My old Alco models NYC 2-8-0 is painted a flat/satin black, looks great other than the decals, you can tell its a decal. Is there any way to hide this other than with weathering? I plan to mask off and respray the tender sides as the decals are all scratched up. Would dry transfers work better on a satin finish, or is there another way I dont know of? I have actualy kick around using the white letting from the Turtle Creek set and doing it for my short line like it got the engine as a "hand me down" from the NYC. Any help with getting the decals to look right without painted it a gloss color then dullcoating. Trying to keep the layers of paint to a min.
LHS mechanic and geniune train and antique garden tractor nut case!
If it has a 'flat' paint, I can understand why the decals were bad. You really need to repaint the model, then spray a 'Gloss' on it. The new decals will melt right into the gloss paint. Then spray it with a 'flat' clear coat - now your decals have some protection!
Jim
Modeling BNSF and Milwaukee Road in SW Wisconsin
Thats what I figured, I just dont want to repaint the whole model as its somewhat weathered on the running gear. I dont have the means to strip the whole engine and get it this nice again. I can do the tender, mask the sides, hit it with gloss black, then dullcoat once decaled, the engine only has the road number, on the sides of the cab, wonder if I can just mask and reshoot that part of the cab, once dull it might blend in? not sure? I need to find my NYC decals to, missing since the move back to Indiana.
It depends how finicky you want to be. There may be an easy way to do it. I will offer a couple of different ways.
1- Remove the old decals. You may be able to use Solvaset to soften them up, then wipe them off with a damp rag, soft cloth, or Q-tip so you don't scratch the paint. (The Solvaset shouldn't harm the paint) Then apply the new lettering with dry transfers. They can be applied to a dull or flat painted surface. Then clear coat them with semi-gloss or flat paint.
2- Remove the old decals as in step one above. Then paint the area where the new decals will go with a clear gloss of some type. I paint it on with a good camel hair brush. I also use some stuff called Micro Gloss Coat for the clear gloss coat. I then apply the decals. When finished and completely dry, I paint the gloss surface with the decals and some of the surrounding area with a clear flat or semi-gloss.
Both of the above ways, if they are acceptable to you, would mean that you don't have to repaint the model.
Elmer.
The above is my opinion, from an active and experienced Model Railroader in N scale and HO since 1961.
(Modeling Freelance, Eastern US, HO scale, in 1962, with NCE DCC for locomotive control and a stand alone LocoNet for block detection and signals.) http://waynes-trains.com/ at home, and N scale at the Club.
Thanks, I will give that a try for getting the old ones off the model. I kind of knew how to redo it so it would look better, but it was getting the old ones off without repainting that was confusing me. Mike