Stickers, Decals, Transfers oh my.

[roboferret]

I was curious what everyones thoughts were on the best way to get that oh so sought after "painted on" look from stickers/decals.

I recently purchased a VF-1S 1/48 and was a bit disappointed with the included stickers. There seem to be two varieties. There are those, like the Macross symbol, where the edge of the adhesive is the edge of the colored portion of the sticker. Those are fine for me. However there are others, like the white lettering UN SPACY where you get alot of shiny translucent sticker stuff around the perimeter of the sticker and between the lettering.

I dunno why, but that shiny sticker-ness that you get around the edge just irks the hell outta me. And you REALLY tend to see it on dark backgrounds. Kinda like the picture below.

I've seen similar effects on the dark parts of the VF-1S, like the gunpod, black leg stripes, and fast packs.

So I was curious. Whats the best way to avoid this? Are water slide decals less prone to the shiny phenomena? Does treating the area with a matte or gloss finish help? Do you have to clearcoat the entire valk?

Much appreciated, I am quite new when it comes to this kind of stuff.

=D

[David Hingtgen]

Water slide decals are the only thing that can achieve the painted-on look. Aftermarket stickers are thinner and better than Yamato's, but still won't beat decal.

The surface the decals are applied on is a huge factor, clearcoating is recommended. Though I'm sort of a renegade and usually apply it to whatever surface it is---unless it's really rough. I depend more on TIME and decal solution, while others go for a glass-smooth surface to apply the decal to. (of course, it's also party a model vs toy thing---models tend to not have moving parts and you can paint/decal/clearcoat in sequence as needed, while toys have parts that can scrape together, are already painted, etc---affects what you can do/how easily you can do it)

Here's some work our resident "decaling expert" did:

http://macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?show...c=2463&st=0

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=1582

[Duymon]

Carefully trimmed decals with a good setting solution are a start.

I use Mr. Hobby decal set and haven't used anything else since. After all your decals are set, cover the valk in a thin clear coat and your decals will be there for ages

[big F]

You really cant beat a good set of decals and a pot of decal set or something similar. The Yamies are forgiving on some areas but anything too curved or too dark and the stickers show up.

[roboferret]

Here's some work our resident "decaling expert" did:

http://macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?show...c=2463&st=0

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=1582

Good golly miss molly. I am blown away.

Just. Wow.

That panel wash looks absolutely amazing. I'm going to have to research into that a bit more, and see if it is something I can do myself.

And pretty much all of my questions regarding clearcoating have been answered and then some. Much appreciated! Looks like I've got some work ahead of me. =D

Edited August 11, 2007 by roboferret