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Author Topic: Attempting Water Slide Decals  (Read 1324 times)

Offline Steve Dwyer

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Attempting Water Slide Decals
« on: November 28, 2020, 02:08:14 PM »
I have read over a ton of information here on making and applying water slide decals but I wonder if anyone can point me in the right direction.

I am using an inkjet printer and "Spin It" water slide paper (available from Marshals and other box stores) that calls for an acrylic sealer before placing the decal in water. 

If I use the recommended acrylic sealer is it compatible with the final coat butyrate clear after installing the decal on the painted plane?

Can the butyrate clear be used instead of the acrylic sealer?

I have read also the decal can be sealed using lacquer instead of the acrylic sealer, can butyrate clear be applied over the lacquer when sealing the decals on the plane? It is easier using lacquer out of a can instead of prepping to spray the butyrate using my airbrush to seal the decal.

Lastly, If I wish to apply decals to Monocote where fuel will be used would simply pre-sealing the decal using butyrate be enough or must I secure the decal edges by spraying clear coat butyrate on the entire surface? Will butyrate adhere to monocote assuming of course the monocot is properly cleaned.

Thanks,

Steve


Online Dennis Nunes

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Re: Attempting Water Slide Decals
« Reply #1 on: November 28, 2020, 05:39:13 PM »
Hi Steve,

I've made my own water slide decals for several planes. I don't recommend the use of inkjet printers for decals as the ink needs to "dry" on the paper. Where as, a laserjet printer uses heat to bond the toner to the paper. Even using a laser jet the decals are NOT fuel proof. Here's the process that I use:

MAKING DECALS: I happen to have Microsoft® Word on my computer and used it to make my own decals. I believe most computers that use Microsoft® Windows has a program called WordPad that comes with the operating system. This program will work just as well as Microsoft® Word for making decals. Sorry for the Macintosh® users, but I’m sure there’s a program to do the same thing as Word.

I also order “clear water soluble” decal paper for LaserJet printers. DO NOT get InkJet decal paper! Let your imagination go wild! You can become very creative. The internet is loaded with various images and fonts that can be used. For me, it’s once again the KISS principle. The name of the plane, my AMA number, along with the build date all done in black and white using the Brush Script MT font. Here’s what I place on the side of the fuselage (see attached picture).

Once I’m satisfied with what I need, I create a PDF file of the Word document and transfer the files to a flash drive, grab my water soluble decal paper and head out to the nearest Office Depot and have them print the decals for me on their high end laser printers. I believe the last time I had them print black and white decals it cost me a whole 13 cents a sheet. Not too bad.

Most high end LaserJets have a higher resolution and a higher temperature setting to bond the toner to the decal paper over the inexpensive LaserJets designed for home or personal use.

When applying the decals, I work one decal at a time, cut them out of the sheet, and soak it in a pan of water until it becomes loose from the backing. Locate the decal on the plane where you want it. When satisfied with the location of the decal, take a paper towel and gently remove any air bubbles and excess water. Once all the air bubbles and water are removed, I take Walthers® Solvaset Decal Setting Solution and brush it on all the edges of the decal. The Solvaset solution soften the decal and removes the “hard edge” of the decals. Beware ––– Don’t be fooled just because the decal appears to be dry. I usually wait a full day or longer for the decal to fully adhere to the surface.

The decals are not fuel proof or dope proof! Once dry, I take my airbrush with clear dope and very lightly spray the edges of the decal. When that dries, I spray a couple of very light coats over the entire decal. DO NOT spray on a heavy coat over the decal as this will blister and/or dissolve the decal! The purpose of this coating is to seal and protect the decal from the clearcoat.


Hope this helps,

Dennis




Offline C.T. Schaefer

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Re: Attempting Water Slide Decals
« Reply #2 on: November 29, 2020, 08:00:50 AM »
My recent experience with water slide is this.  I got some white paper decals from Amazon, called  Kodiak. Inkjet.  After some experiment it went like this.  Two coat of clear dope after printing on home printer. About 30 seconds in water and then carefully slide. These are very thin. After drying overnight another coat of clear dope sprayed overall. They layed down well and the dope, surprisingly, worked out very well!
  Problems were 1.  Duplicating the original 60+ year old Sterling decals  2. The printer was a bit stingy with the black ink. Overall, a decent product for a fun plane.

Offline Steve Dwyer

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Re: Attempting Water Slide Decals
« Reply #3 on: November 29, 2020, 11:34:41 AM »
Thanks, gents for the help and info. I'll probably end up going the laser printer route.

Steve


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