Tape to cover seams?

[cvanp]

Hey everyone,

Our set has a bunch of seams in it because of the way it was constructed... now the question is, how do we cover and eliminate these seams? It's been a pretty consistent vote for tape even though in my history with it, tape tends to bubble up and become noticeable. Still, tape seems to be what people want to use, they don't want to deal with any kind of filling material.

So my question - is there a certain kind of tape we can use to cover the seams that won't bubble up and will be paintable?

Thanks!

[Van]

When Dutchman-ing, I've found using 3" masking tape will work but you want the blue stuff. I'm also a big fan of using Latex Painters Caulk. If you build a set in a shop, slice the seems, load it onto a truck, then re-assemble in the theatre , the caulk can be a God send. Internal seams on a flat are best dealt with, with Bondo, as Joint compound tends to be too fragile for transport.
But if everyone is married to the tape Idea, the wider the better.

I don't think Dutchman is in the Wikki yet I'll have to fix that. Dutchman-ing flats used to be done with strips of muslin dipped into glue. You would apply the dutchman over the seam in question, working out all the bubbles with a paint brush. you would then paint over everything. Worked really well in bigger theatres. Now days we tend to spend a whole lot more time working on seams, as the set I'm working on right now would attest to.

[deadlygopher]

We still do the muslin in glue method of dutchman. It looks great when done well, but it is very hard to get right. I hope I'll figure it out someday, but we have a freshman who is good at it, so I don't really have to.

[avkid]

If you're in the mood for fun you could you use fiberglass tape and drywall joint compound.

[punktech]

i don't really see why the people you're working with think that tape will be any easier, you'll still have to spend a considerable amount of time taping the seams, it's hard to work the bubbles out and get a straight tape line. personally i'd prefer to spend that time on a joint compound, as it would look nicer in the end.

[cvanp]

punktech: that's my argument, but it hasn't worked so far.

[Van]

Originally Posted by punktech

i don't really see why the people you're working with think that tape will be any easier, you'll still have to spend a considerable amount of time taping the seams, it's hard to work the bubbles out and get a straight tape line. personally i'd prefer to spend that time on a joint compound, as it would look nicer in the end.

Yes but the mess factor is greatly reduced with Tape. Still Latex painters caulk is my preferred method.

[icewolf08]

I always enjoyed dutch-ing a set. Get all covered in glue and then peel it off your hands for hours. So much fun! Oh and it looks really nice too when done well.

[derekleffew]

Don't worry about the seams. The Lighting Designer will fix it.

[TupeloTechie]

our teacher likes to tape them with white gaff, then paint over it. the gaff dose not get bubbles and it somewhat matches the texture of the muslin on the flat, however it is still kinda noticeable.