Decals or Dry Transfers whihc do you prefer?

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

I was finishing up a structure kit the other night and I was getting ready to decal the building with the name and recalled looking through a modeling book a few nights before and seeing how the author was applying try transfer lettering to his building, the finished product looked very nice or shall I say as nice as you can tell from a picture. I have never had much luck with decals looking authentic/aged such as when you apply them to brick walls. I’ve done a few by tracing out lettering onto masking paper and cutting them out with a hobby knife and then air brushing, a very tedious operation. I have also tried using the peel and stick letters and spraying over top of them a little easier but still a bit of a task.

So have any of you used in the past or currently use dray transfers and if so how do they stack up against decals better worse or indifferent?

Your input is always appreciated.

Thanks

2

I use decals for everything, never had any good luck with dry transfers personally.

Sheldon

3

Since I have my own roadname, I’ve always used dry transfer lettering.

-They stick well to a “flat” paint finish.

-No decal film to try and hide.

-They look like real paint.

OTOH:

-If you have a roadname with a lot of letters, it can be pain lettering more than one loco.

-Even if not, applying one letter at a time takes a good deal of time and patience.

-Dry Transfers are becoming harder and harder to find.

-George

4

I used dry transfers simply because I really didn’t know the correct way to apply decals so the carrier film disappears. Then I learned how to apply them. Now I use decals.

However, each has it’s own best uses, and I do use both depending of what I am building.

5

If used both and prefer decals because they are easier to position. With decals you can adust them once they are on the model, with dry transfers, once you start, you are committed.