Decals and Transfers

Decal Types

I will normally print your decals onto waterslide paper; that is, the decal paper has to be soaked in water for a few seconds (typically 10–20) to release the decal from its backing paper. The decal is then simply slid into place on your model and finally fixed by pressing with a paper towel or a cotton bud. Alternatively, for special applications or simply if you prefer, I can print your decals onto self-adhesive paper (i.e. commercial sticky labels), or even simply plain paper.

The waterslide paper is available with either a transparent or white carrier film. Like all desktop printers, my printer (a colour laser) does not use white ink, and only the black ink is really opaque. Therefore the transparent paper is only usuable where either the surface the decal is to be applied to is white or very light in colour, or the decal contains only black or very dark colours. Otherwise the white carrier film has to be used to achieve accurate colour reproduction.

This film (whether transparent or white) extends across the whole sheet of decals, and has to be cut around the individual decals during application. It is generally better to leave a small border of the film around the decal when cutting out. My decal sheets contain cutting guides (short lines around the edge of each decal) to assist with placing a ruler or other straight edge to guide your knife. Place your ruler on the decal side of the cut.

For simple, straight-edged decals on a white backing film, it is sometimes possible to cut accurately around the decal outline to completely remove the excess white carrier; for more complex shapes, such as lettering, this is impractical and so the decal has to include a coloured background that matches the surface it is to be applied to. My semi-custom and standard decals often offer choice of background colours, and include a specification of the paint colours the background has been matched to. For fully custom decals you will need to specify the paint colour that I am to match, and if I do not have the appropriate paint, supply me with a sample painted onto a scrap of material such as plastic sheet.

The white carrier film is sufficiently thin to be pretty much invisible around the edge of the decal once it is in place on the model, provided that it has been cut cleanly – use a very sharp knife. If the decal edge tears during cutting or application, so that some of the printed colour comes off and reveals the white film, it is straightforward to touch up the edges of the decal with the background paint colour. The white film can also be visible if the decal is viewed edge-on; again it is simple to apply paint around the edge of the decal once in place using a small brush. This is another reason to leave a border of background colour around the decal when cutting out. Use of thinned paint helps to blend the touching-up with the surrounding surface while tinting the edge of the film.

The need for a coloured decal background can ometimes actually be an advantage, as it eliminates the possibility of the "silvered" effect that can occur with transparent waterslide decals when applied to a less than perfectly smooth surface (such as matt or even satin paint finishes), due to air becoming trapped under the decal. A slight mismatch between the decal background colour and the underlying surface can be less noticeable than a silvered transparent carrier.

Prices and Delivery

All of my decals are printed to order; I do not keep a stock of individual sheets. Standard and semi-custom decals will normally be dispatched within 10 working days of your order (and receipt of your cleared payment). If I am unable to do this (e.g. due to unexpectedly running out of blank decal paper or printer ink etc.) I will let you know within a few days of your order.

My standard decals cost £7.50 per set. Most semi-custom decals cost £9.50 per set, irrespective of the degree of customisation needed. For both standard and semi-custom decals, these prices apply to the first set in your order; additional sets (of either type) ordered at the same time will cost £5.00 or £7.00 per set. This discount is applied in your basket.

Certain decals (e.g. carriage seat covers) that require several sheets per set in the larger scales have a different price structure, but still qualify for the multi-buy discount of £2.50 per additional sets.

Samples sheets cost significantly less than the standard prices, and therefore do not qualify for (or contribute to) the multi-buy discount for additional sets.

Fully custom decals will cost £5.00 per sheet, plus a one-off design fee of at least £25.00 depending on the number and complexity of the decals required, and the quality of the information you provide. If a background colour matching exercise is required, this will add £10.00 per colour to your fee. Additional sheets ordered later will cost the same as my standard decals if identical to your original order, or the same as my semi-custom ones if minor modifications are required.

I normally supply decals printed onto paper up to A5 in size, for ease of posting. All decal sets in your order, whether standard, semi-custom or fully custom, will be organised for printing to use the minimum number of actual sheets; depending on the size and number of decals in a set, a single A5 sheet can typically contain several sets of decals.

Where the size of the decals requires it, I can also supply A4 sized sheets. The per sheet and postage costs will increase accordingly, and will be quoted on application.

To send the decals to you I offer several levels of service:

• Economy. £2.00 per order. The decals will be posted by normal First Class post, and loss or damage in transit is at your risk (i.e. if the decals arrive damaged or not at all, they will not be replaced or refunded).
• Standard. £3.75 per order. The decals will be posted by First Class recorded delivery, and will thus require a signature on arrival. Decals that arrive damaged, or not at all, will be replaced free of charge (or refunded), provided I can claim on the insurance included with this service.
• Express. £8.25 per order. The decals will be posted by Special Delivery, will require a signature on arrival, and are guaranteed to arrive the next (working) day after I dispatch them. I will also endeavour to dispatch them as quickly as possible after your order, usually within 5 working days. Decals that arrive damaged, or not at all, will be replaced free of charge (or refunded), provided I can claim on the insurance included with this service.
• Overseas. For delivery outside of the UK. No fee will initially be added to your order. Once I receive your order I will send you a quote for the cost of delivery, since this will depend on the destination country. Where possible the decals will be posted by an equivalent of First Class recorded delivery, and will thus require a signature on arrival. Whether such a service is available depends on the destination country. Decals that arrive damaged, or not at all, will be replaced free of charge (or refunded), provided I can claim on any insurance included with the postal service.

Electronic Files

As an alternative to supplying physical decals, I can also supply electronic files that you can use to print the decal sheets yourself, or get them printed by third party service. Since you will be able to print multiple copies of sheets supplied in this way, these files will cost £25 per sheet; please enquire for further details and how to place your order.

Note that my decal sheets are subject to copyright, and are licensed for your personal use only; you are not permitted to supply decals produced from them to anyone else, either as sheets of unused decals or applied to a model or other object (other than to dispose of your own collection of models on a second-hand basis). You are also not permitted to modify the files in any way, nor supply copies of them to anyone else, other than to get them printed by a third party.

If you wish to use a printing service that is capable of using opaque white or light-coloured inks, at extra cost I can supply versions of these files modified to accommodate the necessary carrier mask or colour separation layers; please enquire for further details.