I picked up a handy item a while back from Michael’s Crafts- an “EK Success” 9x12 gridded glass cutting mat, made of tempered glass with a rounded edge. I got mine for less than $13.00, but WalMart online has them for only $15.86 with free shipping to the nearest store. I have been using this mat for decal cutting and also for cutting masking tape. Clean it with 91 alcohol, to get rid of any tape residue. I put some small round adhesive feet on the bottom, to keep it off surfaces. This works much better than a simple piece of glass pane, such as a picture frame. It is safer (edges) and more durable.
Cedarwoodron
I have been using Shelf Glass (probably the same thing that the Craft Stores Sell) for years!
It is a 9 x 12 w/rounded edges & corners!
Picked it up a Pennys - they were getting rid of old store displays.
In fact we picked up about 150 or so pieces of this glass - the our local MRR Club used the larger pieces for edging around the Lionel Layout!
BOB H - Clarion, PA
I have been using a bathroom medicine cabinet mirror sliding glass door for year’s 1/4 thick and safe rounded edges. The good part is when you test a loco’s wheels on it you could see a lot more of the underside. If I don’t want to use the mirror, I cover it with a large self healing matt same size as glass.
[:D]
Frank
I used to use plate glass, too. Then I discovered a self-healing mat with all kinds of angles and curves and scales printed on it. It was with my wife’s sewing stuff. I swiped it and never looked back. Well, okay, I have since returned it and bought my own mat.
The issue with “self-healing” cutting mats, where a layer of hard plastic is sandwiched between two softer top and bottom layers, is that when cutting a piece of masking tape, for example, the cut action pushes the tape into the surface and slightly distorts the tape cut which results. Same goes for cutting decal paper- it does the same thing, and leaves uneven and imprecise cuts through the paper backing. When cutting on glass, the knife hits a hard impenetrable surface and there is no chance of the material being cut being pulled into the cut line.
I use a variety of different masking tape media for my painting projects- vinyl tapes, standard masking tapes, blue light tack masking tapes, etc. All of these react the same way when being cut on a self-healing mat.
I strive for precision in masking a project for painting; often, using two or three separate masking procedures as I apply different paint colors. Just a little unevenness in a masked line will result in overspray that must then be covered by the second color later on. This builds an unnecessary additional paint layer at the border of the color boundary, which can be visible after the work is done. Subsequent touch up attempts- paint removal or another overpaint of the boundary, do not usually result in satisfactory precision.
That is why I suggest the glass mat surface- it enhances precision, which can greatly add to the end result of a paint job- clean and crisp color boundaries; just like- or even- better than the commercially produced paint work we often pay dearly for in a detailed model.
Cedarwoodron
I don’t use the self- healing matt to cut decals. I use a frosted white glass drafing table w/light and built in t-square that I used when I went to school for machine design. The mirror and matt are used for building and repairing things at the work bench, which is rather long.
[:D]
Frank