Decal question.

McFortner

Member
Well, I am working on my decals for my Gauge car. I have printed them at 1440 dpi, so they are looking good. But now it is time to spray coat them with clar sealant. How many coats, and how thick should they be, before I can use them?

Michael

Dammit, Jim! I'm a Doctor, not a railroad tycoon!
 

Vic

Active Member
Hi Micheal, From what you said you must have printed out your decals with an inkjet printer. The purpose of overspraying the decal while still on the paper is to prevent the ink from smearing when you handle them and to prevent the inkjet ink from fading when you wet the decal (Its water based).

I would think that 2-3 light coats will be enoungh....I think I read in another thread that you were using BEL decal paper and they reccomend Krylon Krystal Klear for an overcoat. Let it dry completly between coats.

You may just have to experiment a bit but don't get it too heavy or the decal wont slide off the paper.

TIP...This also works on commerical decals that have become dried out and fall apart when you try to apply them.
 

McFortner

Member
Yes, Vic, you are right. I am using Bel decal sheets. I'm just experimenting with them right now. I have 20 clear sheats from bel adn the fixative and setting kit coming from MicroMark as well as 20 white sheets from Bel. It looks like it will be easier to work with HO than it would be in N gauge for decals. Hard to print all those little letters beyond the name and car number! :eek: :eek: :eek: :rolleyes: :D

Michael
 

rockislandmike

Active Member
I use the Bel Decalpaper as well, and usually do at least six coats of the spray before working with them. That's usually enough, but I wouldn't go lower than that (when I did try less than that, the decal *definitely* smeared).

PS - you also wanna make sure you remove all moisture from the decal after it's in place. Use some cotton baton (sp?) or something like that.
 
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