Making decals

Nick8564

Member
Im trying to make some decals using the Testors system. Im only using the paper becuase I found the program to be a rip off. Im trying to make decals for the Norfolk Southern new F9 units. Its a gold color and on the clear paper I can not get it to show up. Everytime I take them off the paper to set them on the train they are see through. Anyone have this problem? Im using the clear paper. Maybe I'll try the white background paper some how.

I just tried the white background paper. I have to print the logos in a black backgorund to match the train. Well that paper does not hold ink well. The black background all smears and looks bad.
 

jeffrey-wimberl

Active Member
For years I've printed my own decals using onion skin paper. Lately though I've not been able to find that kind of paper so I've switched to Air Mail paper. It is very light and very thin. I cut the decal out as I've always done and apply it to the model in question with a thin layer of white glue. Any coating applied has to be done very carefully and very thin until it's built up a bit, or else the ink will run.
 
N

nachoman

gold or any light color decal will not work on clear paper unless applied to a white background. Printers do not print white. "White" to a printer means let the paper color show through. Your printer had ink (or toner for laser printers) of only a few different colors. Every color it prints is made as a combination of those basic colors as layered "dots". Your eye cannot see the individual dots, so it blends the basic colors into a new color. The problem with light colors, is some of the "dots" are actually white, or no printing (the printer assumes white paper). When you print on transparent decal paper, the white component is not printed, and the remaining colors barely show. I've done yellow with OK success as long as it is applied to a light background. Gold (light yellow) is a no-go.

I wish I could give you advice on how to fix your problem, but from my experience what you are trying to do is probably impossible with the printer you have available. The white decal paper is an option, but any time I have tried to print a large area of a solid color it didn't stick to the paper well. And that was using a color laser printer. You may try painting that area gold, and then photocopying onto the paper the black area around the logo.

I wonder if you could paint the paper gold and then run it through the printer to print the black...

kevin
 

Ralph

Remember...it's for fun!
My attempts to print colored letters on clear paper were more transparent than I liked too. My efforts using the white paper worked better and I didn't have the smearing problem you mentioned. I don't know if it will help to let the printed paper sit longer before attempting to use it.

Ralph
 
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