When the owner of Pin Ups Plus read the posts about the translucency issues encountered, she quickly wrote to me to let me know she was trying a new approach. The turnaround was very quick (you can see that I posted my receipt in the Latest Acquisitions thread a while ago) but I have been too busy to try them out. My apologies to Pin Ups Plus.
first impression is that I like the approach. Instead of the usual pin up girls printed on clear or white decal film, this time the background color is close to the shade of the vehicle.
For this test, I used the black background. Since the painted (tattooed) ladies would not be proper for my WWII collection, they were used.
Using the back of the scalpel, I noticed that the decals are printed on a white film.
Care should be taken not to use scissors as the inks do scratch easily revealing the white film beneath.
The opacity is very good and shows that this approach is sound.
I do have a suggestion for Pin ups Plus. Try the same thing on a clear film and allow the modeler to apply white below the figure (but i would like to try it without first to see if it is necessary).
Some tips on working with these decals.
Inks are fragile, use scissors to free the subject from the sheet but allow plenty of room to trim closer with a knife. Use a fresh blade in the knife to gently cut the film (not the paper backing) to minimize the touch up needed if the white film shows.
In the case of these dark backgrounds, cut the film to replicate either a panel line or freshly cleaned section (rectangle or oval).
Very warm water allows for flexibility. MicroSol and MicroSet work well with the sheets. The decals do allow for some handling so blotting out bubbles is the first recourse before resorting to the blade to release the trapped air.
My thanks to Pin Ups Plus for allowing me to test this approach.
Regards,
first impression is that I like the approach. Instead of the usual pin up girls printed on clear or white decal film, this time the background color is close to the shade of the vehicle.
For this test, I used the black background. Since the painted (tattooed) ladies would not be proper for my WWII collection, they were used.
Using the back of the scalpel, I noticed that the decals are printed on a white film.
Care should be taken not to use scissors as the inks do scratch easily revealing the white film beneath.
The opacity is very good and shows that this approach is sound.
I do have a suggestion for Pin ups Plus. Try the same thing on a clear film and allow the modeler to apply white below the figure (but i would like to try it without first to see if it is necessary).
Some tips on working with these decals.
Inks are fragile, use scissors to free the subject from the sheet but allow plenty of room to trim closer with a knife. Use a fresh blade in the knife to gently cut the film (not the paper backing) to minimize the touch up needed if the white film shows.
In the case of these dark backgrounds, cut the film to replicate either a panel line or freshly cleaned section (rectangle or oval).
Very warm water allows for flexibility. MicroSol and MicroSet work well with the sheets. The decals do allow for some handling so blotting out bubbles is the first recourse before resorting to the blade to release the trapped air.
My thanks to Pin Ups Plus for allowing me to test this approach.
Regards,
