I have an older decal about 5 to 8 years old . When it is soaked for 10 seconds the decal will not seperate from the backing paper, I have tried waiting different amounts of time, 1, 5, 8, 10 minutes , and it will not release from the backing. Any ideas . Its not made anymore so it can not be replaced.
Any idea who made the decal? I have SMP Accucals over 10 years old that were useable and Champ decals that are about 30 years old that are still useable.
One problem with old decals is that they sometimes break apart after they release from the backing paper - a common method of preventing this is to overspray the decal with a clear finish (Glosscote or Dullcote) before using the decal. If your decal has been oversprayed, trim away all edges of the paper surrounding the image, as the spray may have sealed the edges enough to prevent the decal from releasing.
With most decals, it’s impossible to oversoak them, and 10 minutes or more would not necessarily be an unreasonable length of time for the decal to release from its backing.
Wayne
Oh yes it is. Particularly but not always with old stock decals, that you didn’t know were quite that old. Ink washes, fades. decal disitigrates, I’ve done it all.
If they are that old the glue may have been activated by humidity over the years. Regardless, if you soaked them and let them dry they are done. Resoaking will not release the glue any more. If these are out print you may have to have someone re-print them. There are several of us out there that offer this service.
Dan
If all other options fail to allow release, you could try Micro"set". Apply a few drops to glass, plastic ect and take already wetted decal and place on the solution. Short of this, I don’t know what will dissolve the old glue. Even under “normal” decalling, I only soak for a few minutes and remove decal and place on wet paper towel. Added drops of water or solution can be placed on decal/ towel as you continue working. I find this especially helpful w/ those extremely small No. board or safety/ data ones.
You could also try trimming the decal closer, but the backing should still allow water saturation to disolve anyway. Try soaking longer first.
Well, I’ve had decals fall apart (usually, but not always, old ones), but not from over-soaking. When a decal falls apart, the rest of the sheet can usually be salvaged with an overspray of clear (gloss or matte) finish, making sure, of course, to allow that to fully cure. As for the ones that do fall apart, they can often be re-assembled on the model, although this usually involves application of even more water
When doing especially difficult applications, even when the decal remains in one piece, it may be wet for up to an hour while the positioning is being re-adjusted - this is pretty common when doing digit-by-digit dimensional data. In the meantime, other decals which you have wet and which, under normal conditions would have been already applied, remain either wet (I generally dip decals in water for only a few seconds, then lay them on a sheet of glass and continuously apply additional water) or dry out completely. The latter ones can easily be re-activated with additional applications of water, either during your current decalling session or one many days later.
I’ve done the bulk of my lettering using dry transfers, as there’s no decal film to hide, but have come to appreciate the ability to re-position decals and have made them an important part of my methods.
I do wish that Handy 333 would give us a little more info, though.
Wayne
Ya know, if you mistakenly put a dry transfer in water thinking it’s a wet decal, it won’t release. I’m sure no one would make that kind of mistake, though.
Ed
[(-D]
True, but if I’m lettering a bunch of cars using dry transfers, I’ll often apply the end reporting marks and numbers to a sheet of clear decal paper. After a coat of clear semi-gloss, they can be applied just like commercially-available decals.
Incidentally, when applying dry transfers, you can also use decal setting solution to help them to snuggle down over raised details - burnish them first, as you normally would, then apply the setting solution. If necessary, use a sharp blade to slit troublesome areas, as you would a decal, then apply more setting solution.
Wayne
Wayne!
Good information for both dealing with the very small dry transfers and for settling the larger ones.
Thanks
Dave
Yep, I know. I sent you a PM. (I hope, it may have gotten eaten by the forum though)
flashwave
I did not get anything fromk the forum from you. I sent you a PM with my email address in it so you can contact me directly
Dan