Creating and printing decals at home

You can import and print your picture, or you can use a desktop publisher or art program to draw your own. The only "trick" involved is to print it onto Decal Paper. Several companies make packets available online. One thing though - the standard home printer will not print white, so you will likely need to make sure the decal paper you order is White, and not Clear.

You will also need some sort of bonder. Micro-Scale makes a Liquid Decal Film, but it needs to be thinned and sprayed with an airbrush. Testors makes what they call Decal Bonder Spray, which comes in a spray can. Given the size of the decal you are seeking to make the latter is probably the best option.

great thanks sailor steve, i seen testors decal paper at hobby lobbl, will i still need the spray, even with that?

Yes. Also find out the spec. for the printer you are using- laser or ink.

There's two kinds of decal film- one for each.

Yes. Once the decal is printed it will wash right off unless sealed to the paper first.

@ GMorrison: Thanks for the reminder about the different types of paper. Only owning an inkjet printer I didn't even think of that.

The site you need is one of the Finescale forums below. It is in the Tools section and is on Decals.

If the decal contains white or a very light color, and is going over a darker color, the job is quite difficult since you need to use white decal paper.  If the decal is dark color going over a white or light finish, you can use the clear decal paper, which is a lot easier.  You need to trim the decals yourself- the whole sheet is one decal.  The clear film does not show much, but the white decal must be trimmed perfectly, unless you can use your graphics program to set the background color precisely to the color of the paint.

I would recommend starting with a dark decal for use on light paint, and grow from there.  Making decals is a great skill to have, but it takes some practice.

I will check out the tool section as well thanks, well the flag i am invisioning is usa flag with the giant eagle in the middle of it. Its going to be in a light gray on a 1/32 semi trailer.

Good luck. I hope you realize there is no white ink to create white stripes and eagle's head area in printing your own decals.

Well that will suck, but hay i will find something patriotic to find, turn it into adventure

Wait, no. You can do it. If you make the outline of the decal something that you can mask on the model, the better. For instance, if it's a flag, make it flat. Mask where it goes and paint the model white there. Then print the decal on clear, and put it on over the white.

Alps printers.

Yes, Alps still provides refurbished printers and supplies.

http://www.alps-printer.com/refurbished-alps-md1300-md1300-white-waterslide-metallic-decal-hobby-printer-jz7a0676y-band-printed-236477-p-6252.html

I agree with GM. That is the only way you can do a flag decal. But you forget decals don't set well on flat coat. Paint the area in gloss white instead.

However, when it comes to a complicated design with any white in it say a bald eagle's head, you really have to know where to mask in exact position.

Don't forget white decal paper. The worst task is having to cut the decal out precisely to prevent the white outline, but that may still be easier than difficult masking to eliminate the white border.

So if i get white decal paper, the reg flag is still doable?. Ya cutting it out and having exzact location would not be a problem. Ya i put coates of future on before i decal.

Don Stauffer

Don't forget white decal paper. The worst task is having to cut the decal out precisely to prevent the white outline, but that may still be easier than difficult masking to eliminate the white border.

 

I like the idea just creating it all together!. Custume make it to the trailers specs

GMorrison

 

 

Don Stauffer

Don't forget white decal paper. The worst task is having to cut the decal out precisely to prevent the white outline, but that may still be easier than difficult masking to eliminate the white border.

 

 

 

 

Somebody here once posted a trick, might have been you Don. Create a border around the image, in the decal art thats the same as the overall background color. That makes precicely cutting it out a little easier. Probably easier said than done, but if it's Navy Blue or Olive Drab, could be...

 

 

If the decal is lettering, or something like that, cutting out perfectly is an ardous job.  But for a simple flag it should not be that hard.  Whereas, matching paint colors can be a real problem.  I have even scanned paint, to get the RGB values to define the background colors.  The result looks good on the screen, but getting the printer to print exactly as the monitor shows is another problem.  On the flag I'd go for just trying to cut out exactly.