I've just been applying waterslide transfers to a few wagons and come up against the usual problem - brushing on a varnish picks up the transfer. This seems to happen only with white transfers, as some black ones I did last week were fine. The white transfers are from three different manufacturers and all suffer the same problem. I prefer to brush, so does anyone have any suggestions please?
Process I use is:
paint the wagon matt (many colours are only available in matt)
gloss varnish the areas where transfers will be applied
apply transfers
leave for a day or a month - seems to make no difference
lightly brush on matt varnish
and every time it picks up parts of the white transfers, which then need to be touched in by hand.
Thanks,
Mike
Mike,
The solvents in many varnishes will attack the pigments and decal film of some types of transfer.
Using an acrylic (water-based) varnish will usually avoid these problems.
Alternatively, applying a barrier coat before using a solvent-based varnish will avoid the problem.
One recommended method is to protect the transfer with a coat of Johnson's "Klear" which is a hard protective coating for floors.
I understand that this coating will protect even against a cellulose based finish.
Regards,
John.
I personally use the aerosol varnish from Rilmatch which is a good quality and gives pleasing results on all of my models. I have not brush varnished for years as the brush might leave brush strokes in the final finish. The idea of the varnish is to give it a smooth final protective coat so for that reason I prefer the satin aerosol for locos and coaches and the matt for the wagons. I only use the gloss varnish prior to applying the transfers and seal them in with the satin or matt top lacquer coat.
Cheers Mark
Thanks both.
I'm not very good with spraying, having ruined one model with a Humbrol matt spray which left a cloudy film all over the finished wagon. Quite agree with locos and carriages Mark, but for wagons any brush strokes just add to the grain effect on the wood.
John - can you recommend an acrylic matt brush-on varnish please?
I heard than Johnson's floor wax is now of different formula, but have not been able to confirm that myself.
Mike
Mike,
Johnson's "Klear" is not a wax but a water-like liquid, the ingredients being listed as "phosphates", "polycarboxylates" and preservatives.
The 500ml bottle I bought several years ago will probably last me at least another 20 years so I cannot vouch for the current formula.
It dries in minutes, no sign of brush strokes and is rock hard.
I am sure Ralph (if he still looks in) will be able to tell us more about this formula.
As for an acrylic varnish, Winsor & Newton sell a "Galeria" range which I have used (Humbrol and Tamiya sell acrylic ranges but I don't know whether or not these include varnishes).
Regards,
John.
I use a Humbrol fluid (whose name escapes me for the moment, but you can buy it in Hobbycraft stores) especially designed both as an anchor coat and overcoat for transfers, and it certainly improves both adhesion and toughness of the transfers.
Beware of patching varnish just over the transfer areas, though. I have some 25 year old O Gauge wagons where I did this, and the varnish has turned distinctly yellow, and you can clearly see it. If you keep your models for 25 years, that is!
Ted
I have Humbrol Decal Cote 1 and Decal Cote 2 which are said to soften and assist the decals to conform to irregular surfaces.
I have occasionally used them on 4mm scale models but never had enough faith in them to use on large transfers or models likely to get wet or oily.
I do use Micro Set and Micro Sol to make decals settle over rivets, planking, etc. but always overcoat with "Klear" and then a sprayed on varnish (usually either Phoenix Precision or Humbrol).
John.
To get the best out of transfers I personally think the spirit fix transfers are by far and away the best. The water slide transfers that you get in the GRS kits are not brilliant and on occasions I have had to use them but to disguise the outline edge of the trace i have painted up to the edge of the transfer logo of whatever I have put on the side of a model and then spray varnished the entire model and the hard lines of the edge of the carrier film is lost through the thin layer of paint. For the lining on all of my engines I have always used the 0 gauge lining packs and the general purpose lining packs all from HMRA who do superb transfers which I also use in 00.
A product sadly lacking in this scale is the ability to have spirit fix quality transfers in the G3 size and to get the logo that you want. Is there any possibility that the society could start a new service of creating transfers to aid people in their models so we get what we need and with a good quality.
Mark
Mark,
The HMRS transfers were originally made and marketted by P.C.Models, which stands for Peter Chatham. Peter is a good friend and made many of my transfers in Gauge 3, but he can only make waterslide as the supply of methfix papers dried up many years ago. If you can find a supply of the paper, then several people I know would love to buy a quantity!
I'm afraid we're stuck with waterslide or rub-down.
