Why No Official 1/24th-1/25th Scale Truck Decals?

[chuckyr]

So far as I know, there are very few large scale official decals for big rig trucks. I know there are some aftermarket guys doing some things, but someone like Microscale offer no 1/24th-1/25th scale truck decals. With all of the HO scale things Microscale has, it would seem very easy for them just to scale the art work up. Some current truck logos would go great with modern kits like the Italeri Peterbilts, Volvos and up coming Lonestar.

[Aaronw]

In general it has to do with copyright / trademark issues. There was a post fairly recently from a decal maker who used to do several truck logos who got a letter telling him to stop or face legal action. When he contacted them for official permission it wasn't even a matter of money, they just told him no.

Not sure how MS is doing HO scale, perhaps they got them lumped in with a general model RR deal, or they have just flown under the radar for now. The model railroaders have really been hit hard with this. Because of the many takeovers over the years they were having trademark issues with railroad logos long defunct but still maintained by the current owners.

Edited November 14, 2010 by Aaronw

[phoneguy]

So far as I know, there are very few large scale official decals for big rig trucks. I know there are some aftermarket guys doing some things, but someone like Microscale offer no 1/24th-1/25th scale truck decals. With all of the HO scale things Microscale has, it would seem very easy for them just to scale the art work up. Some current truck logos would go great with modern kits like the Italeri Peterbilts, Volvos and up coming Lonestar.

Scaling 1/87 artwork up to 1/24-25 is not as easy as one would think. I've already thought about it. I try to come up with different logos that have not been done before (for truck modelers). Learning to convert jpeg or gif into a scalable vector is something I am still in the process of doing. That is the main reason I'm not doing "custom" work at the moment, but if you have artwork ready, email me and we can discuss it.

As far as I know, currently there are only 3 of us doing 1/24 scale decals.

And as mentioned before, trademark issues are another thing we have to deal with. That is why I no longer print KW or Pete logos.

Edited November 14, 2010 by phoneguy

[SpreadAxle]

Not sure how MS is doing HO scale, perhaps they got them lumped in with a general model RR deal, or they have just flown under the radar for now. The model railroaders have really been hit hard with this. Because of the many takeovers over the years they were having trademark issues with railroad logos long defunct but still maintained by the current owners.

I heard about this. Union Pacific I believe was one of the names mentioned that created headaches, although they are now part of Southern Pacific.

[Mr mopar]

Scaling 1/87 artwork up to 1/24-25 is not as easy as one would think. I've already thought about it. I try to come up with different logos that have not been done before (for truck modelers). Learning to convert jpeg or gif into a scalable vector is something I am still in the process of doing. That is the main reason I'm not doing "custom" work at the moment, but if you have artwork ready, email me and we can discuss it.

As far as I know, currently there are only 3 of us doing 1/24 scale decals.

And as mentioned before, trademark issues are another thing we have to deal with. That is why I no longer print KW or Pete logos.

PM sent

[whale392]

Other way around.....Union Pacific is the holder of the Southern Pacific name.

[phoneguy]

PM sent

Reply sent.

[Art Anderson]

In general it has to do with copyright / trademark issues. There was a post fairly recently from a decal maker who used to do several truck logos who got a letter telling him to stop or face legal action. When he contacted them for official permission it wasn't even a matter of money, they just told him no.

Not sure how MS is doing HO scale, perhaps they got them lumped in with a general model RR deal, or they have just flown under the radar for now. The model railroaders have really been hit hard with this. Because of the many takeovers over the years they were having trademark issues with railroad logos long defunct but still maintained by the current owners.

One part of the reasons why no large decal makers have stepped into the making of decal sets for 1/24-1/25 scale big trucks is the numbers involved. With HO model railroading, there are many, many times more modelers who will buy them than those of us who build in larger scales. And even at that, Microscale doesn't make all that many decal sets for big rigs--and much of what they do are for older, often defunct truck lines given that with only a few exceptions, most HO scale rigs are from years and decades past--where copyright/trademark issues aren't anything to worry about.

Art

[chuckyr]

Came across this Dutch supplier. Some nice container decals for the Italeri kits.

scale:print

[BigBad]

Or just do what I did. Photograph the truck you want to model for locations of the logos. Take pictures up close of the stickers, logos, warnings, instructions, license plates, transport licenses, whatever you need for a nicely detailed model. Download them to your computer, scale them so they look right, refering the truck pictures. Then print them on a plain sheet of paper. Cut them up and tack them to your model with the blue gum tacky thing. If they look right print them on a decal sheet such as BareMetal or Testors white or tranparent material. Always remember, you need the transparent sheets for the model paint to show through, duh. If you need white color or pale colors, a printer does not print white, obviously, so mind that and print on those on white sheets. Once printed, leave them to dry thoroughly (if you don't the ink will run) and coat the decal sheet with decal coating so the ink does not come off when put in water. Metallic colors such as silver, gold and copper can be copied but won't be perfect or metallic. It worked for me!

[SpreadAxle]

Came across this Dutch supplier. Some nice container decals for the Italeri kits.

scale:print

That is great. Thanks for posting that.