I’m looking for a good decal to use as a General Store sign, but unable to really find anything, so I thought I would create a custom decal for the sign. Does anyone have any good tips or products that work great to do this. Thanks.
I have produced several nice signs and general decals using the Evan Designs decal paper. This product is a little different than other decal papers in that it only comes with a white background. However, overspraying the finished decal with a solvent based clear coat will turn the white background clear permanently. If you want the white background to remain white, you just need to use an acrylic based clear coat.
The Evan Designs decal paper is designed for use in inkjet printers and does not require a sealer coat as the paper comes treated with a special coating that absorbs and locks in the inks. White letter signs and decals are easily created by placing white text over a colored background shape (circle, square, rectangle, etc.). Since the printer can’t print white, it simply prints nothing where the text is to be leaving the white background of the decal paper to show through the background color. I just renumbered several AT&SF hoppers by printing new white numbers over an oxide colored background. The Evan Designs paper is opaque enough that I didn’t even have to paint over the old numbers.
I’ve been using a computer program design to create greeting cards as it has tons of fonts and effects and is easy to use. However, there are all sorts of programs that will also work, even Paint or Word. Get yourself a package of five 8 1/2" by 11" sheets of Evan Designs decal paper and go for it. The last pack I purchased was $15 but that was about five years ago.
I don’t bother to make decals for structure signs. I just print them out with my inkjet printer on ordinary bond paper, cut them down to size, and attach them to the signboard with Duco cement. You can take a picture of a real sign with a digital camera, or find a sign on the Web, or make it yourself with Word. There is plenty of free software to resize, crop, adjust color, adjust contrast, and even fancier things. Microsoft Paint is quite useful, Picassa is very good with photographs, and GIMP can do nearly anything, if you can figure out how to work the program.
I built a Model Power natural gas tank that came with a large SHELL paper sign with white background, near impossible to cut out the letters to apply on the yellow tank. I tried my first home made decal using Word to make the image, printed with my HP inkjet on Testors clear background paper. That needs to be sprayed with Testors or similar fixing spray to keep the ink from running when wetted to apply. I was quite pleased with the result. The decal paper and spray were available at my local Hobby Lobby. I made another for a background building that had some minor streaks in it, not sure why.
The paper use can be optimized by ensuring the decal is at the very top of the page. Print, then cut it off square, and the remaining paper can be used next time.
EDIT: I’ll add a couple of former threads on decals:
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/t/215743.aspx
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/t/215879.aspx
I’m about to add a paper sign (as David suggests) to a background building that is a steel building with ribbed sides, where a flat sign will be better than a decal crawling over the ribs. I’ve printed it but not yet been able to get a the vivid blue background I want, so may try on photo paper to see if that adds snap to the color.
I have made quite a few decals. I’ve gone from an HP 722C (very old) to a Canon Pixma, both inkjets. Not surprisingly, the newer printer seems to produce nicer decals.
I used to use Microscale’s Liquid Decal Film, which comes in a jar and gets painted on. I found that the decals tended to bleed when I used it. Now, I seal my decals with Krylon clear satin finish spray. This is a much better, and much easier, solution.
I’ve used several different brands of paper, and really can’t say any of them was better than any other. Decal paper, of course, must match your printer. Inkjet decal paper won’t work with a laser, and vice versa.
Scotsman’s Tip: If you’re like me, you don’t make whole sheets of decals at a time. I use MS Word to assemble and scale images or to create text. I set the margins wide and high, so the decals all print at the top of the paper. Then, I use a flatbed paper cutter to cut the paper below the decals, leaving a clean, straight edge. I can feed the same sheet, shorter each time, through the printer until I use it all up.
A few months back, I noticed that inkjet decal paper was no longer available at the hobby shop where I normally bought it. The guy there said that he was having trouble getting it from his regular suppliers. I looked online at Walthers and a few others, and noticed the same problem. I eventually ordered a lifetime supply of the stuff, the 25-sheet package that was the smallest available, from www.decalpaper.com. Like all the other papers, it works about the same as, well, all the other papers.
As an avid kitbasher and decal maker (I use the Bel paper from Decalpaper.com), I would enjoy expanding my knowledge of best practices, as I have only successfully printed in color (my railroad herald) for white boxcar or white styrene backrounds, or in darker colors (dark green thru black) for lettering alone. Perhaps (hint, hint, Steve Otte) MR could assemble an “emphemeral” how-to article and guide on this for a future issue (I am an MR subscriber) that could help out with info. But- please address custom white lettering work-arounds (other than the tired old info on the no-longer-made-ALPS printers) that are effective, other than use of dry transfer lettering.
