# Airbrushing liquid decal film



## petkusj (May 13, 2005)

I've just used the MicroScale Liquid Decal Film for the first time finishing up my Vulcan warp sled. It works amazingly well just brushing it on, but I wonder if it's possible to airbrush it on. I think denatured alcohol dissolves it and wonder if I can use it to thin it for my airbrush. Has anyone tried that?

Thanks, Jennifer


----------



## razorwyre1 (Jan 28, 2004)

i'd advise using a single action airbrush for this, since that means the fluid has fewer mechanisms to flow through, and less of a chance to clog.


----------



## petkusj (May 13, 2005)

Well, at present I only own a single action Badger 200, so that should be no problem. Does this mean you recommend shooting it straight, without thinner?


----------



## Disco58 (Apr 10, 2011)

petkusj said:


> I've just used the MicroScale Liquid Decal Film for the first time finishing up my Vulcan warp sled. It works amazingly well just brushing it on, but I wonder if it's possible to airbrush it on. I think denatured alcohol dissolves it and wonder if I can use it to thin it for my airbrush. Has anyone tried that?
> 
> Thanks, Jennifer


Denatured alcohol may indeed dissolve it (which means it will also thin it), so if you want to give that a shot, I'd say go for it, but why do you feel a need to airbrush it instead of handbrushing? What is your goal? I've used it a number of times and never had an issue with film thickness, nor has anyone else that I've heard of. If the alcohol will thin it, I'd do that and give the handbrushing another try before I chanced mucking up an airbrush.


----------



## petkusj (May 13, 2005)

Brushing it on worked well, but I thought why not just airbrush the whole sheet instead of airbrushing individual decals. Wouldn't it be more efficient?


----------



## Disco58 (Apr 10, 2011)

petkusj said:


> Brushing it on worked well, but I thought why not just airbrush the whole sheet instead of airbrushing individual decals. Wouldn't it be more efficient?


Technically, yea I suppose it might be, but.... Efficiency is important to some people in some arenas, but my instant gut reaction to that question was that like any hobby modeling is supposed to be a relaxing endeavor, where time consumed is somewhat irrelevant. This may sound like a weird analogy, but it's kinda like going fishing and having a bunch of pre-baited hooks in your tackle box. Yea, it might be efficient to pop off the empty hook and pop on one already wormed, but why? One would hope that catching as many fish as possible in the shortest time is not the reason for sitting on a quiet river bank on a sunny summer afternoon. There also seems to me the waste of decal solution on the areas of paper without graphics, and what's wasted into the air. Are all the decals on the sheet that bad they need film repair, or is this a 'just in case'? As you mentioned, brushing it on works "amazingly well". Personally, I'm one of those who doesn't try to reinvent the wheel at every turn. If what I've been doing works, and the results are what I need, then I let it go. The contradiction to that I guess is that I'm also a 'no guts, no glory' kinda guy, and love to experiment, but I don't think I'd try it on a sheet of decals I need and would have to replace if Murphy's Law took over.


----------



## petkusj (May 13, 2005)

Disco58 said:


> Personally, I'm one of those who doesn't try to reinvent the wheel at every turn. If what I've been doing works, and the results are what I need, then I let it go. The contradiction to that I guess is that I'm also a 'no guts, no glory' kinda guy, and love to experiment, but I don't think I'd try it on a sheet of decals I need and would have to replace if Murphy's Law took over.


I applaud your zen-like approach, but I suffer from the home stretch problem. By the time I've reached the decal stage, I'm already eyeing the next model and am impatient to get the decals applied.

By spraying the entire sheet, I ensure I don't forget to apply the decal film. And when I was building the TOS 1/1000 Polar Light Enterprise, almost every decal I applied shattered, so I like the insurance.

In the name of efficiency, and to prevent stupid mistakes, my new approach is to cut/trim every decal (as close as possible) and put the number on the back of the decal and dry fit every decal, and then put them all away in an envelope. If I don't do this, I'll get sloppy and not trim the decals close and maybe forget to snip off the numbering.

So really in my case, efficiency prevents me from doing something stupid.

But I do understand your approach. It's the same reason I feel guilty when applying the aztec decals rather than masking and painting.

Jennifer


----------



## veedubb67 (Jul 11, 2003)

razorwyre1 said:


> i'd advise using a single action airbrush for this, since that means the fluid has fewer mechanisms to flow through, and less of a chance to clog.


