I would like to put a road name on an unlettered Mantua tender. I’m guessing I would use some decals from somewhere? What vendors would provide these? Also, any advice on stringing the letters together so that they are “level”, in a straight line and how to apply appreciated. Does anyone sell letters or RR names as decals and also Railroad insignia that would be appropriate for this?
Thanks
Cut as close as you dare to the printed part of each decal. The “invisible” part really interferes with lining up separate decals.
I use a miniature steel ruler marked in mm and 32’s of an inch. I use this to estimate an initial placement of the wet decal and to check the position of the floating decal as I line everything up.
Check the model surface for details like lines of rivets to get a reference point closer to the decal position.
Take your time positioning the wet decal. The point of a #11 exacto knife works very well. Bonus, the knife point can poke a hole in the decal enabling air bubbles to escape. Caution: knife points can cut or damage a decal, it really can cut both ways. Fine haired model paint brush nicely wetted is better for most decal moving. Fingernail tip works better than fingertip as decals adhere easily to fingertips.
Some pat their decals with paper towel to remove excess fluid. I find that troublesome as often the paper moves the decals. I do use the capillary action of a torn edge of a tiny piece of paper towel to draw fluid away from the decal without touching it. Care needs to be taken that drawing excess fluid doesn’t also cause the decal to move with the fluid.
Finally, your objective is to make it look right. If it looks right it is right. One technique I use is to squint along the decal line from each end of the decal(s) after final positioning. Squinting lengthways along the decal shows you more easily if it is straight relative to the model.
This is bad advice.
Absolutely DO NOT use a sharp knife to position a decal… period.
The small slits in the decal can cause the decal to split, and let air underneath the decal as the setting solution dries.
I use a bamboo barbeque skewer or a chopstick.
Maybe Mike will share picture of all his successful decal applications…
-Kevin
Microscale is my go-to choice for alphabet decals. If you want custom decals made there are still a couple of companies that can do this, but all the ones I used are no longer around.
I use a straight-edge as I go along. When lettering one letter at a time I tend to start in the center and work my way out.
I have also made curved templates for arched lettering.
Don’t sweat small mistakes too badly. I got the lettering on the left side of this boxcar a little wonky, but when finished and in a train, it is barely noticeable.
Doctor Wayne has shared a good write-up of how to apply decals. If you want me to write one up, just ask. I have lettered hundreds of freight cars with decals, and they look OK.
I did not see what road name you intend to use.
-Kevin
I use a paint brush to move decals around. As the water dries they become “stickier” and are less willing to move. This can be a plus–you do your major lining up first, then you keep playing with things as the water dries. If all goes well, the two points converge nicely.
Usually, I like to keep all the decals in a name wet, as I apply them one by one. When wet, they can be moved. When dry: nope.
I found a really good aid for aligning decals:
It’s a C-Thru ruler–VERY handy for lining things up.
Ed
Microscale is one manufacture of very nice model railroad decals.
Cruse the Microscale site for materials for applying decals.
There are a lot of YouTube videos explaining how to.
Kevin is our decal guru and his work is one of the very best out there.
Mel
Modeling the early to mid 1950s SP in HO scale since 1951
My Model Railroad
http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/
Bakersfield, California
Aging is not for wimps.
Great Northern
Microscale offers THIS DECAL SET which might have what you need.
-Kevin
At the risk of again boring everybody, here’s my procedure for doing decal work:
First, I would suggest that you wash the car (or locomotive, structure, etc.), using warm water and dish detergent, then rinse it thoroughly with water and let it air-dry.
Once it’s dry, airbrush it in an appropriate colour(s), then set it aside to let the paint dry/cure/harden, depending on the type of paint you use.
Once that is done, airbrush the entire areas which will be decalled with Glosscote (or your preferred clear gloss) then let it fully dry until there’s no odour of solvent present on the car. Don’t apply the gloss only where the decals will be applied - for rolling stock and locomotives, those areas are usually the sides and ends - cover them completely with the gloss, even if the amount of decal work will be very minimal. Allow the clear coat to fully cure/harden - there should be no noticeable odour to it, (this minimises the chance of the setting solutions reacting with the clear coat).
Next, use a sharp blade to cut the needed decals from the sheet, keeping as far away from the lettering as possible. Once you have all of the required lettering free of the main sheet, use a sharp blade (re-sharpen or replace as necessary) and working on a hard surface (I use a sheet of glass on my work desk for this), to trim away as much of the blank paper from as close as you can maneuver the blade to the lettering, using a straight down chopping motion, rather than slicing it away. If necessary, do this work under magnification (eyeglasses, Optivisor, or loupe).
The reason for the two-part cutting is that slicing the image, even with a sharp blade, raises the edges along the cut line, and when you apply that decal to the model, the setting so
Thanks everyone for all of the advice! I will be trying some microscale decals!
Trust me using the point of a knife works just fine. Obviously you want to avoid cutting into the decal and the point of the blade won’t cut, it will pierce. That’s how you get rid of air bubbles anyway. A pin works in the same way but an exacto knife has a handle. You don’t press hard enough to mark the plastic surface of the model. Steady hands, no coffee.
You just don’t want to touch the printed part of a decal with a knife or a pin.
Another handy use for the knife point is to hold the decal in place while you slide the paper backing from under the decal. Long decals can be quite hard to slide off unless you can hold one end. Pinstriping can be a real challenge to get off the backing in one piece.
Brush one end of the decal off onto your model, pin it gently with the knife point and slowly slide out the paper backing.
I’m pretty pleased with the Tamiya Mark Fit I bought to settle decals around moulded in detail. I used some on my Trainmaster kit which has a lot of cast in details right where the road name goes. It’s a decal solvent like Micro Sol but stronger. A little goes a long way. Use too much and the decal may start to disintegrate.
Like saying "trust me, you don’t need to wear a seat belt, just drive carefully.
Please share pictures of your work.
-Kevin
While technically true I would not advocate that. I spent my childhood unbelted and indeed learned to drive unbelted. However, I’ve always followed and used competition driving techniques so was delighted to find lap belts lying under the front seats of my very first used car. I dug them out and have used seatbelts ever since. I’m not worried about driving without a seatbelt but always wear one if the vehicle has them. In fact, it feels weird to drive without a belt on if you know what you’re doing.
The decision to wear a seat belt or not is a matter of probability combined with cost benefit analysis. It’s essentially a personal and private decision, apart from the issue of driver control which is inadequate if not belted in, the possible accident injuries notwithstanding.
What all this has to do with knife points on decals escapes me. I just successfully used that technique yesterday on a very tricky bit of pinstriping on my Trainmaster. CPR didn’t make it easy. I’m not sure there was any other way to do it given the fragility and narrow size plus long decal I was placing. Your categorical dismissal of this technique is just wrong. It may not work for you but it does work.
You know I only engage with you when you get personal.
I am ALWAYS going to respond in kind.
You really would feel much better if you ignored ALL of my posts. You give the impression of a person w
That sounds like a neat project.
Please share some pictures of your success.
I love to share pictures of my trainmaster.
-Kevin
Note that Microscale makes decals for dozens (hundreds?) of railroads, with full lettering, heralds (logo) etc. You only need an alphabet set if you’re lettering it for a free-lance (pretend) railroad…and then you can buy custom decals from several makers if you wish.
I always enjoy seeing your work. I can appreciate it all the more because I know how difficult it is to get such good results. I’m working up to your level. I may get there, maybe not. I have followed your tips for painting and decorating. Thanks for those.
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