Cedarwoodron
Mr. B,
I have a HP ENVY 4500, that I got three months ago, so far, it’s great, crisp and clear. Print,Scan,copy and Photo.
Frank
I use Serif PagePlus, generate a background, then add text, sometimes overlay the background as a third layer. Save as bitmap,shrink to fit and print. Spray the back with contact cement and apply. The third layer depends on if you want it to look faded or not, does nothing else.
David,
I, too, have made signs by simply printing out my design on bond paper or glossy photo paper with acceptable results. However, I prefer the much smoother surface finish I get using decal paper when I need a foreground sign. It is also easier to hide/disguise the edges of the much thinner decal paper. Finally, a little decal softening solution can make a decal sign conform to irregular mounting surfaces (like brick walls, weld seams, rivets, etc.) without fear of damaging the sign. By the time you get a bond paper sign thin and wet enough to snuggle into an irregular surface, the ink will run and/or the paper will start to come apart.
So far, I haven’t printed any decals, but when I want to make my own custom signs, I just use a word processor or Powerpoint to create the signs, then instead of printing them on copier/printer paper, I print them on gloss photo paper. This makes the edges razor sharp. After the ink has plenty of time to dry, I seal them with Dull-Cote or Krylon’s flat finish.
I’m curious on how or where to get a decal printer, How much are they?
I was wondering as SP&S decals are slowly disappearing in N and I’d like to print my own seeing as how Microscale or any other decal producer would bother making more.
Gary,
There are many Printers, Scanners, copiers out there. I have an all purpose HP Envy 4500, INK-JET all in one and so far, no complaints, mine is set up for wireless. Your call and pocket book.
Frank
Edit: I forgot to insert the link:
I should add, that I originally got it so I can scan and print my thousands of 35mm pic’s I have of my trucks and custom cars, my Avatar is from a 35mm pic. printed on the printer. Now I’m hooked on making my own decals.
Thanks frank, I searched for the one you have at only 100 bucks.It’d probably be the best investment I’ve made yet for the 1:1 and the 1:160 worlds.
Remember, none of today’s standard printers, either inkjet or laser, can print white. They all assume you are printing on white paper, so the color balance is set for that. If you print a decal on clear decal paper and then apply it to a dark surface, you will not get the colors you saw on your screen.
You can get white-backed decal paper, but then you need to trim the edges where you don’t want white.
Or, you can paint a white rectangle on the model and apply the decal to that. This works very well, but if you’re trying to create white lettering on a dark background, you still have to match the color exactly, which isn’t easy.
Mr. B.
Thanks for the tip, I was aware of that and already have been experimenting, on ways around that without trimming. Looks promising so far. I have a very good friend, who now is retired and worked for American Decal as a Graphic Designer and he already has been showing me how to work around that and still have white. Funny, what my original idea was to get the printer, in the first place.
Frank
I had difficulty with the Evans design paper. You see I followed the directions exactly to the T, put it on a glossed paint surface, let it sit for days, and they still peel off like bandaids. The microscale decals I purchase do not do this, so it is not the surface; it’s the Evans design paper.
I purchased laserjet decal paper from a seller on ebay. He offere white and clear. I made my decals using Word, printed them on paper to check for size etc then took the files on a memory stick to a local Staples. They printed it out on one of their laserjets. Since my decal was only black and white they did not use a color printer. The black turned out to be closer to grimy black then jet black which to me was an unexpected benefit.
By the way I used the white decal paper but next time I may try the clear and paint the background white where needed before applying the decal. Between the Solvaset and moving the decals around corners the white showed through in a couple of spots. I corrected by dry brushing with grimy black. Also painting the background, I’d be able to use an aged white color rather than bright white.
Mark
Did you apply a coat of spray paint over the surface to seal it? For fresh-from-the-paintshop models, I use a satin finish, while older weathered models get Dull-Coat. Without a seal coat, pretty much any decal will eventually peel off, especially around the edges.
I was applying them to Freshly painted models. For example, I was using Polyscale Conrail blue, let that dry, and put a gloss coat on top. I put the decals on, waited until they were ready, and slid them on. I then let them set for two days without touching them,putting the cooking oil on to clear the white (as in the directions)etc. Then after two days I tried to put the oil on to clear the white backround and poof, they peeled right off.
Go here, as there are 73 pages of signs for the layout. Just download a sheet that has your sign on it and either make a decal out of it, or just print it on paper and cut it out!
http://www.trainboard.com/grapevine/showthread.php?114404-More-Signs-for-Your-Layout