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Eduard 1/48th Spitfire Mk.I decals,..... dry transfer?


tonyot

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Hiya Folks,

               Having got to the decal stage of my Eduard Spitfire Mk.I, I applied the decals as usual using water and they were very nice indeed,...... the carrier film seemed a bit ragged in parts and the decals could be a bit stretchy,...... but they settled beautifully and I sealed them into place using Humbrol enamel Gloss varnish;

DSCF8625.jpg

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DSCF8627.jpg

 

THEN,........

 

....... I decided to remove the codes as they are slightly too small, and replace them,....but found out something very interesting which explains the ragged carrier film! While scraping the codes away I discovered that the carrier film is on top of the decal and that it peels away,.... leaving the decal attached to the model like a dry film decal, as used on modern warbirds!!! This makes for incredibly thin markings which do not silver at all and they may be the future of decals! I had varnished over the decals,.... and they looked like normal decals,.... just thought that I`d mention this! I managed to nick a roundel and a fin flash while removing the `film',... so removed these too and decided to add new ones,.... but the decals are still very impressive indeed;

DSCF8628.jpg

 

Just thought that I would pass this on for anybody else building the kit,....... this is not mentioned in the kit instructions at all,

 

Cheers,

           Tony

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And now with more accurate looking DK Decals,...... the Eduard decals are a good idea though,..... but could ave done with a warning and instructions!

DSCF8629.jpg

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There was a thread recently about this very subject, but I cannot recall if it was here or on HyperScale. The gist was that these are digitally printed decals, and that the film can be removed either by carefully peeling it away or using a solvent and cotton buds to dissolve it.

 

EDIT. It was on HyperScale. Here's a link to the thread:

https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/hyperscale/new-eduard-digital-decals-peeling-off-the-carrier--t517291.html

Edited by Rolls-Royce
to add link
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This is what Mr Sulc wrote re Eduard's new decals on ModelForum:

source: https://www.modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=95280&start=26010

 

'The varnish on our decals is not a transfer foil. It's a normal standard topcoat, exactly the same as it has always been on them. The only difference is in the thickness of the paint layer. Based on complaints about problems with applying decals, we strengthened the varnish so that there were no problems with applying the decal. To prevent the decal from tearing, crumpling, the varnish from bending, etc. Compared to the original thickness of the varnish, which we took over from the original screen decals without change for the new digital decals, the new standard is about 60% stronger. It is basically a compromise, the aim of which is to achieve a state that the decal works well, but at the same time that its thickness does not interfere after application and that the decal does not protrude significantly above the surface of the model.

I rule out any danger that the decal would not stick. These decals adhere perfectly, standardly copying the surface, problems can be on a more rugged surface, but using decal guides they copy the surface at least as much as any other decal. In my experience, however, they actually stretch even better, very willingly and without problems, even on a very rugged surface. If anyone had difficulty copying the relief of the dashboard, they should use decal water. It is perfectly normal for a decal not to get into relief without them. By the way, for this purpose, ie the use of a decal dashboard, we put a plastic part of the dashboard without relief in the kit and we state in the instructions the use of a decal for this part. If someone does not follow the instructions, they do so at their own risk and are not entitled to complaints.

Therefore, if you apply these decals as standard, with or without decals, allow them to dry and varnish, which is the standard procedure for applying decals, you will get a standard and high-quality result. The decal is thin in the final, does not protrude above the surface, does not need to be varnished with a thick layer of varnish, the result is good, especially for larger decals, such as cockades or code letters. The varnish has irregular edges and may not always be perfectly centered with the colored part of the decal. This is not a mistake, it does not harm in any way, on the contrary, it helps to ensure that the paint is not visible on the surface of the model after painting. Of course, it is necessary to follow established procedures and respect the material. As with any other decal, work responsibly and carefully. No decal is applied by itself, and the ultimate responsibility for the application lies with the modeler himself.

As for the possibility of peeling off the top coat from decals, yes, it is possible. However, we do not officially recommend this option to modelers and we do not mention it at all as a fundamental step in the application of decals. Peeling of the paint is not necessary. Another reason is that removing the paint is not complicated, but it still requires some experience and practice, and an untrained person has a relatively high chance of damaging the decal when removing the paint. On the other hand, I do not accept your objection that you do not have the opportunity to try removing the paint. In our models you always have an excess of decals, which you will not use when building a model, generally speaking Limitations or Profipacks will usually leave you with 4/5 decals, so with the rest you can train up to the allele and quite quickly become an expert in stripping decals 

In my opinion, it makes more sense to remove the varnish from the labels. It is also better there than with large areas of cockades or codes, in general, the smaller the area, the easier the work.

So, to your last points: there are no standard and peeling decals. We only have one. You can approach them in two ways, but that is your choice and any peeling of the paint is at your own risk. On the other hand, for your money, we provide you with enough training material to learn the procedure for peeling, if you are interested.

So you who bought the Spitfire Story or VLR are definitely not idiots and you didn't throw away fourteen hundred. We won't offer anything better, it doesn't matter if you buy the model now or later. On the contrary, because it is a Limit, it is better to buy sooner than later, because it may no longer be available later 

Vl.Šulc'

 

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6 hours ago, Rolls-Royce said:

There was a thread recently about this very subject, but I cannot recall if it was here or on HyperScale. The gist was that these are digitally printed decals, and that the film can be removed either by carefully peeling it away or using a solvent and cotton buds to dissolve it.

 

EDIT. It was on HyperScale. Here's a link to the thread:

https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/hyperscale/new-eduard-digital-decals-peeling-off-the-carrier--t517291.html

Thanks mate,..... I really don`t know why there was no explanation in the kit,...... I came acros it by accident! 

