DIY Decals.............Any one tried doing them?

[Pappa Midnight]

Trawling around the net lookng for suitable WW2 decals I've noticed quite a few places doing "Decal Paper" to create dry and waterslide decals.
Has anyone tried this?
I can see a lot of potential for some of my projects ranging from custom nose-art for my Star Mogul Drop-ship to Russian Slogans for my Weird War Walkers.

PM

[Svennn]

I am currently using the sheets from Hannants. I have clear and white papers as I do not have a fancy printer with white ink but it is still not possible to some designs.

I bought the ones specifically for inkjet printers but oddly could not get them to print smoothly on my HP photo printer but they work fine with a Brother Lazer  (which is unfortunately only mono)?

A good decal film is a must. The instructions suggest using spray varnishes and such like but these do not seem to work for me whereas Microsol is brilliant. You can actually make decals just with this stuff but its fiddly.

I say go for it, they are great fun and can tax the brain in a good way planning how to get images to work.

[Weird WWII]

I had a bunch of German vehicle license plates made up for all my various trucks, cars and 1/2 tracks and they looked really good but they didn't hold up well when gamed with.  I even used decal sealant and they still cracked after a while and just flaked off.  I ended up just painting them on instead

Brian

[vikotnik]

I have some sheets of laser-printable decal paper around here and used them on my 15mm elves. I like the result very much. On gaming figures, it can be a real time-saver!

I applied them using Future Floor Wax as transfer liquid. After drying overnight, I coated them with 2-3 coats of it before varnishing.  

You can see them here:

http://www.displacedminiatures.com/vikotnik/image.html?galleryId=1686&imageId=17828

[Pappa Midnight]

Thanks for the replies. Sounds like a bit of a mixed opinion.
I'll probably buy a sheet or two and have a play.

BTW: Vikotnik, those have come out really well!

Regards
PM

[WillieB]

Papa Midnight,

Go for it by all means.

I've made literally hundreds of (Late Roman 28mm) decals using clear Trimfilm coated with two airbrushed layers of Microscale Liquid Decal Film and never had one break or flake off.

After painting give your figures a good gloss varnish coat and apply the decals to that glossy surface.

Soak decals in lukewarm water for a few seconds and let the glue dissolve.

Cut as closely as possible to the decal and apply with lots of water, preferably with a bit of vinegar in it.
Alternatively use the Microscale Sol and Set method. Use a brush to position the decal.

Once the decal has set another light coat of gloss varnish to seal everything and also to get rid of the unsightly surround.
 After 24 hours- depending on your gloss varnish- a good coat of matt varnish - I use Testors- and you won't be able to see the difference between your decal and a painted design.

[CompanyB]

I've done all types, and now contract it out  

You can also try letraset
http://www.letraset.com/design/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=130&cat=Colour

They will create a silkscreened dry transfers from your art.  I've done sheets through them before (since your in the UK, shipping will be cheaper!)  you get a big sheet.  8 x 14 i think, so you can get a lot of folks to piggyback with you.

The nice think about those, and silk screened sets (like our decals!) are that they will hug the surface of the models well, and you can use a softener if needed to bring our details underneath, like rivets, panel lines, etc.

The ink jet decals work fine.  just do as the suggestions above.  Apply to a gloss surface, plenty of sealant.  i do have some models though where those start to crack after about 6 years or so.  These decals tend to be a bit thicker.  But never really to big of an issue.

Brent
Company B

[vikotnik]

I've done all types, and now contract it out  

...  Apply to a gloss surface, plenty of sealant.  ...
Company B

Yep. Completely forgot to mention the coat of varnish(or Future) that has to be applied before the decal is added.
 :roll:

[sTeZel]

I am having no success whatsoever!  I am
using Crafty Computer Paper's inkjet decal sheet, and I have tried
printing on my Canon i850 at home, and an HP 970 at work.  The results
are awful.  The ink sort of gives a crazy-paving appearance, and there
is virtually no opacity - the decal just disappears when you place it on
a model.




_________________
custom screen print| SEO-SEM Services
 

[Westfalia Chris]

The ink sort of gives a crazy-paving appearance,

This is usually due to either the printer only offering limited resolution, or your master image file using not enough resolution. 300dpi is a minimum if working with conventional (pixel) image software, 600-1200dpi would be better if your printer can manage it, and generally vector graphics images would be the best solution, but those are difficult to get into and use properly.

and thereis virtually no opacity - the decal just disappears when you place it on a model.

That is due to the fact that the printer cannot manage a white undercoat which is possible with "real decal" printing. Home-printed decals only fully work on a single-colour, comparatively light surface, unless the decals mainly composed of black parts.