Bugatti Fan Posted December 8, 2024 Posted December 8, 2024 I am about to try printing my own decals. Already have a few sheets of decal paper and will be using an ink jet printer. Apart from knowing that white cannot be reproduced, I would like to benefit from the experience of those who have already printed their own in the past. Things like it they need to be sealed, products used etc. Any info would be very helpful to avoid any pitfalls. Thanks.
BK9300 Posted December 8, 2024 Posted December 8, 2024 People gave me a lot of good ideas in earlier thread of mine about decals. . . 1
Michael F Posted December 8, 2024 Posted December 8, 2024 Hi Noel, i print some decals for my models on my inkjet printer. For example for my Gulf Mustang. I needed some white background for the #´s and Gulf decals, so i printed them on white decalpaper and two of each on clear decalpaper. Printersettings: papertype - other inkjetpapers glossy, printquality - optimal. Let them dry for at least 4 hours and sealed them with a varnish for oil- or acryl paintings. A acrylic clear coat spray will work as well. After overnight drying i cutted the decals on the white paper thru the outer black and blue circles. I think it´s nearly impossible to cut around the circles without leaving some white edges visible. To get a sharped edge of the outer circles of decals i put a final layer with on clear printed decals. On the Mustang roof i needed three layers of white decals to cover up the black dividing line between the blue and orange paint. I put always a coat of clear on my finished models. That´s the way i do decalwork, maybe this is helpful for you? 3
Scott Eriksen Posted December 8, 2024 Posted December 8, 2024 6 hours ago, BK9300 said: People gave me a lot of good ideas in earlier thread of mine about decals. . . I made the Earle Asphalt decals on the Diamond Reo with inkjet decal paper 2
Bills72sj Posted December 9, 2024 Posted December 9, 2024 I have been making my own decals for years. I have used both clear and white decal paper designed for inkjet printers. I look for artwork, on the web, in the highest resolution I can find. That way when I shrink it, it will be crisp and clear. To eventually get the exact size I want, I use old school MSPaint program. It has the ability to reduce PRINT size as opposed to FILE size. Reducing the file, and/or "resizing" the file, KILLS the clarity and in most cases "pixelates" it. To conserve decal paper, I first print on regular copy paper so that I can finalize the eventual size of the decal AND adjust the left margin to place it slightly spaced from it neighboring decals. I print each individual decal in a row via multiple passes through the printer. I let the ink dry for 12-24 hours. I then cut the now completely printed portion from the sheet and transparent tape it to some dust free backing that can tolerate overspray. For clearing, I used to use Testors clear 9200 but it is no longer available. The odor of it lends itself to being an enamel clear. I spray a "mist" coat and let it flash for 10 minutes. I do not worry about the rough texture. I then spray a "wet" coat while holding the sheet vertical. I quickly lay the sheet horizontal ASAP. If I get the all the artwork covered in gloss, I quit while I am ahead. If I have some rough patches, I spritz those areas with the clear as soon as I notice them. I let the sheet dry, for 24 hours, undisturbed, in a dust free environment. I cut/trim each decal very precisely. I prep the painted surface with white vinegar on a cotton swab. I use a drop of Dawn dish soap in the decal water and let them soak a minute or so until the decal can just be disturbed from the backing paper. Once laid on the surface, the dish soap buys me a LOT of time to slide it into its precise location. I DAB (not wipe) away excess water with a (or multiple) dry cotton swabs. The dabbing method also assists in laying down the decal over curved or creased surfaces such as emblems. I find the "fresh" decals VERY tolerant of being pushed around, without breaking, even if I accidentally fold it over itself. Here are some examples: 3
Bugatti Fan Posted December 9, 2024 Author Posted December 9, 2024 Thank you for the feedback guys. Your suggestions will be a great help.
oldcarfan Posted December 10, 2024 Posted December 10, 2024 The previous posters have given good advice. The only thing I would add is to make sure the paper you get says its for ink jet printing. I bought some laser printer paper by accident and it didn't work, the ink just pooled up on the page. Speaking of ink, it isn't very opaque, so be sure and print several of each piece of artwork so you can layer it if need be. Also I print a "proof" page on regular paper to check sizes and make sure everything is lined up and not misspelled, I learned that the hard way. 1
peteski Posted December 10, 2024 Posted December 10, 2024 Yes, unlike the opaque paints/inks used in silk-screened decals, inks used in all consumer CYMK color printers (laser and ink jet, or even the Alps Micro dry printer) is translucent, and it relies on the print surface being white for proper color rendition. And yes, since ink jet ink is actually liquid, the printed surface has to be able to absorb the ink. Ink-jet specific decal paper has a special ink-absorbing layer on the surface. Laser printer decal paper does not - it has a smooth glossy surface, so liquid ink will just bead up on it. Laser printers use dry powder toners which are fused to the printed surface using heat (they are basically melted into the paper), so smooth glossy paper works well.
Bugatti Fan Posted December 11, 2024 Author Posted December 11, 2024 Thanks for the further suggestions Gary and Peter.
oldcarfan Posted December 11, 2024 Posted December 11, 2024 Also, I've done artwork on Word documents and printed them on a commercial Xerox printer and they work pretty well, though again you have to layer for best results. Laser ink isn't as transparent as ink jet, so layering two seems to be sufficient. Just a caution, I was warned very strongly that you must use laser paper only on laser printers. Apparently someone tried to use ink jet paper and it wrecked something expensive in the printer.
peteski Posted December 11, 2024 Posted December 11, 2024 1 hour ago, oldcarfan said: Apparently someone tried to use ink jet paper and it wrecked something expensive in the printer. Yes, that special ink-absorbing coating on the ink jet decal paper can get melted on the the laser printer's hot fuser roller, messing it up.
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