Hi everyone.
Has anyone used Eagle Strike and Super Scale decals? If so, can anyone recommend which decals are “better”. I know this is a loaded question, but I’m looking at one particular a/c…F-14 in VF-103 “Jolly Rogers”; I’ve been commissioned by my boss to build an F-14 in Jolly Rogers markings.
I’m looking at Eagle Strike # 48166 and Super Scale # 481009.
Any input will be greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone!
Mitch
I’ve read good things about both manufacturers…That’s a tough call…preference and decide who offers better reference on painting and decal placement…I always like when the decals come with a color reference guide…
Good luck.
Tank
I have used decals from both manufacturers and had no issues at all with either. I notice that Aeromaster/Eagle Strike tends to give you color instructions and a little detail on the plane featured, while Super Scale generally gives you B/W instructions and little in the way of history. The decals themselves are both very nice.
I agree that eagle strike decals are easier to place and more interesting to use
because of the color instructions, information, and paint guide…This is probably
why a difference in price between these and super scale…It seems super scale
has a larger line of decals…and I guess if I had to choose for ease of placement
and color advise…I’d pick eagle strike over super scale…
Take care,
Tank
As far as quality goes, they are both excellent. The Eagle Strike package gives you more in the way of color guides & instructions, but at a higher price. Both sometimes make detail errors in the graphics, so check your references against the sheet.
Regards, Rick
I have used Super Scale extensively and have quite happy with them. My limited experience with Eagle Strike is good too. ES does a little better job of showing where the smaller decals are supposed to go.
Darwin, O.F. [alien]
In my corner it would be Eagle Strike/Aeromaster. I’m not familiar with either sheet that you’ve mentioned… don’t think I’ve held them in my hands and so cannot comment on either of them specifically.
But decals are a hobby within the hobby for me and I can say that if I were given the choice of these two sheets, sight unseen, I’d definitely pass on the Superscale sheet. All decal manufacturers make mistakes and produce a bad product now and again. Superscale, however, is more prone to this than the other ‘big names’.
Their instructions are infamous for factual and grammatical errors. Their artwork is a mixed lot… sometimes it’s very well done (aesthetically pleasing to the eye; many of the early Microscale sheets fell into this category) but in my opinion their artwork is poorly done more often than not. Quite often though, whether the artwork is well done or not, it tends to be just plain inaccurate.
Also, Superscale sheets are quite often badly printed; colors out of register (bad alignment), translucent decals (especially whites), pin-holes and inconsistent ink coverage and sometimes there are colors missing altogether. Some of these problems are less common than others, especially the latter couple. But registration and translucency problems are almost a hallmark of Superscale decals. When it all boils down, they seem to have poor quality control.
Eagle Strike/Aeromaster have produced a good number of sheets with errors in the instructions and on the decals themselves. But in general I’ve found their sheets to be fairly well researched and well printed almost without exception. (I own a total of four Eagle Strike/Aeromaster sheets which have been badly printed; out of more than 500 sheets, that’s a pretty good ratio I’d say)
There is no comparison in artwork, however. With the exception of a few of their very early sheets, Aeromaster/Eagle Strike’s artwork is excellent.
They do have a few things to learn about spelling and grammar, though. And now and again they get their facts mixed up. But on the whole I see Eagle Strike/Aeromaster decals as being vastly superior to Superscale in pretty much every respect.
Now, if some or all of this doesn’t really matter to you then I’d say it’s a toss up because as far as performance goes they both perform very well. At least I’ve never had any problems with either manufacturer, but it kinda depends upon who actually printed the decals. Superscale decals have been printed exclusively by Microscale. Eagle Strike farms out the printing to a number of companies, including Cartograf and a company in Mexico, the name of which escapes me. I have not used any of the Mexican-printed decals but I have heard some not-so-nice things about them as well as about the Cartograf decals.
In the end, on all counts, I suppose it’s just a matter of personal preference and standards…
Fade to Black…