Bare Metal Foil.

[Ramfins59]

Is it just me, or does it seem that since they improved the adhesive on the back of the "New Improved Chrome" BMF that it almost sticks too good now..?? It's sometimes stubborn when trying to get the excess foil off, and there seems to be a lot more "glue residue" where it was removed. I'm not complaining about it as I'd much rather have it stick well than not.

[PappyD340]

Yep, I have noticed that too Rich, especially after you burnish it down real good, I had that to happen a couple times on my Fairlane build!

[cobraman]

Count me in as one who has noticed the same thing. Fact is I messed up a paint job trying to remove a small sliver of a section on one of my last wips.I used a toothpick and managed to scrape some paint. I hate to foil to begin with and now I hate it more.

[Harry P.]

I also think it sticks almost too well... it's tough to get the excess off.

But my biggest complaint is that when you apply it to a mirror-smooth surface and burnish it down, it still has a slightly bumpy texture.

[PappyD340]

Yes I have noticed that too Harry!!

[Craig Irwin]

Still looks better then Testors chrome silver.

[jbwelda]

>Still looks better then Testors chrome silver.

not really; imo its highly overrated and a real pain to use and get a decent result. thank goodness for modern cars with color matched trim.

[Patrick2005]

Thats why I like building late models now....... no chrome! lol But I've noticed the adhesive issue as well, thought maybe the paint wasn't fully dry enough yet or something.

[jbwelda]

I should add that I am currently faced with a long put off BMF session...and dreading it.

Unfortunately notwithstanding what I may have said earlier in this thread, it does look better than Testors Chrome Silver!

[Guest]

>Still looks better then Testors chrome silver.

not really; imo its highly overrated and a real pain to use and get a decent result. thank goodness for modern cars with color matched trim.

Never had a problem with original BMF. They have a shinier version of chrome, Ultra foil I think it is called, that is thick and sticky, but original, no issues.

Edited November 26, 2013 by midnightprowler

[ChrisBcritter]

That bumpiness issue has made me end up using regular aluminum foil with Micro Foil Cement. Larger trim pieces especially seem to come out smoother.

[espo]

The Ultra Bright Chrome seems to work a little better. Some one had said that they tried a produce called Goo Away using a Q-tip and was abele to clean it up without hurting the paint. I have not tried it for that yet, but I had some I gat at Home Depot for removing those stickers on new kitchen products. You might give that a try.

[Skydime]

When I paint black trim, I lay down some masking tape as an edge so I don't paint over onto the body color. Maybe use this same trick so the extra foil just comes right up with the tape? I also find that if the masking tape has too much adhesive, I can stick it to a flat surface and pull it off to rid it of some the stickiness.

PS

If we start getting some good suggestions, maybe we should put this in the questions section.

Edited November 28, 2013 by Skydime

[cobraman]

I would like to chime in again about BMF. Today I spent 2 1/2 hours foiling my Trumeter Falcon kit. Now since I am kind of cheap with the BMF I normally trim it before I apply it trying to use only as much as I need to do whatever part or area I am foiling. After laying down the first piece and burnishing it down I went to trimming. Very tough to "pick" up the end to peel back the excess. I was able finally using a toothpick to get it off without doing any damage to the paint. For my next section ( I was doing the side trim ) I cut a piece that overlapped by a fair amount. I pressed it down lighty into place and then trimmed it. I had more excess material to grab and it came off pretty clean. I then burnished it down better. So for me, if I don't be so stingy when applying the BMF to begin with I seem to have better luck.

[Tom Geiger]

So for me, if I don't be so stingy when applying the BMF to begin with I seem to have better luck.

Amen, most of the time when guys complain about BMF I can trace their problem back to being stingy with the materials. Figure it's $7 a sheet and you get roughly two cars out of it. And maybe 50% waste. And that's just life.

[martinfan5]

Might as well just flush $3.50 down the toilet

Edited November 28, 2013 by martinfan5

[scalemodeler]

Yea I noticed that too. Now if I can only find a good way to remove it. Used some tonight on a black lacquer paint job. Had a heck of a time getting it off while being gentle with the paint

[Speedfreak]

I just got through BMFing a car with the 'regular' chrome I recently purchased. If you don't get everything right the first time, and I mean everything, and you have to do some additional trimming you are in trouble. The addhesive is very hard to get up and once you do, it leaves behind a residue that, if you've used acrylic clear at least, will mar the paint surface and will not (in most cases) come off. Given all that until someone comes up with a more realistic chrome I will continue to use it.

