Collection: Masking Tape

A masking tape has the opposite specification to a mounting adhesive: it must hold just as long as necessary, then come off without residue and without tearing the substrate. Its entire formulation follows from that.

The 17 references in the catalogue

• General masking: 3M 202, 244, 2525, 2328.
• UV resistant and outdoor: 3M 2814.
• Sandblasting: 3M 500.
• Vinyl and sharp lines: 3M 767, 471.
• Masking films: 3M Hand-Masker AMF99-8C, pre-taped film.

See also our single-sided tapes, our polyester tapes and our protective films.

Baking temperature drives the choice

It is the decisive criterion in industrial painting. An ordinary paper tape degrades in the oven and leaves a baked-on residue that is very hard to remove.

Each tape carries a maximum temperature and an associated duration: the two go together. Ten minutes at 120 °C and one hour at 120 °C are not equivalent. Beyond that, a polyester tape takes over.

Getting a sharp line

A sharp edge does not depend on the tape alone. Three steps make the difference. Press down the application edge, and only that edge, to stop paint creeping underneath. Do not load the first coat of paint along the tape. And remove the tape while the paint is still slightly fresh, at a low angle: on a fully dry film, it breaks in a jagged line.

Time in place

A masking tape left in place well beyond its intended duration becomes very hard to remove, especially in sunlight. For a job that stretches out, a UV-resistant outdoor tape avoids spending more time removing tape than painting.