Before I apply a decal, I first put on a thin coat of testors gloss varnish. Any gloss varnish should work fine. You don’t need to brush on a thick glob of varnish. What the gloss varnish will do is create a flat surface in which to lay the decal on.
Wait until the varnish is dry before applying decals. I usually will brush on the varnish the night before, but an hour or so should be sufficient for it to dry.
To soften the decals I use 2 products that I picked up at a model railroad/hobby store. First I use Micro-sol to soften up the decals and as a top coat I use micro-set. To apply a decal I will first apply a coat of micro-sol where I am going to place the decal. Next, using tweezers to hold the decal I submerge it in water for 30-45 seconds. When the decal is removed from the water it should separate easily with a brush. Gently brush the decal onto the surface you want to place it.
My suggestion is the angle the decal as close to the way you want it as I have found that even when wet sometimes the decal will only shift so far. This will also help prevent tearing.
Once the decal is in place I will gently dab on a little more of the micro-sol and let it sit for about 30 seconds or so. Once the decal has set for a moment I will wick away the fluid and gently press the decal down using a makeup applicator sponge. I find the wedge sponges work very nice for this. They are soft and contour to the shape while being absorbant.
Initially you will probably notice a litte bit of wrinkling on the decal. This is usually more apparent on curved surfaces such as space marine shoulder pads (as seen here).
After wicking off the micro-sol and getting the decal to lay were you want it, I next apply some micro-set and let it set for another 30-45 seconds or so. I will gently brush any raised areas of the decal towards the edges. Usually on round decals it is hard to get rid of all of the raised areas but you can generally move them to the edges of the decals. This is important for the next step.
After wicking off the micro-set and further pressing the decal in place using the makeup applicator sponge, I then take an x-acto knife blade and gently scrape the raised areas of the decal. It is best to wait 15 minutes or so for the decal to dry before doing this. The decal should be soft and should remove very easily. It doesn’t take very much pressure, and the sharper the blade the better.
Sometimes I find it virtually impossible to scrap away the raised areas without taking a little bit from the decal. This usually doesn’t worry me at all. These areas should be rather small and should paint on easily. Not to mention it works well when you are going for realistic weathering. In this particular case I took Vallejo model color smoke glaze and dabbed it over the areas that were “cut” away for the appearance of dirt smudges. You will also notice in this example that I pressed in the decal and cut it away from the bolter holes in his shoulderpad.
Last but not least - after the decals have dried I brush on a second thin coat of gloss varnish. This pretty much makes the decal permanent. Once this dries I spray on a layer or 2 of Testor’s dullcote to remove the shine from the gloss varnish.
I hope you find this guide informative. I think it works well and is not terribly complicated. The decals will generally lay easier over a flat surface and will require less “trimming”.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010 at 06:26PM 