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5 hours ago, Seboo said:

This is what Mr Sulc wrote re Eduard's new decals on ModelForum:

source: https://www.modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=95280&start=26010

 

'The varnish on our decals is not a transfer foil. It's a normal standard topcoat, exactly the same as it has always been on them. The only difference is in the thickness of the paint layer. Based on complaints about problems with applying decals, we strengthened the varnish so that there were no problems with applying the decal. To prevent the decal from tearing, crumpling, the varnish from bending, etc. Compared to the original thickness of the varnish, which we took over from the original screen decals without change for the new digital decals, the new standard is about 60% stronger. It is basically a compromise, the aim of which is to achieve a state that the decal works well, but at the same time that its thickness does not interfere after application and that the decal does not protrude significantly above the surface of the model.

I rule out any danger that the decal would not stick. These decals adhere perfectly, standardly copying the surface, problems can be on a more rugged surface, but using decal guides they copy the surface at least as much as any other decal. In my experience, however, they actually stretch even better, very willingly and without problems, even on a very rugged surface. If anyone had difficulty copying the relief of the dashboard, they should use decal water. It is perfectly normal for a decal not to get into relief without them. By the way, for this purpose, ie the use of a decal dashboard, we put a plastic part of the dashboard without relief in the kit and we state in the instructions the use of a decal for this part. If someone does not follow the instructions, they do so at their own risk and are not entitled to complaints.

Therefore, if you apply these decals as standard, with or without decals, allow them to dry and varnish, which is the standard procedure for applying decals, you will get a standard and high-quality result. The decal is thin in the final, does not protrude above the surface, does not need to be varnished with a thick layer of varnish, the result is good, especially for larger decals, such as cockades or code letters. The varnish has irregular edges and may not always be perfectly centered with the colored part of the decal. This is not a mistake, it does not harm in any way, on the contrary, it helps to ensure that the paint is not visible on the surface of the model after painting. Of course, it is necessary to follow established procedures and respect the material. As with any other decal, work responsibly and carefully. No decal is applied by itself, and the ultimate responsibility for the application lies with the modeler himself.

As for the possibility of peeling off the top coat from decals, yes, it is possible. However, we do not officially recommend this option to modelers and we do not mention it at all as a fundamental step in the application of decals. Peeling of the paint is not necessary. Another reason is that removing the paint is not complicated, but it still requires some experience and practice, and an untrained person has a relatively high chance of damaging the decal when removing the paint. On the other hand, I do not accept your objection that you do not have the opportunity to try removing the paint. In our models you always have an excess of decals, which you will not use when building a model, generally speaking Limitations or Profipacks will usually leave you with 4/5 decals, so with the rest you can train up to the allele and quite quickly become an expert in stripping decals 

In my opinion, it makes more sense to remove the varnish from the labels. It is also better there than with large areas of cockades or codes, in general, the smaller the area, the easier the work.

So, to your last points: there are no standard and peeling decals. We only have one. You can approach them in two ways, but that is your choice and any peeling of the paint is at your own risk. On the other hand, for your money, we provide you with enough training material to learn the procedure for peeling, if you are interested.

So you who bought the Spitfire Story or VLR are definitely not idiots and you didn't throw away fourteen hundred. We won't offer anything better, it doesn't matter if you buy the model now or later. On the contrary, because it is a Limit, it is better to buy sooner than later, because it may no longer be available later 

Vl.Šulc'

 

Thanks mate,.... it does help explain it a bit better. The roundel and code decals really do look brilliant afte the film is stripped off,..... just a pity I nicked one with my knife,..... I will certainly be practicing on spare kit parts,....... but they do look good applied `as is' as normal without being stripped,...... I did think that stripping brought out the colours better mind you. 

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@tonyot.  This style of decal isn't new.  The late Dick Ward/Airfix developed a similar style with removable top varnish for the Airfix Spitfire Vb kit circa 1992 (kit number 10008 in the "Hi-Tech" range).  Not sure if they were put into production and included in production kits.  No instructions or indications as to varnish removal anyway.

 

Dick sent me a kit out to Saudi when I was working out there.  I built the Vb from the 5thFS, 52ndFG, 15thAF, ER120/VF-D.  Still looks OK after all these years.  Found the alternate decals from the kit in the decal stash AB970/AL-K, they have not yellowed so may use them next time I build a Spit - but Hunters come first.

 

HTH

 

Dennis 

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  • 1 month later...
On 8/22/2020 at 1:16 PM, tonyot said:

Thanks mate,.... it does help explain it a bit better. The roundel and code decals really do look brilliant afte the film is stripped off,..... just a pity I nicked one with my knife,..... I will certainly be practicing on spare kit parts,....... but they do look good applied `as is' as normal without being stripped,...... I did think that stripping brought out the colours better mind you. 

I think the real reason Eduard didn’t mention you could peel off the outer layer because they didn’t know. During the process of making the decals thicker the end result was a total accident that Eduard only found about when they read reviews such as yours.

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On 9/25/2020 at 1:52 AM, Scooby said:

I think the real reason Eduard didn’t mention you could peel off the outer layer because they didn’t know. During the process of making the decals thicker the end result was a total accident that Eduard only found about when they read reviews such as yours.

After reading other `reviews' and replies I think that you are right mate. The colours really do stand out more after removing the fim, especially on the codes which are rather mottled otherwise. 

 

On 9/25/2020 at 12:36 AM, pacificmustang said:

you got on to these quickly Tony.  I have the model on the way.  Looking forward to getting my hands on it

 

Bruce

Cheers Bruce,..... yeah it is all finished now mate,..... very, very impressive kit from Eduard and you will love it,..... I posted the result of mine in WIP. 

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