# Airbrushing n Decals



## slots-n-stuff (Oct 18, 2006)

Airbrushing n Decals
I am new at this and I love it...... Any advice is appreciated...
View attachment 189396


View attachment 189397


View attachment 189398


----------



## RiderZ (Feb 19, 2007)

Nice job.Its a good start.Cant wait to see'em finished!


----------



## 60chevyjim (Feb 21, 2008)

they look great ... are you making the decals ??
I could use some .. jim


----------



## slots-n-stuff (Oct 18, 2006)

*Finished - Badman*

I am very surprised how awesome this came out... Yes I made the decals... wasn't thinking of selling decals...


----------



## slotcarman12078 (Oct 3, 2008)

Looks good Andrew! Here's a few tips...

Measure up decals before applying them. Measure twice, cut once. Making your own decals is fun! I don't have any fancy software for decal making on my 'puter, so I use Windows "Paint" to process artwork. I have to scale them up or down from the printer set up page. If I manipulate them too much in Paint, they get pixelated very quickly. 

Decalset will help decals set into hood and door seams, but make sure the decal is exactly where you want it. Once it's used, moving the decal won't happen, and if you try, it'll get damaged very easily. Use caution when using it, as it can float the decal and it'll move and then very quickly be stuck in the wrong spot. Use it sparingly after the decal has a chance to stick, and then go back with a slightly heavier coat. 

Decals need to be protected. Clear lacquer is the fastest way. Some use Future, either dipping or brush painting it on. I prefer the lacquer method myself. Depending on how thick the decals are determines how many coats you'll need. Don't install the glass until your done painting. Clear lacquer (and all spray bomb paints) will haze clear plastic! Future won't. You can't paint over Future, so if you make these to sell, at least warn folks you've used Future on them if you do. 

I use spray bomb paint in my airbrush. Some bleed paints for future use. I don't. They tend to dry up fast, contain propellent that will pop caps off of storage jars if even slightly shaken (Man what a mess!! I was half covered, as was my bench and what was on it with candy green!!!), and it was a half shake half swirl that popped the top! I'll simply spray 5-10 bursts of paint into an iced tea scoop, thin 50/50 with lacquer thinner and airbrush away!!

Fingernail polish is a cheap way to boost your color selection! It needs to be thinned a lot, like 8:1 with lacquer thinner to get out of the brush. Even more if using a siphon feed brush. I like gravity feed, as it's easier to clean. Beware of heavy flake! It'll clog most smaller needle and head (nozzle) brushes. Also, you'll find most pearl type polishes leave too much pearl (and flake) on the surface. Plan on backing up with a same color candy coat to get the look as it's viewed in the bottle. 

A clean brush is a happy brush!! Clean it out quickly and thoroughly and you won't have to break it down as much. One of the good things about Lacquer based (and nail polish too) is it dries quickly. The same goes for inside your brush. Nail polish especially! 

Different needles and heads for different paints.... .02mm for candies and small flake. .03mm for slightly heavier flake. The bigger the flake, the bigger the needle and head.


----------



## Jisp (Oct 19, 2008)

slots-n-stuff said:


> ... wasn't thinking of selling decals...


I’ll bet you are thinking about it now. Very nice cars Andrew.



slotcarman12078 said:


> ..... If I manipulate them too much in Paint, they get pixelated very quickly.


Joe, image pixelation happens for a number of reasons and can usually be avoided. What are you doing when the images begin to appear pixelated? My guess is that you work on an image, save it as a JPEG file (.jpg) and then open it again later to further work on it. After doing this several times you notice the image becoming pixelated? If I’m right it’s because .jpg is a “lossy” compression format which means every time you save, it is further compressed and begins to pixelate when you next open it. If you save it as a 24-bit bitmap (.bmp) between working sessions you’ll eradicate the problem completely.

Oh, and scaling via the printer setup page must drive you nuts. Do you have M$ Word installed on your ‘puter? If you do, let me know and I’ll show you how to scale them within Word.

Cheers,
Michael. :thumbsup:


----------



## Ralphthe3rd (Feb 24, 2011)

Great Job Andrew :thumbsup: looks just like a mini version of my old Monogram 1/24 scale '55 Chevy kit model


----------



## Green Destiny (Jun 26, 2008)

Those do look great, especially close up. Hope to see more from you in the near future.


----------



## Rich Dumas (Sep 3, 2008)

Future can smudge ink jet printed decals if you brush it on. That is not a problem if you spray them with Testors Decal Bonder first. I have found that Future is OK for static models, but for cars that will be handled a lot the Future and your decals are likely to get rubbed off. I have had the best luck coating everything with Testors Clear Spray Lacquer. Krylon Crystal Clear works as well. Some clear coats will eat up decals or even your paint, so you should test any combination of finish coat, decals and clear coat before you put it on a car.


----------



## slots-n-stuff (Oct 18, 2006)

*Herbie*

Another piece - Herbie the Love Bug













​


----------



## slots-n-stuff (Oct 18, 2006)

*'59 Chevy Impala*

'59 Chevy Impala - Newest piece - in progress


















​Removed flames... a few touch ups and then off to a clear coat...


----------



## hojohn (May 21, 2008)

wow those are looking great


----------



## slots-n-stuff (Oct 18, 2006)

hojohn said:


> wow those are looking great


Thank you ...I did a few more today....





















​


----------



## slotcarman12078 (Oct 3, 2008)

Sweet!! I like the top one! I've been thinking of doing something similar for a while.... I just haven't had the urge to print out the images I've accumulated for decal material.


----------



## slots-n-stuff (Oct 18, 2006)

*Made by Robrods*

These were Painted n Decaled by my friend Robrods.....


----------

