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Showing content with the highest reputation on 05/02/2021 in all areas

  1. Ink jet water slide decals come two ways, clear and white. Ink jet does not print white. On the white decal paper anything you print is what you get. JMB has a different setup than I do, and his will print white. The clear decal paper is great for dark printing, but the lighter colors are more opaque, the background shows through. I use the clear on dials because I think the lettering coming from the background looks more crisp. I paint the dial white or creme for the background. You print at photo quality, so it is capable of being sharp and clear. Use Photo Shop or any other photo program to size, tweak, adjust or anything else to the picture to be printed. I print at the highest resolution for sharpness. You can find water slide decals at most any hobby shop. I use Hobby Lobby because they have 40% coupons all the time, so it costs about $8 for a package that will yield more than 50 dials. I use a setting solution called 'Micro Set'. It makes the decal stick better, and easier to work with. You must use a sealer to seal the printing on the decal. The stuff the hobby shop sells makes the ink bleed, especially noticeable on a white dial. Instead use Krylon Crystal Clear spray. It comes in gloss, matte and flat. The ink does not run with this, you can seal about an hour after printing. It is under $4 at Walmart, and over $7 at Hobby Lobby! This sealer will give you the finish you want, aged, spider-webbed, patina or smooth. The most difficult is glossy smooth. It has to be dust free. On the aged dials for my 6542 and 6204 I put it on thick and get a nice aged spider web effect. Very thin will give a patina look. Experiment a bit, and it becomes obvious to get what you want. The pictures you get from the internet will work, but be prepared for them to be a little out of round. Unless the picture is taken perfectly it won't be round. You can fix that with your photo shop program. Then it's practice. Make your picture, size it and print. Then seal it, cut it out, put some Micro Set on the dial, wet the decal and slide it on. Use a Q-tip to smooth it and get any bubbles out. It will move, so be gentle. I use the Styrofoam that comes with meat from the butcher to work on dials. The dial feet sit in the Styrofoam so it doesn't move and doesn't hurt the legs. The tip of your finger on the edge will hold the decal in place while you slide it on. You've got a good minute to position it, so don't rush, but be ready to be quick. It will not look perfectly smooth at first. As it dries it stretches itself taught because of the Micro Sol. I wait at least an hour to trim out the holes using a razor knife. For the date window it is a little tricky. The decals are a vinyl, so when cut they leave a little 'hanging chad'. I tried all sorts of ways and have a method I like best. I cut the decal over the date window in an 'X' corner to corner. Then using a toothpick,. I wet the back of each triangular piece of the decal, one at a time. I then push that triangular part through the window and fold it over onto the back of the dial, and stretch it a bit until it sets. That takes some practice, but is makes a smooth finished look, especially on beveled windows. I use a water based acrylic 'Glow Paint' for lume. I use a kid's 99¢ paint set, those dried ones, to tint the lume. It last about as our Chinese reps do, not a Super lume at all. Pretty much, it takes practice. But once you get the hang of it there is no limit to what you can do.
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