I’m installing decals on “Al’s Victory Station” using Microscale Mobilgas decals that I bought several years ago. Everything went on beautifully, but I am having a bit of trouble keeping two of the larger decals (a solid 1 1/4 inch square) sticking to the plastic “wall”. I suspect the adhesive is pretty much gone.
As I have no replacements, I don’t want to experiment with them, and hope you all have some suggestions to secure them. I thought about a coat of clear gloss or DulCote that might “glue” the edges to the wall, but other than that I am lost.
Decals usually don’t stick to raw plastic. You should really apply a clear gloss first. You can use Microscale decal setting solution to make them flatten out & hopefully stick to the plastic. I soak the decals until the glue is completely gone & rely on the setting solution only. I have successfully put decals on kadee hopper cars without the clear coat. You should use either a dull or gloss coat on top of them AFTER you have them settled down. jerry
Hmm…I could be wrong but I’m thinking that perhaps it’s not the decals. Maybe the area that you’re applying the decals isn’t clean? Mold release agents, skin oils, etc. can wreak havoc.
I might try a clear coat of gloss, built up in several light layers, then followed by dullcoat as desired.
I see Jerry and I posted at the same time! He’s got a great thought there, decals should always be applied to a gloss (or at least semi-gloss) surface. That’s not to say that decals won’t adhere to a flat surface, they will but the decal film will be very visible and hard to hide, plus you’re more likely to get bubbling or silvering.
However, the ‘glue’ that is on the decals is there to allow the decal to release from the sheet it is printed on. It plays no role in holding the decal to whatever surface it to be applied to. The decal should be soaked in the water long enough to float free from the carrier sheet AND to dissolve all the glue that may be on the back of the decal.
To add… I did use Model Master Decal Set, and the plastic surface was definitely clean. It is a smooth surface, but not “glossy smooth”.
I confess that while I’ve been decaling models since the 1950s, I always thought that the object was to get the decal free from the paper as fast as possible, so as to NOT dissolve the glue, which would be needed to adhere the decal to the model. From what you all said, that is not the case. Yikes, live and learn!
I will apply the thin gloss coats, and that should hold it just fine as it will be attached to the gas station module and not be touched after that.
In some cases, when the glue is left on the decal, the decal will yellow after time. This happens on older decals mostly.
If you carry a lot of water with the decal to the surface it is to be applied to, I wick it off with the corner of a tissue. Then I try and apply the solv-a-set so some of it gets under the decal. Then you should not touch the decal or it will deform.
After everything is OK with the decal, including being completely dry for a couple of days, depending on the surface being modeled, I will spray the decal and surface with clear flat or clear semi-gloss. This helps protect the decal.
What I would suggest, is to immerse the building in water and float the decals off the model, (either leave the decal(s) in water or put them back on the decal backing paper), then glosscote that wall and redecal it using Microscale’s MicroSet and MicroSol following the directions on the bottle and then sealing with an over coat of dullcote. I have not had much luck with MM’s decal set.
If you don’t want to do the above, which is the only way to really fix the problem, then put a fresh blade in your xacto and cut some small slits and poke some holes in the decal and give the decal a wash of Microscale’s MicroSol and repeat untill the decal is secure. Most hobbyshops carry the Microscale "Set and 'Sol or Walther’s Solvaset. If you don’t have a MRR shop try an RC hobby shop. You can buy the Microscale supplies directly from them at www.microscale.com
I did a light coat of gloss and that apparently did the trick.
I normally use Microscale decal set, but when I began decaling this model I noticed I had a bottle of Model Master (don’t recall when I bought it) and used it. I will go back to the Microscale for future jobs.