painting your self in to a corner

[kasper]

Recently i built a garden gate, it was a marine theme with kelp,fish,crabs and so on.At the bottom of the gate I was going to incorperate some rocks from the beach,well buy the time i was ready for them it was to late ,I couldent figure out how to spray the gate with out getting paint on the rocks,so i ended up leaving the rock out.Anyway on to the next project,same theme only a sculpture about 6 feet tall and 2feet wide at the base.This time I will be incorperating rocks for the base and intertwinig them with steel.Any ideas on how i should tackle the painting process.Thanks in advance

[easilyconfused]

masking tape and paper is the old stand by to keep paint off areas you don't want them. If you use wide tape, you can lay it on the metal and trim it to the edge to keep the paint off the rocks. Seems to me there might be something you can brush on and peel off which would be easier. Might be my imagination/ wishes though.

[Rodney Skinner]

I use sheets of cardboard. It can cover a large area easily and moved quickly

[tzonoqua]

I second masking tape - paper coverings--

something to brush on and peel off I just had an idea that maybe you could use latex? Never used it in that context before, but did some molds in college with it and I think it could work. Comes in a liquid and you paint it on then it sets... then peel it off. Or even wax?

It depends how you "set" your stones/rocks. I always try to use thin stock that you can bend cold, that way you can coat/paint the metalwork, then set the stone/rock, then touch up with a fine brush any paintwork that has been disturbed.

[kasper]

Thanks for the come back so quickly.This is an out door piece,theirs will be alot depth and weaving of the kelp and eel grass[like the gate it is free form,the kelp and eel grass will create the borders].prepainting some of the pieces and bending the workable steel is a good idea and touch up later,i do mask and use the card board method.The wax or latex painted,sprayed or smeared on the rocks is a good thought,removing it later might be the hard part........THANKS for your time and thoughts

[jimmy seale]

if the rocks are smoth and non porous you could use vasaline then clean off later

[tzonoqua]

Hello again, forget I said wax, I don't know why I said that, I was just brainstorming a silly idea! (hindsight: wax would be a nightmare to try to peel off if it's the wrong kind of wax and not thick enough)

[kasper]

Vasaline might be the way to go ,Ive been involved in restoring engin rooms of old tug boats were thiers alot of brass ,copper,site glasses and so on which we would cover with vasaline and then spray the engin room,wipe the vasaline off later....thanks best regards