Decals not sitting quite right

I find best results when I don't use Future at all.  

Coat the painted surface with a good gloss coat, such as Testor's.  Let it dry a day or two.  Apply decal with water, blot it and press it down with a tissue.  Let it dry a day.  If needed to make it conform to panel lines or other surface details, then apply a coat of Micro-Sol or Solv-A Set quickly and don't touch it overnight.  This usually works fine for me.

Sometimes you just get crummy decals that won't look right no matter what you do!  Not much you can do about that.

Hasegawa decals are generally thicker, especially the older ones so making them disappear is harder than usual. You didn't mention putting on a matt coat? That usually gives it the painted on look.

Hasegawa decals are thick and resistant to some setting solutions, such as Microsol like you used. Solvaset and Gunze's Mr. Mark Softer are much better for them. It still does take 2 or 3 applications of softening solution with in 5 or 10 minutes of each other to get the Hasegawa decals to conform to the surface.

I did put a flat coat on as a final layer. They are thick decals, thats how I should have described them. I'll try one of the other solutions next time I use Hasegawa.

If the surface is not really glossy, then you have the silvering effect. I apply several light Future coats till it's like glass. Solvaset is very aggressive and will most of the time, make the decals look much better. Once in a while  something happens no matter what you do. It happened to me with some Eduard decals, and they are pretty good quality.

Thick decals will indeed leave a visible edge.  No setting solution nor decal solvent really does a decent job of hiding the edge.  But the overcoat/clearcoat should sort of round off the edges and leave them less visible.  Maybe you will need more than a single coat of clear.

I notice some new decals are VERY thin.  This makes for a nice appearance after application.  But boy those super thin decals can be a bear to apply.  They break easily and fold back on themselves readily.  So I have mixed feelings on these newer decals.

Don Stauffer

Thick decals will indeed leave a visible edge.  No setting solution nor decal solvent really does a decent job of hiding the edge.  But the overcoat/clearcoat should sort of round off the edges and leave them less visible.  Maybe you will need more than a single coat of clear.

I have solved that very same problem by brushing several coats of Future from the center of the decal feathering it to the outside. Several Future coats are need to get rid of the "step" from a thick decal.

Here is an example on my 1/25 scale Academy Panther Ausf G. The decals were super thick and not even Solvaset would tame them. I brushed several Future coats form the center of the decal feathering it out. After 3-4 days of curing, I used a 2400 grit pad to lightly sand the area then shot some MM clear flat. As you can see, no "step" is visible.

I've actually repainted around the edges also. Bob

I've seen some folks cut the decals while they are still dry on the sheet.  If held at the right angle, you can see where the clear part extends beyond the colored.  This can cause issues with some types of decals, but they'll usually tell you.  Then again, I had to cut down a large decal (wasn't conforming nicely) with that type of warning a while back and had zero issues.  This of course has the potential to make large words or strings of letters/numbers, rather difficult to align.

Groot