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Background
I began designing decals back on 2005, when I build the Galileo II
Shuttle. I wanted the model to be more realistic in the interior
and I
wasn't to accomplish that with a brush. I bought a set of inkjet decal
paper (there were 4 sheets or so) and I designed decals for the
interior, based on the references I found in the net. Next I draw
custom name for a Constitution Class ship which I named after the name
of my beloved country (USS Catalunya, NCC 1714).
Next thing I know is
that I began designing decals for every model I was to build and
Illustrator (a vector graphic drawing program) was my closest friend.
Printing decals
Garage decals can be printed in different ways such as Inkjet printers,
Laser printers, copiers, etc. Inkjet printing has many disavantages.
For once, it takes a lot for the ink to dry out, then the ink must be
coated because water would destroy the artwork. Besides, the ink is
very transparent and this is sometimes a disadvantadge.
On the other side there were
the ALPS printers.
This technology was unique in many ways. The
printing was done by thermo dye transfer. The dye were manufactured in
many colors other than the usual CMYK. They were able to print white.
This was a wonderful feature because it allowed to set a decal of a
very light colour (such as yellow) on a dark colored surface. You only
had to print your artwork with a layer of white and then with the
normal color over it. With the white base coat underneath the artwork,
there was sufficient contrast to achieve a nice decaling. Well, you
might have noticed that I underlined the word "were" when I began
talking about ALPS. This is because the manufacturing of these printers
was discontinued many years ago and supplies are hard to find. Besides,
there is no more technical support on the printers, so if one breaks
down, chances are it won't be repaired. Also drivers are no longer
available for newer operating systems.
The intermediate solution is Color Laser Printers. Tonner is also a
thermo transfer color and it is water resistant. Tonner is more oppaque
than inkjet but, maybe not so oppaque like ALPS ribbons. The problem
with laser printers is that they aren't able to print white and,
therefore light colors over a dark surface is a tricky thing to do.
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Here you can see an
example of a Laser-printed decals on a clear decal paper. I don't know
about you, but it's good enough for me. In my opinion, high-contrast
decals even can look, sometimes, unrealistic.
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This ship has
Inkjet-printed decals on a clear decal paper. Although the red color
looks ok, the yellow is really faint.
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What do I do?
Well, I do own an ALPS printer. However, everytime is getting more
difficult to use. For instance it misses spots of some of the colors
once in a while. And this is very anoying when it comes at the end of a
full decal sheet. It takes a log time to get it right. So right now
don't use it really much.
What I do is to use a color laser printer. Usually tonner is opaque
enough for most of the applications using clear decal paper. If I am in
need of a higher contrast (a light color must be placed on a darker
surface) what I do is to use a white decal paper. That way the light
color is perfectly visible.
The problem
of
white paper
The problem with printing on white paper is that if you don't cut the
decals precisely, the white paper will be visible. For instance,
imagine that you want to place a decal which contains yellow lettering
over a dark grey surface. If the little triangle inside the letter A is
not removed, you'll see a white triangle on your model. That is the
disadvantadge of white paper.
The workaround for the
"white-paper problem"
There is a easy workaround for the "white-paper problem". What I do is
to wait until the model is painted. Once it's finish I look at what
decals should be of high contrast and, therefore, printed in white
paper (usually yellow, light blue, etc) and print these decals with a
background color which maches that of the model as much as possible.
That way (and always trying to cut as closer to the artwork as I can),
the white paper is masked and the result is quite satisfactory. At
least for my standards. In order to find out a color that maches that
of the model, I print out a series of color samples and I compare it
directly with the model. That's it. Of course, if the artwork is large
enough, that could not even be necessary.
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Here you can see an
example of the workaround. This is a figure my wife molded after me.
The Atari logo was achieved by printing the black backgroun on a white
decal paper. This decal was inkjet-rpinted. When done with Laser
technology, looks much better.
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What can you do if you
whant some
of my decals?
I always try to print as much as possible on clear paper. If some of
the artwork is to be printed on white paper, you can tell me waht
background color you want. The best thing to do is exactly as I do,
find the background color that matches your model. You can print color
samples (better on a color laser printer, if possible) and find the one
that maches the best. Once you find it, tell me the exact color in a
CMYK code.
I realize that the workaround doesn't match be beautiful feature of
ALPS printers, but you have to realize, most of the times the
precission we, model builders, wish to achieve is unrealistic. By this
I mean that sometimes the detail we want to achieve will go unnoticable
once the model is completed.
What now?
Now you do know exactly what can I offer. If you want some of my
decals, go to the store and proceed. But,
please, be aware of the pros
and cons.
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