape in many useful shapes. I've used this a lot and it goes a long way. Just give the bit you want to mask a good eyeballing and cut segments off to run around the frame edges, then fill in with cheaper (Tamiya) tape. You can do the same of course with Tamiya tape alone, but the pre-cut bits make it quicker, and a little easier.

 

Paul.

Thank you for the explanation, Paul. I was actually wondering how the software for the Silhouette cutter works, but all the same I appreciate your input. The Canopy Survival set that you refer to, is it from Maketar. I live outside the UK, I should have ordered it from the Hannant's while they still had the Royal Mail as a shipping option. Since that changed I have ordered anything. The product itself is from Serbia, there are sellers inside the EU, but the expensive shipping is the problem. On Ebay the shipping is 15€ for letter sized package is not reasonable.

 

I have tried the 'old school' method you described, with varying levels of success. I find that the Tamiya tape is very fibrous and hard to cut through, maybe the one sold by Revell is thinner and better suited. For the vast majority of my kits I have a ready cut mask, if there's one available. Some exceptions, now on the bench I've got a Fly Fiat G.50, but that's easy even with my lacking skills. Special Hobby's 1/72 Vindicator is another matter. Fortunately most of the frames are rectangles, and for that I will cut small rectangular bits of tape with the help of a Infini easy cutting mat

 

My hat goes off to those who have the patience and skill to mask by hand a plane like B-17 or similar with countless little frames.

[Paul Thompson]

2 minutes ago, TheKinksFan said:

Thank you for the explanation, Paul. I was actually wondering how the software for the Silhouette cutter works, but all the same I appreciate your input. The Canopy Survival set that you refer to, is it from Maketar. I live outside the UK, I should have ordered it from the Hannant's while they still had the Royal Mail as a shipping option. Since that changed I have ordered anything. The product itself is from Serbia, there are sellers inside the EU, but the expensive shipping is the problem. On Ebay the shipping is 15€ for letter sized package is not reasonable.

 

 

Now I feel like an idiot. Back to normal, then.  Yes, Maketar are the manufacturers. I'm lucky, living in the UK means Hannants send that sort of item (i.e. flat) post free.

 

FWIW there is enough spare material on the Maketar sheets to use for much additional masking. The paper itself is more akin to that used by Eduard than Tamiya, so cuts easily.

 

I've used Peewit masks for a Valom Bristol Bombay. Very thin but tough Kabuki type paper, came off the sheet easily, stuck down well. How effective I don't yet know because I only just sprayed the paint last night and it still hasn't fully cured. The one downside so far is that they are very slightly oversized for some reason. Can be kicked into shape without the need for trimming but unexpected nonetheless.

 

Paul.

[fightersweep]

Actually, I've often pondered when at the bench how manufacturers such as Eduard, Peewit, Montex etc produce canopy masks. Are the specific canopies scanned or something to produce a mask that fits that particular product? I'm not very techy, so have no idea, but I was only thinking about this while fitting masks to a 1/72 Mitsubishi Ki-15 earlier today (masks from Dead Design Models and excellent they were too). The canopy is quite complex and small on this kit, but the masks fitted perfectly and got me wondering.....how do they do it? I'm sure it's not how I do it when making my own masks out of Tamiya tape. ie: Endless trial and error with heaps of expletives thrown in!

 

Steve

[TheKinksFan]

1 hour ago, Paul Thompson said:

Now I feel like an idiot.

There's never reason to feel like an idiot for giving help and advice.

I think I will probably order from hannant's after all, maketar has a webshop, but it's a bit alarming that some customers complain on their facebook page that they have never received what they ordered and emails get ignored. These kinds of masking sets will last for years, and as you said can be useful for other things than just canopies.

 

The oversized and undersized masks are an annoyance, the manufacturers should definitely test their product and make some adjustments. It's not like making changes in a mould, this should be relatively easy to do. Valom has some very interesting subjects. I'm interested in the Grumman Duck, but the negative reviews scare me off, especially a canopy that is the wrong width.

43 minutes ago, fightersweep said:

I was only thinking about this while fitting masks to a 1/72 Mitsubishi Ki-15 earlier today (masks from Dead Design Models and excellent they were too).

Is it the Fine Molds 1/48 kit or the Hasegawa 1/72? These Japanese machines and camouflage schemes are utterly fascinating. I have an AZ Model Ki-30 reserved, along with a Dead Design Models mask set. Excellent masks and not so excellent kit.

[fightersweep]

3 minutes ago, TheKinksFan said:

Is it the Fine Molds 1/48 kit or the Hasegawa 1/72? These Japanese machines and camouflage schemes are utterly fascinating. I have an AZ Model Ki-30 reserved, along with a Dead Design Models mask set. Excellent masks and not so excellent kit.

