I’m working on the MPC 1978 Dodge Monaco CHP model kit and the black trim on the side of the car has a thin chrome edge to it. Also so does the parking lights. How would you paint this? In my previous models where the lights were bigger it was easier to mask for the chrome edge and then mask again for the orange/red. Since this door trim is so thin how would you do this so the trim is black but with a thin chrome on the edge? Same with the parking lights the chrome trim area is so thin. I don’t think any paint markers would work for this.
Is the part that’s supposed to be black lower than the chrome edges like it appears to be on the real car? If it is, you could start by painting the entire trim piece black (which you would have to do if using Alclad anyway), then carefully run a bead of liquid mask into the low area in the center. Then lay down the chrome Alclad. You need to do at least 3 layers of the liquid mask (let dry about 15 minutes between layers) in order to be able to easily peel the liquid mask after the chrome on top is cured. Use a toothpick to start the mask edge peeling, then grab with tweezers and carefully peel it off. As long as your chrome coat is nice and thin, you won’t have to worry about little chunks of the edge of the chrome accidentally coming off with the dried masking fluid. If the black area is higher, it can still be done the same way, it’ll just be more difficult to get a nice, straight edge.
For thin chrome lines it is hard to beat the Molotow chrome pens. You still need to mask and seal the mask edges, but the pen sure beats having to airbrush on a coat of Alclad.