looking for fresh decals

I do not place my MS decals in water. I lay them on a ceramic tile and add a brush full of water and let it soak the paper until the decal slides off. It works with old ones and new ones too.

BTW, what roadname are you looking for?

The Micro-Scale decal film works very well too.

Malcolm

thanks...nothing in particular..PRR for sure maybe some PC...i will try your technique john

It also helps to coat the old decals with a solution that Micro Scale sells for that purpose before you try to transfer them to a model.

Some have also had luck spraying old decals lightly with Dull Coat and letting them dry thoughly before mounting.

And again, doint dunk them in water! Let the water creep underneath to loosen the glue. Gently slide them on a little spot of water into the location desired. Then blot the excess water away at the edges.

As for fresh decals? Unless you can make them yourself or someone has made them for you, there aren't any any more!  

Repainting, decaling and customizing have been my favorite part of the hobby.  So I also appreciate the helpful tips that you all have offered.  As Ed says though, the supply of decals has dried up.

Hey guys, it's true some of the older or more traditional sources for decals have moved on, but all is not lost.  Check out these two newer players.  Both are high quality and adding more regularly.  Of course an increase in demand may effect an increase in supply!

http://www.mgdecals.com/Industrialmodels.htm

http://www.protocraft.com/Majors.cfm?ID=1

The Protocraft decals are printed by Microscale, and the Industrial Models decals are printed by Highball Graphics.  No "Home brewed" Alps decals here, but rather the good stuff!  Colors are true and solid, with excellent whites.  And this stuff didn't even exist until a couple years ago, so fresh is back!

Rick - the two links you provided ae just what I've been looking for!  Thanks!

Brian

Just wanted to add this, Jim at MG Decals/Highball Graphics can make custom decals too. He will make from 1/2 sheet on up.

He made these for me within a week.

E.L.S. Trains will also make custom decals:

http://home.mindspring.com/~elstrains/index.html

Ed Reutling had them make the decals for our SCL and SAL Whalebelly Hoppers:

The thing with most custom decal makers is you have to provide them with quality artwork of what you want.  Usually not a problem unless you're looking for some oddball stuff.

You'll have to copy and paste the entire link to get it to work.

One problem with homemade decals is if you need a decal that has clear parts and white parts.  The ALPS printer is no longer being made and most home printers don't do white.  Another problem is finding decent artwork of the image you're trying to capture.

For solid color printing I use BelDecal paper (available in white and clear) and my Epson Workforce 500 printer.  I seal them with Testors clear spray.

Getting colors like yellow on decal paper so that it is opaque is another problem.  I had some yellow decals that looked fine on the paper backing but against a blue N&W caboose they looked green!

My decal guy prints white under yellow.  We paint yellow airplanes white first.

Yes, I agree.  I have been trying to print a big yellow "north arrow" for the roof of the Flyer water tower, poor results.  I have been using the clear decal paper: Micro-Mark also sells white, I plan to try that, it should come out better?

Anybody have a spare set of Grand Trunk steam decals?

Micro scale  sells a product that keeps old decals together.
I don't dunk anything all you need is the amount of water that will fill the depression in a saucer where the cup is supposed to sit. The flat paints are to grainy to get good adhesion of the decal so I give the area in my recent case a tender a coat of Pledge with future shine .This fills in the tiny imperfections in the paint and gives you a smooth surface for the decal.

  I wet the decal and slide it off into place. Hey if it's crooked don't worry . Keep a glass of water handy and a very soft paint brush
Just brush water over the decal and it'll let you slide it where you want it.
Once the decal is in place and using a dry brush I like to mash the brush on the decal.

No don't scoot it mash it . It'll push any water out from under the decal and make it stick where it's raised up. once it's dry I give it another coat of Pledge. Once it's fully dry(over night) I hit it with dull coat and you won't be able to tell it's a decal and not paint.

David

heres a guy who will do custom decals http://www.lbrenterprisesllc.com/index.html