 

The kit I have is the old 1/72 LS Mitsubishi Ki-15 "Kamikaze". It's a still a lovely little kit. Crisply moulded and fits like a dream. I have a feeling Hasegawa re-boxed this kit at some point. The Dead Design Models masks are excellent too. First time I've used them and it won't be the last, especially as they cover a lot more of the obscure Japanese types. I've also got a mask set from them lined up for a Fujimi Mitsubishi Dinah. Looking forward to that build too.

 

Steve

[Paul Thompson]

6 minutes ago, TheKinksFan said:

 

The oversized and undersized masks are an annoyance, the manufacturers should definitely test their product and make some adjustments. It's not like making changes in a mould, this should be relatively easy to do. Valom has some very interesting subjects. I'm interested in the Grumman Duck, but the negative reviews scare me off, especially a canopy that is the wrong width.

 

To be fair it's possible Valom may have redone the transparancies. I don't know in this case, but they have a history of getting them oversized.  I've done a handfull of their kits and those are always the weak points (along with vague instructions regarding parts placement). Otherwise I think they're fairly decent so long as you treat them as limited run.

 

Paul.

[Fukuryu]

2 hours ago, fightersweep said:

I have a feeling Hasegawa re-boxed this kit at some point.

 

Hasegawa's Ki-15-I is an ex-Mania mould, no the very nice LS one, which is still available under the Microace brand and still cheap as dirt. They mould all the variants to boot.  

[fightersweep]

3 hours ago, Fukuryu said:

 

Hasegawa's Ki-15-I is an ex-Mania mould, no the very nice LS one, which is still available under the Microace brand and still cheap as dirt. They mould all the variants to boot.  

 

Thanks for the clarification. I've not seen the Hasegawa/Mania kit before, but I'm certainly impressed with the LS model. It's very nice for a kit from 1976!

[TheKinksFan]

14 hours ago, fightersweep said:

The kit I have is the old 1/72 LS Mitsubishi Ki-15 "Kamikaze". It's a still a lovely little kit. Crisply moulded and fits like a dream.

These old Japanese kits are often more crisp than the latest Airfix kits. And I don't say this because I'm anti-Airfix, on the contrary they are one of my absolute favorite manufacturers. But to think that Airfix kits will reach the high standards of Tamiya, is IMHO unrealistic. I think it would cost them too much, the molds that they use are obviously not the best and most durable. 

8 hours ago, fightersweep said:

12 hours ago, Fukuryu said:

Hasegawa's Ki-15-I is an ex-Mania mould, no the very nice LS one, which is still available under the Microace brand and still cheap as dirt. They mould all the variants to boot.  

 

Thanks for the clarification. I've not seen the Hasegawa/Mania kit before, but I'm certainly impressed with the LS model. It's very nice for a kit from 1976!

Like Fukuryu mentioned these Microace/Arii are very cheap on plazajapan and hobbylinkjapan. Unfortunately I have some kind of reluctance to build kits of this era, there's very little aftermarket stuff available, only a Yahu IP for this Ki-15. Of course once you close the canopy practically nothing will be seen. Did you use the kit engine which is quite poor? Probably not much of it is visible either. I have this constant conflict between the scale I prefer (1/72) and the scale that the most modern and detailed kits are available in (1/48). I would enjoy more the building of the Fine Molds kit, but on the other hand I would get more enjoyment from looking at the 1/72 kit on the shelf. 

[fightersweep]

2 hours ago, TheKinksFan said:

Unfortunately I have some kind of reluctance to build kits of this era, there's very little aftermarket stuff available, only a Yahu IP for this Ki-15. Of course once you close the canopy practically nothing will be seen. Did you use the kit engine which is quite poor? Probably not much of it is visible either. I have this constant conflict between the scale I prefer (1/72) and the scale that the most modern and detailed kits are available in (1/48). I would enjoy more the building of the Fine Molds kit, but on the other hand I would get more enjoyment from looking at the 1/72 kit on the shelf. 

 

Just so happens that I have the Yahu Ki-15 instrument panel in my Hannants basket waiting to be bought. There is also the Dead Design canopy mask as well that is very helpful. Yes. The engine is a bit basic on the LS kit, but it's barely visible once built. I may add some detail, but to be honest, a bit of detail painting on the cylinders will probably suffice. I may add a little bit of cockpit detail too, but again, very little of that will be seen once finished.  

[TheKinksFan]

2 hours ago, fightersweep said:

Just so happens that I have the Yahu Ki-15 instrument panel in my Hannants basket waiting to be bought. There is also the Dead Design canopy mask as well that is very helpful. Yes. The engine is a bit basic on the LS kit, but it's barely visible once built. I may add some detail, but to be honest, a bit of detail painting on the cylinders will probably suffice. I may add a little bit of cockpit detail too, but again, very little of that will be seen once finished. 

I'm a big fan of Yahu instrument panels. In this case it even should fit without filing. Some time ago I ordered a so called 'sanding pen' from aliexpress. Its a bit like dremel but cheaper and less powerful. It's handy when the Yahu IP is a little bit too big (which often is the case), using a file it's pretty slow to trim the edges.