Mike
Well, our Hobbycraft, which is a big shop, doesn't seem to have any Humbrol product as described, but I did get some "Humbrol Hobby Spray Varnich - Matt" which it says is acrylic and in heavy print "not for overcoating enamel paint" which I assume is what Precision etc are. Anyway, my test piece came out well - matt and even, though the very edges of the painted area have bubbled up which is very worrying and I'll do another test.
I also bought some Winsor & Newton "Galeria" gloss varnish which says it is designed to be a barrier coat. It brushed on well and in spite of being deliberately applied thicker than the spray has not caused any bubbling. It is a high gloss, so then needs another coat of matt varnish.
John Isherwood has confirmed via my friend that the current Johnson's "Klear" no longer works as a barrier, though I've not proved that myself.
I still prefer to brush because one can add a little brown or grey to tone down the brightness of the transfers, and vary the thickness at will if an area needs more or less. Spray on the other hand needs the model to be masked as matt varnish overspray shows up even on matt paint. Nevertheless I think I'll use the spray, subject to another test. I am however a little concerned about the warning on the can - any suggestions?
Thanks chaps.
Mike
Mike,
I think a possibility is that when used over gloss paint (enamel) the acrylic may not adhere properly and may peel off.
Used over matt or semi-matt finishes (as are acrylic paints) I don't expect there will be any adhesion problems.
Shame about "Klear" but at least I have enough to last me for as long as I shall be model making (about 450ml left from a 500 ml bottle).
Regards,
John.
I found the bottle I had, which is simply labelled 'Humbrol Decal Cote', and is a few years old. Seems that John has later versions 1 and 2!
A way to check adhesion of lacquers over bare or prepainted surfaces is to perform a 'cross-hatch' test, commonly used in the paint industry. On a prepainted or bare test substrate such as aluminium (not the model itself), apply a coat of lacquer and let it dry for at least 24 hours. Then with a sharp knife, score a series of approximately 10 parallel straight lines around 2-3 mm apart with a sharp knife, through to the substrate. Then score another set at right angles, so that you end up with a chequerboard pattern of 2-3 mm squares.
Apply a piece of self-adhesive tape such as Sellotape or Scotch tape and rub it down over the cut squares. Then just rip it off as evenly as possible (great fun). Observe how many squares of lacquer are attached to the sticky tape and that is your indication of the level of adhesion. Sometimes the base coat lifts off as well - usually this indicates that some sort of primer coat is necessary before painting.
I hope that this proves useful.
Regards
Ted
Well, encouraged by all this I sprayed the van with the Humbrol acrylic matt varnish noted above and this is the result. Looks like I'll have to strip the model and start again. At least there was no problem with adhesion to the Precision Paints enamel paint!
Mike
P.S. In case its not clear in the small picture, the paint on most of the side has bubbled up very badly indeed.
Mike,
That is an awful result but cellulose thinners should easily remove the paint without damaging the resin body.
How did it happen...did you spray the Humbrol varnish over the Winsor & Newton "Galeria" acrylic gloss coat?
I have used both Humbrol and Winsor & Newton spray can acrylic gloss varnish in the past (but not on models......only to seal computer ink-jet printed signs and badges for the museum, etc.) and both smell as though they contain solvents (unlike the brush on "Galeria" acrylic varnishes which are water-based and have little or no smell).
It would appear the solvents in the spray can have attacked the "Galeria" acrylic gloss.
John.
The model was cleaned and brushed with Precision Paints LSWR (SR) wagon brown matt several months ago. Areas where transfers were to be applied were then brushed with Humbrol clear gloss enamal. Waterslide transfers then applied. After a week the model was then sprayed with Humbrol acrylic matt varnish. I havn't yet used the W&N on a model.
Although some paint has remained intact, on the solebar the gloss had been applied to the numberplate area only, but the whole solebar has bubbled. This leads me to conclude that it is the Hymbrol varnish and the Precision paint that have reacted, nut the Humbrol gloss.
The strange thing is that looking at it again tonight the paint has gone back down and it actually looks OK-ish! I suspect however that it will no longer be adhering to the model adequately, so will need to be stripped.
Mike
Hi Mike all my models always get a spray of halfords "grey plastic primer" and that will give you a good base coat fo any type of paint. It works well on all materials and leaves a smooth coat try it you will most likely find the results are vastly improved. I have used them on your wagon kits that i have made and the end result was a good coat with no bubbling or pooling of the paint
Mark
Mike, you said that the bubbling had gone down after a few hours. I have seen the same thing on a 'POWsides' wagon which I overcoated with Humbrol matt varnish. The bubbles disappeared completely after 24 hours and the finished side is still well-attached after many years.
Maybe leave it a while and see what happens?
Ted
Thanks Ted, that's very encouraging and amazing!
Mike