How do you figure? All airbrushes (single and dual action) work on the same basic principle. Compressed air is passed through a venturi which allows paint to be atomized. 

The only difference between single and dual action is the amount of control you have over the air pressure and paint flow. Single action is just that - you have a single trigger for paint and airflow. Dual action airbrushes gives you separate controls for the air and paint flow. 

So, for both types of airbrushes, paint (or in this case decal fluid) passes over a needle and through a nozzle and is combined with air. I respectfully disagree with your ascertation that a single action has fewer mechanisms to flow through.

In any case, let us know how well you can shoot decal fluid through your airbrush!

Rob
Iwata Padawan


----------



## petkusj (May 13, 2005)

veedubb67 said:


> In any case, let us know how well you can shoot decal fluid through your airbrush!
> 
> Rob
> Iwata Padawan


I shall do so! I shall experiment on some old decals first, however.

Jennifer


----------



## Disco58 (Apr 10, 2011)

petkusj said:


> I applaud your zen-like approach, but I suffer from the home stretch problem. By the time I've reached the decal stage, I'm already eyeing the next model and am impatient to get the decals applied.
> 
> By spraying the entire sheet, I ensure I don't forget to apply the decal film. And when I was building the TOS 1/1000 Polar Light Enterprise, almost every decal I applied shattered, so I like the insurance.
> 
> ...


Zen-like approach?! Wow, that's a first. I either approach things guns blazing and hope for the best, or sit back formulating but not carrying out plans. I am the ultimate dichotomy, a creature of opposites and equality rolled into one (it's a Gemini thing). I like your idea on numbering the aztec pieces, I would do exactly the same if I were to undertake such a project. Which I wouldn't by the way, because it would require too much organization, and the ADD/ADHD I deal with on a daily basis would get in the way. I don't have enough hair to spare when, not if, things went wrong, like forgetting where in the hell I put all those little carefully numbered pieces. Based on the explanantion of your reasoning for wanting to spray the whole sheet, I'd say it's actually a good idea. I wasn't going to mention wussing out and using decals instead of painting the patterns.... You sound like a lot of fun. Married? Happy belated birthday by the way.:hat:
PS -- you have messages on your FB page.


----------



## falcondesigns (Oct 30, 2002)

petkusj said:


> I shall do so! I shall experiment on some old decals first, however.
> 
> Jennifer


I have done it to make custom railroad decals and it works fine.Just a few drops of alcohol and it sprays fine


----------



## petkusj (May 13, 2005)

falcondesigns said:


> I have done it to make custom railroad decals and it works fine.Just a few drops of alcohol and it sprays fine


Thanks very much for the confirmation. Was it easy to clean up, and did you use rubbing alcohol or denatured alcohol?

Thanks,

Jennifer


----------



## falcondesigns (Oct 30, 2002)

petkusj said:


> Thanks very much for the confirmation. Was it easy to clean up, and did you use rubbing alcohol or denatured alcohol?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Jennifer


rubbing alcohol,clean right after use.......


----------



## razorwyre1 (Jan 28, 2004)

veedubb67 said:


> How do you figure? All airbrushes (single and dual action) work on the same basic principle. Compressed air is passed through a venturi which allows paint to be atomized.
> 
> The only difference between single and dual action is the amount of control you have over the air pressure and paint flow. Single action is just that - you have a single trigger for paint and airflow. Dual action airbrushes gives you separate controls for the air and paint flow.
> 
> ...


in the case of a double action (or the badger single action 200), the fluid passes from the color cup into the body of the airbrush, flows around the needle, and sprays out the tip via the aircap. the mix of the air and liquid happens within the airbrush. in a standard single action (paasche h or badger 350), the fluid goes from the color cup, through the needle (a very different type of needle than a double action), and out the tip. the air and paint are mixed externally. so while the number of parts is only 1 fewer with the single action, those parts are also much simpler. 
i prototype latex halloween masks for a living. the paints have an enormous amount of latex in them. when this latex dries a little in the airbrush or at the tip, cleaning it is not simply a matter of shooting a little solvent through there. i painted the masks with a double action pasche VL (among other brands) for years before switching to the single action H. having picked little rubber balls out of both types of machine, i can absolutely state that the paint flows through fewer and simpler parts with a basic single action than it does with a basic double action.


----------



## seaQuest (Jan 12, 2003)

Testors makes a decal bonder in a rattlecan. I've used it on kit decals, and the Acreations BSG aztecing decals. Now, THERE'S efficiency AND efficacy.


----------

