Masking with tape and paper

The Russian submarine is to receive a red nose. Seems very fitting for the time of year, maybe I should call him Rudolf?

I started by putting Tamiya masking tape around the areas that need to be painted.
Make sure you really rub the tap against the model, to ensure as little paint as possible will creep under it. There's nothing more annoying than removing the masking tape and finding out you need to start over.

In the corners, where one piece of tape overlaps another, pay extra attention and really burnish it down. Because the bottom tape "pulls up" the top one, this is the most likely place where paint will seep underneath.
I measured the Tamiya tape at 0.008 mm thick (0.0035 inch).

(One "trick", which I won't use this time, is to spray a layer of "clear" alongside the tape)

Tamiya masking tape to identify the area to be painted.

Then I took a piece of paper and cut it roughly the shape of the upper part of the nose. It takes a lot of trial and error : tape the paper down on one side, fold it over to the other, cut it to the right length, tape it on the other side, make small incisions to more easily fold the paper, more cutting, taping, recutting and retaping, ...

Paper to cover bigger area's

The rest of the model is safe in one big piece of paper, folded around the hull and stapled shut. More tape is used to secure it near the front and we're ready for painting.

Don't go sparingly on the amount of paper you use. Best to cover the entire model. Don't think you only need to mask the first half, because you'll be able to direct the paintspray in one direction.
Trust me, I have bottles and tools all over my workbench, covered with tiny specs of paint, up ta half a meter away from where I'm painting. Better to be safe than sorry.

More paper to cover the rest of the model

All this masking, by the way, is the reason I have not yet added the antenna's, periscope and other details on the conning tower. I can safely do that when all masking, painting and varnishing is completed.