1:35 Comet - Bronco

1:35 Comet wheel masking set (Quickwheel, for the Bronco kit)

A sheet of masking templates that separate the rubber tire band on the road wheel from the rim during painting. This is neither a kit nor a replacement wheel, but an accessory for the painting stage. The cutouts are cut for the wheels from the Comet tank model by Bronco.

How to check the result against the light

The quickest check on masking work is done before you spray at all. Take the wheel with the mask in place, hold it up to a point source of light, a desk lamp or a window, and look at a slant across the edge of the mask. Wherever the mask has not seated, a thin bright line shows between it and the plastic, and that is exactly where the paint will bleed under. Most often this happens where a remnant of a molding seam has been left, or where the wheel has a pronounced tread and the mask bridges a recess. Such a spot only needs pressing down with a blunt toothpick or a wooden skewer. After spraying and unmasking, the same test is worth repeating: the wheel held up to the light shows whether the line is equally wide all the way around and whether it has disappeared anywhere altogether. Looking down at it on the bench, the eye is willing to overlook small deviations; against the light it sees them at once.

Painting tips

Paint and unmask the wheels before you fit them into the running gear, as they are harder to reach afterwards. Apply the paint in thin coats and take the mask off while it has flashed off. A light dust and mud with pigments at the end helps blend the transition between tire band and rim.

Who the set is for

• Builders of the British Comet tank in 1:35 scale
• Modelers who want a sharp, even border on every wheel
• Those who like to check their work as they go, not only by the result
• Anyone for whom lining tire bands by hand takes too long

A painting accessory, not a kit. Paints and thinners are not included in the package.