Using tape for masking

[Don Young]

I am just starting to use tape for masking areas on plastic and wood for color filling and apparently I am using the wrong tape. It is a low tack tape by R-tape that someone recommended. When I use it, it doesn't have enough "stick" to overcome the air blower so the center of the letters that have an internal space (ie o,a,e...) the center blows out and can't be put in to fill.
I also thought I could use the adhesive covering that comes on the plastic as a mask but that seems to just burn onto the plastic and can't be removed. :confused:
Simple question with what I expect is a simple answer. I just don't know what it is and this forum is so good at making my life easier.

[Richard Rumancik]

The type of tape you use depends on the material. For wood I usually use a high-tack tape. Low tack may be suitable for plastics.

Edit: Even for wood it depends on the type of finish. If bare wood you need the highest tack tape. Sometimes it just won't adhere. You need to experiment. Also, if you use any cleaners, that can affect adhesion. If you have used Pledge or something similar on a wood item tape might not adhere as well. I found that after cleaning acrylic with Novus plastic cleaner the tape won't stick well at all.

[Mike Null]

Depending on the substrate I use transfer paper which is a low tack material. I do not use this for any area that I wish to paint fill. For me this tape is for protecting surfaces. You'll get better results if you use a squegee to apply it.

As Richard says, if for raw wood you'll have to use a high tack paper or material.

[Dan Hintz]

For plastic, I tend towards medium tack transfer tape... a little water spritz after color fill lets it fall right off.

[Tim Bateson]

I use low tack tape 35% and blue painter's tape 65% - depending on the substrate. Next time I buy tape it will be medium tack.