[Art Anderson]

Is it just me, or does it seem that since they improved the adhesive on the back of the "New Improved Chrome" BMF that it almost sticks too good now..?? It's sometimes stubborn when trying to get the excess foil off, and there seems to be a lot more "glue residue" where it was removed. I'm not complaining about it as I'd much rather have it stick well than not.

I've been using BMF since 1970, when Eldred Mason, founder of the company, sent a sample sheet to the hobby shop where I was managing the plastic model and HO railroading departments. I was hooked almost immediately on the stuff.

"Adhesion" of Bare Metal Foil has almost always been a bit of an issue: Either the stuff didn't stick well, or it stuck too tight, at times. I must admit, though, that I've seldom ever had a problem with the adhesive leaving any residue on a paint job. I know others have reported it, but for me I simply can't remember when the last time it was that I experienced the issue. However, I've always been able to simply polish any traces of the adhesive away with a bit of soft cloth.

Art

[Tom Geiger]

Might as well just flush $3.50 down the toilet

Oh, them is fighting words!

Like I said above, every BMF problem I hear about comes from people being cheap with the product. It's like doing wall to wall carpet, there will be a fair amount of waste. I was watching a show about hard wood floors and they quoted 1/3rd waste of product.

Here's what I've seen...

TRYING TO CUT A PIECE OF BMF TO MATCH THE SIZE YOU NEED... You will never get the size right. And you will never put it down right the first time. That leads to lifting it up and putting it down again, and touching glue that you will use. All problems. To do a piece like a length of side trim, cut a piece of BMF THREE times as wide as you need, and a bit longer than you need. The length must be long enough that when you touch the BMF on either end, the parts where you touched the glue with your fingers must get cut off as waste. The three times width assures that you will get it to cover the piece the first time you put it down. Never ever lift and replace.

Which leads to these bits of info...

NEVER USE A PIECE THAT YOU HAVE TOUCHED THE GLUE. Once you have gotten finger oils on the glue, it's waste. Cut that part off.

NEVER LIFT AND PLACE AGAIN. Once you've put it down, it's down. When you lift and reposition, the glue won't have the original strength, and it's likely you've put wrinkles in the product that will be difficult to iron out.

NEVER RETURN A PIECE TO THE BACKING SHEET. I've seen guys post that once they cut the overage from a piece on their model, they return it to the backing sheet to use again. Wrong! See the last two entries. It's already compromised, it will never work right in the future.

SETTLING FOR BAD RESULTS. I've seen a lot of wrinkled BMF. Guys will say, "Well it was down and I didn't want to waste another piece." Guess what? The magic of BMF is that you get unlimited do overs! If a piece doesn't look right, take it off and use a new piece to try again. It's not wasted if it looks good.

And a word about cutting... as is common knowledge, use a new number 11 blade. Some folks paint the sides of it black so you can see it against the foil. That's a good idea. I've done this with black Sharpie. And here's where people go wrong.. guys mar their paint, etc by using too much pressure on the knife. BMF is thin and cuts sooo easy! All you need to do is put the knife down close to the trim and trace your line like you are using a pencil. Just lightly trace along. That's enough to cut the foil, and not enough to destroy your finish!

Concentrate on making your model look good, not how much product you will use. You will get good results and you will use less product as you get better.

Edited November 28, 2013 by Tom Geiger

[crazyjim]

AD Lassiter of Model Car Creations has made a fantastic BMF tool from a popsicle stick. It works much better than a toothpick. He's planning on making and selling them. I'll try to post something when he's up and running.

[slusher]

A piece of masking tape will pull off the excess everytime...

[Peter Lombardo]

I have found that applying a small amount of model car wax on on a soft cloth, and working it over the area with excess glue, the glue comes off and it shines up the area, as a side benefit....It also releaves the fear of damaging the paint job ......You can also try, applying some wax to the body area next to where the chrome trim is going before applying the BMF, this makes the excess BMF easier to pick up after it is cut away from the area that is to be chromed because the wax creates a slippery barrier between the paint and the glue on the BMF . This has worked for me, and it may work for you.

[crazyjim]

Novus #1 (blue bottle) also works.

[freakshow12]

I agree with Tom 100%. I use ALOT of foil. I have at least 6 sheets on hand at all times. I always foil after paint and clear as well. To me it looks more realistic than it covered under clear but that's a whole other debate lol. I always go wide enough that once burnished down there are edges that are not stuck. Makes it easy to pull off. I also found a little trick for you Harry regarding texture. When you are pulling the strip off the backing you should be pulling it over itself. But when I do that I hold a q tip and pull against it gently. It seems to take the texture away. Know what I mean? It's hard to explain. Maybe a few pics are required. This may help bust the slump lol