The Ship Model Forum

I wound up using masking tape (Tamy), laying it over the area and VERY carefully following the hatch circle scribe out the mask I wanted. Worked very well. Now for the straight lines.........

On occasion I have cut out thin circles of styrene with a compass, by scribing it round and round until it cuts through. This might work with masking tape but I've never tried it.

Gentlemen, despite your best efforts (and mine) I've made a complete mess of the situation with a few of the decals. So much so that I'm now looking at the possibility of actually painting on (by way of masking or some type of homemade stencil) the offending decals. The decals in question are the hull numbers which appear on the sail and the two sets of markings around the hatches. Have any of you gone this route and if so how did you go about it? I'm especially interested in how you might mask in order to paint a circle ? I think I've got a handle on the small straight lines but doing a white line circle around the hatches .........hmmmm?

I use the Future as the initial gloss coat, so essentially you're just putting Future on top of Future. After you flat coat it when the decals are dry, you can't tell it's there.

-Devin

Devin, how does the Future act on flat or semi-gloss surfaces? Is that something that dull cote takes care of?

Ed's procedure is exactly the way I do it, and have had great results.

One variation I tried once: on my USS Juneau, the paint on the decks had a bit of texture to it, enough that a simple gloss coat and setting solutions couldn't get the decal down tight enough to get rid of air pockets and the resulting silvering. What I did is take Future, brush on a coat, and then while the Future is still wet, apply the decal. You have to work quick to get the decal in position before the Future dries, but the results are no silvering at all.

-Devin

If I may add something to Ed's excellent instructions:

In step 11, once the decal has been positioned and has its light coat of setting solution do not touch the decal until it has completely dried. The setting solution softens it making it very susceptible to tearing or damage.

Thanks for the info Ed!

I'm sure you'll get better advice, but here's my .02:

Get one of those coffe cup warmers for your desk. Get a flat dish (like an ashtray or something) that will fit on the warmer. Put some warm water in it. Put the warmer on. Presto, long term source of warm water.

Get at least some Micro Set (or other brand) decal setting solution, you can also get some Micro Sol (or other brand) decal solvent solution.

1. Prep the model by either: Spraying with future or other gloss coat over the entire model or brush to the specific area to be aplied (if the finish is not already glossy). You'll have to make this call on a case by case basis. Normaly covering the entire model is better so you don't get noticeable variations in the finish when you put your final coat on, but for ships, since there are so few, I usuall spot apply the gloss (either airbrush or brush). Let the gloss dry. The gloss coat is what makes decals avoid "silvering", decals will have a problem on flat finishes.

2. Trim the decal carefully getting rid of as much carrier film as possible.

3. Work out how you are going to hold the decal while you apply it to the area so when it is ready you know what to do.

4. Place the decal in the warm water for between 5 - 10 secs depending on the thickness and the manufacturer of the decal. No easy way on this one, different decals will become free at different lengths of time in the water.

5. Brush some of the decal set solution onto the area of the model. Be careful I have had some marks left behind on some paint if I let the decal setting solution form a drip, so I spread it over the area getting the decal carefully.

6. Place the decal on a paper towel to absorb the excess water. Be careful not to let the paper towel move the decal off the carrier. You can typicaly remove the water by touching a corner of the towel to any water pooled on the decal. Brush a small amount of decal set on the decal, wait about 20 seconds.

7. I usually do all my moving of the decal while on it's carrier with tweasers of some kind, they make flat ones specifically for this purpose, but generally I use smaller ones.

8. Grab the decal correctly so sliding it off the carrier film onto the model is easy. I will either use a brush, the back side of a #11 blade or a toothpick to move the decal, depending on it's size and where it is going on the model.

9. Positioning is the biggest challenge, use some references on the model and plans to figure out where to place it. Decal set can be put on the decal once it is one the model to get it to "float" so you can move it if it starts to settle where you don't want it to be. Once I get the position correct, I touch a corner of paper towel near the decal to draw off the excess moisture without moving the decal.

10. With a damp lint free cloth, or with a damp brush, pat down on the decal to get rid of any air bubbles. If any persist or are in the middle of the decal and cannot be smoothed out, pop them with a needle and gently push down to get rid of the bubble. Be very careful here, positioning the decal is the most important part of this deal.

11. Finish with another light coat of decal setting solution.

12. After drying (several hours at a minimum - preferably overnite) you may need to use decal solvent to get the decal to settle into any surface details.

13. Once the decal is set and sucked down onto the model, finish the model with the appropriate product (either gloss or flat) to seal the decal in.

I think that's about it, but I am sure I have forgotten something.

Ed

A few questions about decals. What is the best way/method to apply them and is there a way to reduce or eliminate the shine on the decal material?