Here we have the do's and dont's of decal application. We will assume that your model is disassembled and masked and ready for paint. We can assume that we are painting a Bachman Wood steam era reefer. It is a model that is factory painted and appears to have a semi gloss finish. I will first wash the model with a good quality agent soap. Dish soap or glass cleaner will work. I first let the model dry after the detergent wash. This means letting it dry completely. I then spray a clear gloss coat onto the model.THIS STEP IS NECESSARY to make the decal film disappear. We will begin by trimming the decal as close as possible to the artwork thus eliminating any extra decal plastic film.  The next step is to lay your trimmed decals out onto your model to get a picture of what you want and to decide your positions on your model. 

The next step after you have mocked the decals into postion and removed them from your model (you dont want to get them pre-maturely wet), is to soak them in hot water. I usually put a large salad dish into the micro wave for 1 minute 40 seconds while my tap water is running getting hot. PLEASE BE CAREFUL TO NOT BURN YOURSELF DURING THIS STEP!  These times are the amount of time I use for my particular microwave etc. Experiment to find your own times. I sometimes will put a small drop of dish washing liquid into the dish before I add my hot tap water, as this will make the decals slide even better. I also want to add that before this step I always put a dallop of hot water onto the area of the model where I will be sliding the decals onto the model. Now is the time to use a pick tool or the like to slide and position your decal onto your model. After the decal is in the position that you are satisfied with, blot any extra water off using a small clean sponge. Modern Rails Company has access to and can provide to you the modeler at my low cost a full line of Flo Quil, Polly Scale and Testors paints and decal setting solutions and solva set solutions IF purchasing them at order time. In this next step we apply the setting solution to the model. I will stress again that this is a process that may take up to 2-3 hours per model side and in doing this I apply additional coats of setting solutions as each coat is nearly dry. This will assure that the decals are set between each board slat or rivet that your model may have.   Here in this picture you can see that after 5 coats of setting solution, each that was allowed to NOT completely dry. we have the decal sitting into each board slat and crevice. If using SOLVA-SET or the like you may want to cut the solution 50% as I do. The solva set may actually make the decal to rubbery to move around on your model. This may sound like a lot of steps and it is, tho you may be assured that you will have a factory quality or better model when you are finished. The last step is to apply 2 coats of Dull Coat or the like. And you must feather on the dull coat or your decal WILL LIFT creating a surface that will dry with cracks and crevices. If this does happen stop immediately and let it dry. Remember there is only 2 things that you want to take. That is time and patience while decaling your models. GOOD LUCK and TAKE YOUR TIME. You will achieve professional results. Ricky - Modern Rails Company. 

 

Now we will cover the application of decals on a car with ribbed sides. This will cover a car that does not have a continous logo over raised ribs such as a Norfolk Southern 100 ton coal hopper, which has 5 stripes connecting to the NS letters. These type cars will be covered at a later time. On our model we will be decaling an Aristo Craft 100 ton hopper that has raised ribs. This is done due to the fact that if you put a continous decal over raised ribs there is a HIGH probability that the ribs will produe air pockets or areas where the decal film will not fully settle down into crevices or un-aligned areas of your model. This is why the decals are cut closely to the ink lettering and applied individually. Remember that we are also decaling cars that have been coated with a clear gloss finsih that will hide the decal film.

 

Cut out your decals,  lay them accordingly in a accessable place. You may want to cut out your decals in a area that has bright sunlight so that you may see the lettering and inked areas better. Have a game plan ready. Remember, the more decal film you can remove without cutting into you decal the less you may have to try and hide.

Use masking tape as a guide to align your decal against the masking tape so that you may apply the decals in a straight line on your model. I use either a pick set or an exacto type knife to align the decals after they have been slid off the decal paper onto the model. If you are doing two or more cars at the same time you may want to write lightly,  the car road numbers onto the masking tape as a reference for yourself.

 

 

Another small detail that is of notice, is that you can apply some of the warm water directly onto your model where you plan on putting your decals. As above, the water has been dripped from my fingers onto the decal placement area. This will aid in moving the decal into the proper position or alignment after it has been slid from the blue paper.

 

In this picture you see that I place the decal after soaking in warm water onto an absorbent cloth to blot or draw any excess water from the decal. I have seen at times the decal actually roll under the decal backing paper and have to redip it into the water then pull it back into position onto the backing paper. Then I will touch the decal against the absorbent cloth to remove the excess water.

 

In this picture you see me actually sliding the decal onto the model . I usually use my other index finger to hold the top of the decal as I slide the decal off the backing paper. At this point, when the decal; is on the model is when I align it to straighten the decal out in alignment to the masking tape. Can you dig it?

 

Here you can see me blotting any excess water from the car model. As when you wash your car, the water may form spots on  your railcar and lead to a shoddy looking job when they are finally dried. SO, blot off any excess water or setting solution.

 

Now, we see the decals fully applied to the railcar. After you have gotten this far, and all are straight and are to your likimg. AND REMEMBER.. Straighten each decal as it is slid onto the model. Do not wait until this step in the process. You are now ready to apply your coats of setting solution. ( some prefer to apply setting solution as soon as the decals are slid onto the model ) This will be done in 5-6 consecutive coats, each of which will be let nearly completely dry. Your decals may appear to have bubbles in them which may be air. Use a small hobby brush to apply the setting solution which will aid you in brushing out the air bubbles as you apply your coats of setting solution. Some setting solutions may come with such a brush.

 

Here we see a picture of this type of railcar in its painting stages. Laborsome? Yes but this is how we gety a clean custom car. Good luck and REMEMBER: PATIENCE.