ytareh Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 Just building one of these nice kits as a mojo restorer.Are the orange decals (especially the leading edge strips) REALLY as bad as all reviews suggest ?Has anyone got them to work ?Had major trouble with the yellow equivalents on RAF P51D .Keen to avoid a repeat . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul J Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 You could try using pretty hot water... this will help soften them and help conform but keep them wet and hot until they stay put and then seal them. Not promising but it could work. Failing that, you could mask and airbrush the leading edges with white and then airbrush the dayglo using Xtracolor enamel spryaed in in thinned coats. That what I have just been doing with a couple of my Chipmunk restorations wearing the same silver or light grey and dayglo schemes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit Leader Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 I agree with Paul, hot water is your best method to start with and I tend to now use this with most of my decals. I have used the Airfix supplied leading edge decals for my JP and got them to work. It was no walk in the park, however I was happy with the end result once finished. Cheers and good luck.. Dave 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 I've managed to put similar decals on, Spitfire gun patches & yellow leading edge stripes, which didn't want to bend around the wing, by using Klear or an equivalent as outlined here. I don't try to bend it to begin with but put the top(or bottom) edge on & get it lined up where it needs to go then wait a little for the Klear to become tacky & then roll the decal around the leading edge, a finger with a paper towel or tissue does ok here or a cotton bud. Work from the middle out, don't try & roll just one section all the way but slowly work the whole length around working side to side. Klear also acts as a good decal adhesive but in the event you're not happy with the alignment or get a crease, it is possible to flood on more Klear to loosen the first lot & lift the decal up & reposition/straighten. Steve. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyf117 Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 (edited) Content withdrawn - I will NOT be threatened by a moderator, simply because I queried the actions of another... Edited June 27, 2020 by andyf117 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 I got into using Klear when I first got back into modelling, over 15 years ago now. I read about it online, one of the forums, maybe even BM though I used to frequent other forums than I do now. I've never owned any sol/set combos & never felt I was short changing myself. I started the thread I linked to above to help others see the lite. No one has posted negatively about it yet. Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyf117 Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 (edited) Content withdrawn - I will NOT be threatened by a moderator, simply because I queried the actions of another... Edited June 27, 2020 by andyf117 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72modeler Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 18 hours ago, Rabbit Leader said: I have used the Airfix supplied leading edge decals for my JP Dave, How did I miss seeing this model before? Very, very nice JP! Well done, sir! 👍 (...and now back to our regularly scheduled programming!) Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphfan Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 Careful use of a hair dryer can also help but you have to keep an eye on the direction of airflow otherwise the decal gets blown off. Not sure if this would work with Klear as it may dry it far too quickly. I have used a hair dryer with Sol/Set many times though. Atb, Steve. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timbo88 Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 I have had issues using dayglo decals in the past, not Airfix specifically but Microscale, which seems very similar. I found a solution to the problem of getting the decal to conform to the wing leading edges of a Swiss Vampire was to float the decal in a small jar lid full of Revell DecalSoft. Every few seconds remove the decal and check its flexibility, placing it where required once it seems soft enough not to crack. It was a bit hit and miss at first but with care it does work. I haven't used any other decal solution, so can only say DecalSoft seems to work for me, using this method. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matti64 Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 The way that I try and tackle stubborn decals as a last resort is to thoroughly soak a piece of cotton wool in water, thoroughly wring it out and heat it up for 10 seconds in the microwave then apply it to the decal with as much pressure as you can till it cools. Obviously the cotton wool will be BOILING hot so use as much protection as is consistent with maintaining dexterity. Repeat until the decal conforms or your fingers have had enough scalding. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spad Posted August 10, 2019 Share Posted August 10, 2019 Like @triumphfan above, I always use a hairdryer to get stiff decals to conform. Much safer than using boiling hot water as well. The hairdryer seems to improve the way decals respond to Set/Sol fluids - highly recommended! ATB Rick 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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